Day 6: 13 November 2025

Short Story -- Leafing the Nest

In the summer it was easy to feel a part of the community here. Everyone was close by to each other, which made them close as friends, too. Sure, there were arguments. There always are. But everyone tended to get along and cared for one another. In the summer, everyone was in their prime, looking and feeling their best.

But everyone knew that autumn followed summer and that was a sobering thought for this community. Although some would leave to go on fantastic adventures, it was tempered with the fact that many wouldn’t. Either way, the community as they knew it would dissolve.

And it was on a fine, sunny early autumn day that Rhea began to contemplate what her own fate would be.

She looked around and noticed that most of the community had already departed.

‘I wonder what will happen to me?’ mused Rhea.

‘Death comes for us all in the end,’ said Jake, known for being a pragmatist. ‘So why worry?’

‘I didn’t say I worried. Only wondering,’ Rhea corrected.

‘Wondering won’t change the outcome either,’ replied Jake.

‘But there’s no harm in wondering,’ chimed in Hazel. ‘I, also, wonder what my future holds.’ Her eyes sparkled. ‘I hope it’s travel! I would dearly love to see the Eiffel Tower or the Sydney Opera House.’

Jake rolled his eyes. ‘Even if you do travel, I highly doubt it will be so far as Sydney.’

‘You never know,’ answered Hazel. Always cheerful she wasn’t ready to give up on her dreams just because they might not be possible. Life was too short not to dream. And life was too short to give up on said dreams. Hazel looked at Rhea, ‘Where would you like to go, if you travel?’

Rhea blushed. ‘Honestly, I think we live in the most beautiful place already. We have mountains and locks. There’s all sorts of wildlife: otters, ducks, foxes, deer, raccoons…’

Some clouds drifted across the sun and a chilly breeze began to blow. Rhea, Jake and Hazel all started to shiver.

The breeze whisked Jake away. ‘Good bye!’ he called back to them.

Then Hazel shook free and was carried off. ‘Good luck!’ she called back to Rhea.

‘I hope you see the Eiffel Tower or Sydney Opera House!’ Rhea called back, even though she wasn’t certain her friend could hear her anymore.

It was just her now. Rhea had never been alone before.

Another gust of wind stirred the air. Rhea was torn from her home and dropped to the ground.

‘Perhaps some of us are just meant to put down roots,’ she thought.

She was happy for her friends, Jake and Hazel. They were so bright after all! Jake was a deep red and Hazel a brilliant yellow. ‘You never know at the start what colours the leaves will turn,’ she mused to herself. ‘But they are always stunning!’

Hazel pulled her cap closer to herself. She nestled into the dirt. ‘Yes,’ she thought, closing her eyes. ‘Leaves are light and bright. It’s good for the them to travel. But we acorns. We are meant to stay.’

Her eyes were heavy now. ‘And though my acorn self may die, I will become a mighty tree. And I will live for years and be a home to many before my time is done.’

She smiled. ‘It’s also a good thing.’

And she fell asleep dreaming of all the memories and stories she’d be a part of while rooted to one spot.