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Once there were
three butterflies, a white, red, and yellow, playing in the
sunshine. Soon the rain fell and wet them and they hastened to fly
home, but the door was shut and the key was nowhere to be found, so
they went to the tulip, all gaily striped in red and yellow, and
said:
"Tulip open your flower a little, and will you kindly let me slip
in, out of the rain?"
The tulip said, "I will open to the red and yellow ones, because
they are like me, but I won't let the white one in."
Then the red and yellow butterflies said, "If you won't take in our
little brother we won't come in either, thank you." Now it rained
harder and harder, and they flew away to the lily.
"Dear lily, will you please let us in?"
The lily answered, "I'll let the white one in, because he is like
me, but I won't let in the other two."
Then the white butterfly said, "If my two brothers can't come in I
will not come in either, thank you."
So they all flew away together. Now the sun behind the clouds had
heard how the butterflies were true to each other, and shone out
again bright and clear, and very soon dried the wings of the three
butterflies. They danced once more over the flowers and played until
it was night, and then went home; the door was wide open, the last
sunbeam had opened it for them, in they flew and all went to bed.
Butterflies
A Fictional Short Story by
Agnes Taylor Ketchum & Ida M. Jorgensen
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