There Once Was A Boy Who Fell From The Heavens

The boy wandered the earth until he met a girl. This girl tells the boy that men have promised her the moon as proof of their love but never made good on their promise.

The boy asked, “What is this ‘love?’”

The girl replied, “It’s something you promise to give to another person.”

So he went up and retrieved a star for her. “Is this what you seek?” Shocked by his gesture, the girl gave her thanks and accepted the star. But the boy still felt like he did not understand what this “love” is.  So he wandered still and met another girl.

This girl tells the boy about her dream of the stars, and how she wishes for the galaxy.

The boy asked, “Have others promised you a galaxy as proof of their love?”

The girl replied, “Yes, but none have ever made good on their promise.”

And the boy went up to the stars, and for many months he was nowhere to be found. Until one day like a falling star, he fell from the sky holding a lamp.

The girl asked, “Where have you been?” With a smile, the boy replied, “I got you this.” and presented to her a galaxy trapped within a lamp. The girl was left speechless. And the boy simply smiled.

With a smile, the boy replied, “I got you this,” and presented to her a galaxy trapped within a lamp. The girl was left speechless. And the boy simply smiled.

But for some reason, the boy still felt like there was still something missing. In himself, he still felt a void. And so he left to wander off and find his purpose.

Years passed, and the boy met no one. Until he stumbled upon another girl sitting by an old oak tree on top of a hill. The boy asked, “Why are you sitting alone?”

The girl tells the boy that she comes to the tree to escape from the world. She tells him how men have come and go promising to give her love but never did. The boy was confused, “What is it they promised you but never acquired to give?”

As the sun set, the girl smiled and said, “Come back here tomorrow, and I shall tell you.”

Puzzled by this strange girl’s request, the boy came back the following day to find the girl beneath the same oak tree.

The boy asked again, “What was the thing you spoke of?”

The girl laughed and instead told him stories of her youth. And the boy told her stories of his youth. After exchanging stories, the boy asked again, “What is it they promised you but never acquired to give?”

As the sun set, the girl smiled and said, “Come back again tomorrow, and I shall tell you.”

Day after day, the boy kept coming back. The girl never addresses his questions but instead spoke of her fears, her troubles, her hopes, and her dreams, etc. and he spoke of his.

The more the boy came back, the less he asked the girl what was promised but never given.

Until the fateful day came.

The boy came by the old oak tree but the girl was nowhere to be found. Instead, he found a note.

“I am sorry, dear boy, for I left too soon. I wish I could have spent more time with you. I am sorry I kept this truth from you. I was terribly ill with only a few months to live. I would like to thank you for being with me and making me happy in my final days. The answer you seek is found in the days we spent together.

Men have promised me their hearts but gave none of their time when they knew of my sickness. But you, dear boy, you have given me all that you are; your time, your heart, and your soul. You have given me what others could not. Yourself.

PS. If you think of me, know that I am among the stars you look up to at night. Farewell, my dear boy“

The boy left with tears in his eyes, now knew the answer he once sought. In his sadness, he looked up at the sky and jumped as high as he could. There he stood among the stars for at long last, in meeting this girl he had found a purpose.

The greatest thing a boy could give a girl was not the stars nor the moon, but one’s self. For love is the time you give to those dear to you.