The Tempest

He stood fearless as the storm raged. He could not give in to the dust and dirt that the storm wind threw at his face. He had atleast a dozen of lives depending on him. Everytime the wind hit him on his chest at the speed of a jet plane, he wished he didn't have to face it again. But everytime he thought of the lives that counted on his, he knew that he could bend but could not afford to break. As he looked around, all he could see was the dust that the wind carried with it.

He could not see his cousins who stood tall beside him amidst the choas. They had been with him for a very long time. He had lived there ever since the day he could remember. He didn't know who had given birth to him, who his parents were. All he knew was what he had learned from the ones that had loved him the most; his cousins. They had told him that if he had to survive, he would have to be big and strong. They told him that he was special. But he thought otherwise. He had a hard time learning the trick of the trade. Everytime he tried to surpass his cousins, every inch he grew taller, they made sure he wasn't the tallest or the strongest one among them. Every ray of sunlight was precious for them. Every drop of dew felt like Elixir of life. When he bent down, he could see nothing but darkness on the forest floor.

It was just like today. But for now, he could not see anything around him either. Dust had blinded him. Today he was holding his ground, fighting with the storm wind. But he didn't know how long he would last. His body was aching. The storm was breaking him from the outside. But he would not break from the inside.

Suddenly, he felt a shiny ray on him. The sun showered smiles on him through the gray clouds. Little drops of rain followed. The wind stopped blowing. The dust settled as the nectar like rain drops trickled down his bruised body. He could now see what the storm had left behind. He looked all around him. His great cousins had fallen. He was standing all alone. He felt like a man stranded in a desert.

Suddenly he realized that he had managed to protect the lives that depended on him. And as the birds spread their wings and flew off his branches, he could do nothing but smile. He then realized, what his cousins had told him had indeed been true. He really was special!