Her Flowering Thoughts

     "One, two, three..."
     The small girl counted the poppies in the vast field as she was dreaming of her future.  As she continued to pick the flowers and carefully position them in the bouquet she gently held in her left hand.  Even though she was standing alone in the sea of red flowers and wheat colored grass, she continued to express her feelings aloud because she knew, even at her young age, that it does not matter what others think. 
     The petite, toe head girl with her bangs pulled back stood quaintly wearing a green and white striped summer dress.  This young girl had older siblings and as she contently examined each flower extensively, she could imagined being older.  The only moment she could envision was when she could ride her bike down the road by herself, without training wheels, just like her sisters. 
     "I want to grow up and be a doctor that helps babies."  She said as she delicately chose another flower to add to the bunch she was composing.
     "I wish I could just be all grown up right now."  Quietly mumbling to herself in a dejected tone. 
     "Grown ups can do and buy everything they want.  Mommy always tells me no when I want something, but she is always buying things!  It's not fair."
     As she continued to think of all the reasons she wanted to grow up, she began to think about becoming a pediatrician one day.  Just like before, she treated the flowers extremely delicately, but as she conceptualized her future, she began to examine each one elaborately.  She handled each blossom as the babies she hoped to one day deliver. 
     "When I'm a big girl, I'm going to get to be around babies EVERY DAY!" 
     She fantasized about those days, and as she did so, she started to lay each individual poppy on the ground and forming a cradle around it.  She treated the flowers gently and as though they were all her future patients.
     "Shh, baby, it will be okay," she faintly mumbled and tenderly patted her patient as she moved on to the next crib she was forming.  She proceeded to form more and more beds for all of her 'babies'. 
     Once she had completed her task, she went back to where she had stared at her first 'crib'.  She carefully gathered the flowers, one-by-one, to take back to her mother who would be patiently waiting on the porch where she had been when her youngest daughter had left to frolic through fields of flowers.