The Girl and the Cherry Tree

A short children’s story

Denise Thong
5 min readNov 10, 2020

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Once upon a time, there was a little girl who had a loving father.

When she was five, her father had to go on a long journey.

Before he left, he handed her an envelop with a seed,

“Plant this seed my dear and one day it will grow into a great big tree. We will sit under its shade and enjoy its fruits together.”

The little girl was sad that her father had to leave but she was intrigued by the little seed.

She asked her mother, “What seed is this Mummy?”

Her mother replied emotionless, “I do not know.”

She brought the seed to the playground and asked the other little children what it was.

“A cherry seed. Most definitely, a cherry seed.” said the little boy with glasses.

“A cherry seed it must be then. Daddy loves me so much. He knows that love cherries.” she mused.

The little girl climbed up a hill and planted the cherry seed.

That night, she dreamt that the seed had grown into a magnificent tree and she was back in her father’s arms.

The little girl missed her father dearly.

Every night before she slept, she thought about the cherry tree and how happy she would be when her father returns home.

As the days went by, her visualisation of the cherry tree became clearer and more elaborate.

The tree had great big branches and luscious green leaves; glossy red cherries hung from its branches; brown squirrels with fluffy white tails scurried about it happily.

Her mother would lay out a nice yellow checkered mat and unpack a picnic basket as her father lifts her up on his shoulders to reach for the cherry fruits.

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Denise Thong

Counsellor, Writer (Christianity, Children’s short stories)