Once upon a time, in a beautiful field called Golden Grove, bees, birds, and butterflies lived together, sharing everything without fighting. The field was filled with dandelions, daisies, and all sorts of flowers that provided nectar and pollen for everyone. Even though the bees, birds and butterflies collected their food and returned to different homes, no one claimed anything for themselves. Instead, they made a beautiful blend of colours as they worked together. Everyone who passed by the field stopped and admired the harmony.
One day, Billy Bee decided to own all the biggest and brightest dandelions in the field.
“Mine, mine, mine,” Billy hovered over each flower yelling. When his bee friends saw that he had chosen the biggest flowers, they decided to join him.
Noticing what was happening, Bella Butterfly, a peaceful orange-spotted butterfly flew to him.
“I don’t think we should be divided. There is enough to go around,” Bella said softly.
“No,” Billy Bee replied firmly.
So, the field became divided between the bees and butterflies.
Bella Butterfly and her friends resorted to feeding on nectar from the remaining flowers that Billy Bee had not owned. These flowers were fewer and smaller but because they wanted to avoid problems, they decided to manage.
One day, the flowers in the field began to wilt. Bella and her friends, after running out of flowers, started searching for a different field. Eventually, they found one and began to gather pollen and feed on nectar. They would fly back and forth from their new secret place but they did not tell anyone what they had found. Meanwhile, Billy Bee and his friends fed on the wilting flowers until one day, they were completely gone and even Bella Butterfly was nowhere to be found, neither were the birds.
Golden Grove was now as quiet as a mouse. Birds no longer chirped, butterflies no longer flapped their wings and people stopped to admire the flowers.
“Why don’t we find Bella Butterfly, I think she has found flowers somewhere,” one bee suggested.
Billy Bee would not listen so they continued to fly to different fields but all the flowers were wilted. Soon Billy and his friends grew desperate. While they were flying in search of food one day, they came across Bella Butterfly.
“Hi Bella, can you please show us where we can get fresh flowers for food?” Billy asked.
“No,” Bella Butterfly replied. She was still hurt by Billy’s selfishness and didn’t want to share the secret. Billy flew away disappointed.
A wise bird called Barth who had noticed what had been happening between the bees and butterflies called Bella aside. “Billy is still your brother,” he said gently. “You have to be one another’s keeper. You have to do everything you can to keep the peace. Be kind, loving, and forgiving.”
“But he was mean to me first,” Bella Butterfly complained.
“Yes, but you shouldn’t return evil for evil. If someone hurts you, show them kindness instead,” Barth the bird advised.
After thinking about it, Bella Butterfly decided to fly back to Billy and share her secret. Billy was touched by her kindness and apologized for his selfish behavior. Bella forgave him, and together, they led all the bees to the new flower field.
The new field was vast with rows and rows of dandelions, daisies, and roses. There were even more birds and all sorts of living things. The place was colourful and the sun shone brightly. The bees realized that there was more than enough to go around and that there was nothing to fight about. Once more, the field was alive with the sound of birds chirping, bees buzzing and butterflies flapping their wings. Each one’s unique colour and task made the new field an attraction to people who walked by. Everyone had learned that they were each responsible for keeping the peace.
This story emerged as the 2nd place winner of the 2024 Wakini Kuria Prize for Children’s Literature.
Please click here to view the full list of the winners and to read their stories
