The Children's Tree

A great tree stood before Rani, as she stepped ashore. The sand squished, coarse, between her toes; and she knew she was finally home. After four harsh years on the open ocean, it felt amazing to stand on solid ground again. Her heart was thundering with joy and excitement, her stomach turning somersaults with trepidation. How can such conflicting emotions exist? Well, Rani is the small, unimpressive cast-off child of two Kanto Indians. She was sent away from her family when she was just 10-years-old, due to the one-child policy of her village. Her parents wanted to have a boy, so she was sent into the ocean on her own. The only way to survive: a small boat, a salt water purifier, and a simple fishing rod with line and hooks. The journey was difficult, but Rani was stronger than she appeared, and thus was able to sustain herself for those long years. Now, she has finally reached her destination: an exceptionally large tree seeming to grow straight from the ocean itself. This tree has always been known as Kinders Boom Huis, or The Children’s Tree Home. All the unwanted children from around the world gather here to live a life where someone may love them. However, they cannot stay here forever, for when they turn 21, they must fend for themselves, finding a new home, and, hopefully, creating a new civilization where children will not be abandoned by their parents. Children live in the leaves on this island, as one leaf is the size of a hammock. Rani was thrilled to interact with others now that she was here. Everyone was so kind to her, making sure she had fresh water and a warm place to sleep, unlike the boat she had slumbered in for what seemed like an eternity. One day, not too long after arriving on the island, Rani met Dakarai, who would become her best friend. He was 14, as she was, and his name, meaning happiness, is just what he brought her. Rani learned to run and play, to have fun, to be a child. She learned that the whole world was not bad. People would visit, sometimes, from the neighboring civilizations, to show them just what they could become in their later years. These visitors taught them that their parents were the minority. Others would have loved them unconditionally, whereas their parents just threw them to the sea.

There is no happy ending to this seemingly perfect existence, however. Rani grew older and, just as she was to leave the tree forever, it was attacked. The long forgotten parents of these abandoned children had been punished by their god, for they were no longer able to bear children. The children were kidnapped and taken back to their home. There, their parents forced them to be their slaves, or sold them into marriage. Kinders Boom Huis was abandoned, and it sits in the ocean, lonely. Sometime in the future, new children will find it, and it will be full of laughter and love once more.