Behind the nine villages and nine forests there is one special field. There are flowers growing there that are beautiful, yellow and that can turn to follow the sun. It is a field of sunflowers. But what is also special about these sunflowers is that they can talk. They’re wise and always have good advice.
There are several small animals living in this field. For example, mice, beetles and various voles. They have their own little chambers in the ground and their own passageways that they walk through. The sunflowers give them shade so the little animals can get a break from the sun’s rays.
Once, a mouse and his mouse wife were running around in a field like this. They were running back and forth between the sunflowers, hiding in the chambers and jumping out again, enjoying the beautiful sunny day until one quick jump caused the mouse to land badly and injure his back paw. Now the poor thing was lying there, unable to stand on it.
His mouse wife immediately ran to him and tried to help him. She propped him up and together they walked home to his burrow where she gave him a good treatment and something for the pain. But a broken paw like that doesn’t heal quickly. So for a few weeks the mouse had to do all the work and still take care of her little mouse man.
As she walked among the sunflowers along the little beaten path carrying some food, all tired and sad, she began to complain, “I can’t do it anymore. It’s hard to do everything and help and take care of the mouse.” When she said this, she sat down wearily on a lump of dirt and just sighed to herself.
At that moment Sunflower leaned over to her and said, “My dear little mouse, be brave and strong. Your mouse man will soon be better and he will help you again. In the meantime, take example from us sunflowers. When the sun shines we are open and we turn to follow it. But what do we do when it’s ugly or raining?” “You are bent over,” replied the mouse. “Yes, we are,” continued the sunflower. “But few people know that the stronger sunflowers support the weak ones until the sun comes out again. Mouse, now is the time when you support your mouse man. It’s not easy, I know. But there will come a time when he will support you.”
Mouse smiled and, determined to make it through everything, went back to his little mouse. In a few weeks, Sunflowers could see the mouse and her mouse man underneath them again, running around and bouncing happily. Thanks to the sunflowers, the mouse never forgot how important it is to help and support someone.
