February Prompt — Is Kindness Enough?
“The kindness and love we use to water your heart, nothing good has come from it in more than twenty years,” Velma said heading out.
“Please be careful,” twelve-year-old orphan Glenda begged as they watched Velma as she walked towards Nelson Supermart.
Five minutes later she came out, smiling.
“Dinner is served,” she said as they walked towards the park, Melba, Glenda, and Christina followed.
“Careful girl,” Velma begged Glenda when it was her turn to steal food for them.
When it was Melba’s turn, as they sat in the park, eating, Velma complained, “When we steal food, you are the only one that doesn’t share equally. That’s not fair.”
“I agree,” Glenda said, “We all take the same risk.”
“And will share the same penalty,” Christina adds.
“That’s my way,” she defends. “I always steal more than all of you anyway.”
“But we share everything we get from everyone equally with you and every opportunity you get to cheat us you take it,” Velma complained.
“Why?” Glenda asked. “We have no parents or anywhere to live. We love, support, and look out for each other always.”
“Sorry cats, but it’s a dog-eat-dog world,” Melba said.
“You are twelve years old, what do you know about the world,” Christina asked.
“Ask me that in twenty years when I am rich and powerful and you all have to be working for me!” she said, biting into the extra chicken thigh. “Your kind of personality can’t survive in the real world.”
“What kind of personality are we?” Velma demands angrily.
“Kind-hearted suckers,” she said biting into the extra chicken leg.
More than twenty years later.
“Sorry,” Velma said, heading for the exit. “But I am not watering any more dead plants.”
“Wait for me,” Glenda called out.
“Me too,” Christina followed.
“Is that what I am to you?” she calls out. “A dead plant?”
“The kindness and love we use to water your heart for more than twenty years, nothing good has come from it,” Velma said heading out.
“You three are really leaving me in hell?” Melba called out.
Velma paused at the door. Glenda and Christina halted their steps and slowly turned as Velma did. She strolled over to Melba and said, “All of our lives we have been generous, forgiving, and understanding to you. You returned nothing and still cheat us when you can.”
“You owe each of us $2,500 from the art competition we won,” Christina reminds her.
“Yeah,” Glenda jumps in. “That money should have gone to the orphanage that took us in and you kept it for yourself. We give you affection and graciousness for more than two decades.”
“I know, why do you think we remain friends all of these years,” she said smiling.
“But you have never returned any of it to us,” Glenda threw out.
“Or to anyone else,” Velma went back into their childhood. “Not even the stray dogs and cats we feed. You give nothing to anyone.”
“All that appreciation and generosity meant nothing to you,” Christina said.
“All I need is $8,000,” Melba said ignoring them.
They stared at her in silence.
“Come on guys, kindness is your thing and I need some now,” she begged. “They are going to take my car and I need it to go to work,” she pleads as they turn to walk away.
At the exit, Christina said, “I agree with Velma. For twenty years all of the good intentions we shared with you from when we were twelve years old and living on the street, you gave nothing back. You are still dishonest and greedy.”
“But that’s how the world is,” she defends.
“We live in the same world you do!” Glenda reminds her.
“And we don’t cheat or steal from the ones that are good to us,” Christina said.
“Are you aware that no matter how you deceive and thieve, your actions don’t improve your life,” Velma asked.
“Yeah,” Glenda agrees. “All of the dishonest things you did, your life is always filled with misery and pain.”
“It’s like there is a lock on your heart preventing the good from entering, but somehow manage to store and send out bad intentions,” Velma said
“Don’t you have any other friends you can borrow money from?” Glenda ask.
“I owe them,” she revealed.
“Couldn’t you have paid them out of the money you cheated the orphanage?” Velma asked.
Melba’s eyes widen, “what did kindness and honesty get you?” she screamed.
“We can’t run out of people to help us up when we fall,” Christina said.
“Our good name can take us places you can’t go,” Glenda shares.
“It’s our good name why you weren’t sued when you cheated us of our part of the prize money that should have gone to the orphanage,” Velama notified.
Her mouth dropped and her eyes expanded wider.
“We are no longer watering dead plants. If the kindness and love we have been giving you for more than twenty years can’t change you into someone better, nothing we do will,” Velma said walking away. Glenda and Christina were behind her.
Christina turned at the exit and said, “I guess kindness wasn’t enough.”
“But how,” Glenda asked as they walked out. “How can kindness not be enough to change and improve a heart?”
All of us have people in our lives, the kindness they get is not enough to change or improve them.
I have people in my life, the kindness and love they get, take, use, and live on, means nothing to them. They take, cheat, and scheme and their lives don’t improve.
Giving them Kindness is like watering a dead plant.
If kindness can’t improve their hearts, nothing will.
Is Kindness enough?
This Prompt is asking: If kindness isn’t enough to change and improve a heart, what will?
Be creative, innovative, and truthful too. Write a poem to show how imaginative you can be.
Let your heart speak!
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