Kelley Donovan

Fable

Dumbo the baby elephant was so smart when he was little. He could remember his timetables, his alphabet, and all his friends' names. But this also meant he remembered when people were mean to him. He grew up in a wonderful little jungle with only one school, one post office, and a beautiful water hole for all the elephants. But Dumbo’s life was not all fun and games.

“You have big ears! They look silly on you!” laughed the hyena. Dumbo did not understand the hyena. He was always laughing at Dumbo.

“But…but…” was all Dumbo could say before he started to cry. He was sensitive because what he heard was so different than anyone else. He could hear the feeling behind the words. Some people were in pain, and some people just wanted to be loved. The hyena wanted the latter.

“Momma?” Dumbo said to his mother.

“Yes, dear.” She replied.

“Why do I cry so much? When people say mean things to me, it hurts my feelings, but I feel something different too. I feel sorry for them because I feel that they are in pain somehow. I don’t understand?” Dumbo questioned, holding back the tears. Dumbo knew he could always turn to his mother. She knew exactly what to say, exactly when she needed to say it.

“Oh my sweet peanut. The reason you feel this way is because your little heart loves so many, and you can feel the pain of the world. Children are blessed with this gift. They can tell when someone is hurting, and people deal with it in different ways. Some laugh, some cry, some try to fix things. You deal with it by letting the tears trickle down your face, and that is fine.” Dumbo felt a lot better after his mother explained this, but he still didn’t understand something. His sister was ten years older than him, and he never saw her cry, laugh, or express any emotions.

“Momma?” Dumbo whispered.

“Yes, my little peanut?”

“How does Ellie deal with things? I never see her cry, laugh, or do anything.” His mother didn’t know how to explain this. Ellie had grown up too quickly. She forgot about her caring heart, and forgot about caring for other people.

“Well, sweetie,” began his mother, “Sometimes when people get older, it takes something really bad to make them cry. They forget about the love they have for others, and a huge catastrophe is the only thing that can affect them. Promise me that you will never forget your huge heart.”

“I promise.”

MORAL OF THE STORY:

The older you get, the worse something has to be to make you cry. (p. 219 #30 from Bud, Not Buddy)

Dumbo the little Elephant

The older you get, the worse something has to be to make you cry. (p. 219 #30 from Bud, Not Buddy)