The Magic Bush Fable

By
Bonnie Parham Lee
Unpublished Copyright 1996

     On a bright sunshiny morning in June as the 
mayor of Smalltown, population 133, strolled across 
the town square, he noticed right in the middle of 
the square, a beautiful rose bush.  "I wonder who 
planted this," he wondered.  The roses were large 
and lush.  He leaned over the bush, oh, what a 
lovely scent.  He felt wonderful!  

     Mr  Foodstuff, on his way to his grocery store, 
stopped beside the Mayor and leaned over to smell 
the roses.  He too enjoyed the rich rose scent, and 
felt perkier than he had in weeks.  

     A few minutes later Mrs. Murphy on her way to 
the Post Office, gloried in the glorious roses.  She 
too enjoyed the rich rose scent, and her spirits 
lifted immediately.  

     All day the townfolk, as they heard of the rose 
bush, came by to see and smell.  They all went on 
feeling so much better than they ever had, and this 
included the town grouch whose name, can you 
believe, is Mr. Meriweather.  No one knew where the 
bush came from, or how it came to be planted in 
their town square.  Since it made them all feel so 
well and happy they really didn't care who or 
where.  After a week they were calling it the Magic 
Bush.  One smell a day created the happiest 
township in the country.  
  
     On the second day of the second week they came 
together in the square, and found some of the roses 
had been nipped off.  They were shocked, some cried, 
some swore.  Then a little boy shouted "Look!" 
Standing at the edge of the square a deer chewed 
quietly.  A few rose petals drifted to the ground.  
   
     "You thief" the townsfolk cried as they ran 
toward the deer.  The deer lifted his head high, 
and pawed the ground as he moved toward them.  They 
stopped in awe as he shook his large golden antlers. 
Little pieces of gold flew in all directions.  Oh, 
what a sight; the golden shower, the towns folk 
gathering the gold pieces shouting, "Why it's reaL, 
it's really real.  A magic rose bush, now a magic 
deer, oh how rich we are."  

     They gathered together counting the gold pieces 
and exclaiming to each other about what they had 
seen.  The Mayor called for their attention. "We 
must protect the rose bush, no one must go near it, 
we might accidentally damage it.  No more smelling, 
we must save it for the deer, so there will be more 
gold.  We will be the richest little town in the 
world and we must keep it a secret."  

     For three days the deer came to eat the roses, 
and tossed golden pieces from his antlers around the 
town square.  The townsfolk were very careful not to 
go near the magic rose bush.  They did, however, 
become crabby and sometimes fought over the gold, 
but even then they did not go near the rose bush.  

     Came the fourth day.  The rose bush, lacking 
the attention and admiration it so loved, withered 
and died.  The deer with the golden antlers 
disappeared.  

     The moral?  Don't forget to stop and smell the 
roses on your way to pick up the gold.  
  

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