The Cactus Baby

Once upon a time a long time ago, a baby was born in a cactus patch. The baby's daddy didn't want her, the baby's mommy decided to leave and move far away. The baby missed her daddy, but her mommy was good enough for her. The baby grew up with 2 older sisters and 2 older brothers, and nieces that were older than her. Her nieces picked on her all the time and sometimes made her cry. They made her wish to be just like the cacti she was born around: able to thrive in one of the most extreme environments and with prickly thorns to protect her from harm. And even though her family was crazy, they loved her very much. 1

When the cactus baby was about 12, she went back to the cactus land and tried to make peace with her daddy's abandonment by living with him for a while. Things went okay at first, but her step mother and step sisters hated her, and her daddy didn't make things better. Daddies are supposed to make things better. But this daddy only made things worse. He began to hate the girl, seeing her as nothing but a shadow of her mother: a reminder to him that there were other people out there who disagreed with his beliefs and were still deserving of love. Yet again, the girl wished she was as solid and safe as the plant of her homeland. This didn't make the daddy very happy. The more the girl learned, the more she decided for herself. And the more she decided for herself, the less she listened to her daddy. And even though listening to her daddy was like being in prison, at least she was kept safe.2

So one night, the girl decided to go to her friend's birthday party, even when her father had insisted that she stay home. The girl never knew that something so innocent could be turned into something so violent. A man hurt the girl, this former cactus baby, and the girl could do nothing about it. 3

The girl came crying to her daddy, and got nothing but laughs and evil stares. The girl knew right then that since she was nothing to her daddy, her daddy was now nothing to her. This hurt the girl beyond belief, but it was like getting a thorn out of your foot after it has been there for so long... it was a tie that needed to be severed. Such a painful relief.4

The girl moved back to her mommy's homeland, and decided that she was going to be as tough and defensive as a cactus. Nothing could hurt her except for those few that were closest to her heart. No one could drive her away because this was now her home, and it belonged to her. No one could budge her frame of mind, because it was what kept her from being anything like her dumb daddy. She was maturing, and she was learning from every mistake she made.5

One mistake led her to move in with her sister. This mistake had her believing that there was a male out there who could love her, who could accept her. She moved to another part of this land of her mothers, and stayed in her sisters new village. The people were different, and so were her surroundings. But even so, she tried her best to make friends and hoped to earn kindness as she gave it. 6

For so long, she endured...until one day in the fall, not long after All Hallow's Eve, when the girl had her heart broken for the very first time. 7

The girl has since then moved on and learned even more about life, as she will continue to learn throughout her years. 8

To help her deal with the lonliness, the girl went walking one day and discovered a wonderful place. It was a giant electronic box. Living in the box was a snail, an oven, a jewel, a pirate, a piece of metallic acid, a knife that was made completely of sugar, a blue eye, a zombie, a bean and so many others, that she couldn't even see the back of the box. These characters became her friends, and she loves them to the end. 9

The snail is smart and funny, and even though it takes him a while to get to the box sometimes, it may be because he doesn't have feet. The oven has been completely on fire lately, and she is warm and bright because of it. The jewel is handsome and sincere, and even though too modest, still a very good friend to the girl. The pirate comes and goes, but he still is a hilarious and good natured guy. The piece of metallic acid sometimes looked like it's been blazed over for quite some time, but the girl learned from him that things aren't what they seem all the time. The knife is sweet as can be to the girl, although their first meeting had a sharp point to it. The blue eye can see all kinds of things, and the girl wishes that she could look at things as beautiful as the eye all day. The zombie must be a vegetarian, but the girl has found a real friendship with someone that she knew would never try to harm her, even as vicious as the zombie could be. The bean is very rational, but has a wild side to him that should be on his label, just in case someone tried to make coffee out of him and ended up with alot of strange desires and energy. She loves this box, and visits there to feel safe and loved.10

The girl is stuck now with one dream clawing at her subconcious. The girl now does not know what to do.11

In her dream, the girl is in the desert. Sand surrounds the girl as far as the eye can see, and the only thing else is one tall cactus. On one side of the cactus is a Priest, who is promising love in life and protection from all but himself. On the other side of the cactus is a God, who is promising love in death as well as life, and protection from any fears the girl may have. Both are promising to take her to a place where there is life, far away from this barren land. Both are beckoning to her, and yet all the girl can do is stare. The girl wants to focus on the cactus, wants to study it until her eyes burn. She knows that the cactus is what she's always wanted to be. If she leaves with either the Priest or the God, she will walk away from her one chance to fulfill this lifetime goal of hers. 12

This story has no end...13

And the girl needs to decide the next chapter.14

Should the girl go with the Priest, and worship the God secretly for the rest of her life? Should she go with the God, and forever be held away from the Priest?
Should she stand by the cactus, and start becoming the thing she has wanted to be since childhood?15

Or should she walk away from it all, out into the dry, barren land of the desert, not caring or wanting to find any other trace of human life, and never looking back?16

Tell her what you think.17

And remember:
The desert is no place for a snail.