Once upon a time a little leaf was heard to sigh and cry, as leaves
often do when a gentle wind is about. And the twig said, “What is the
matter, little leaf?” And the leaf said, “The wind just told me that
one day it would pull me off and throw me down to lie on the ground!”
The twig told it to the branch on which it grew, and the branch told
it to the tree. And when the tree heard it, it rustled all over, and
sent back word to the leaf, “Do not be afraid; hold on tightly, and
you shall not go till you want to.” And so the leaf stopped sighing,
but went on nestling and singing. Every time the tree shook itself
and stirred up all its leaves, the branches shook themselves, and
the little twig shook itself, and the little leaf danced up and down
merrily, as if nothing could ever pull it off. And so it grew all
summer long until October. And when the bright days of autumn came,
the little leaf saw all the leaves around becoming very beautiful.
Some were yellow, and some scarlet, and some striped with both
colours. Then it asked the tree what it meant. And the tree said,
“All these leaves are getting ready to fly away, and they have put on
these beautiful colours because of joy.” Then the little leaf began
to want to go, and grew very beautiful in thinking of it, and when
it was very gay in colour, it saw that the branches of the tree had
no colour in them, and so the leaf said, “O branches, why are you
lead colour and we golden?” “We must keep on our workclothes, for
our life is not done; but your clothes are for holiday, because your
tasks are over.” Just then a little puff of wind came, and the leaf
let go without thinking of it, and the wind took it up, and turned
it over and over, and whirled it like a spark of fire in the air,
and then it fell gently down under the fence among hundreds of other
leaves, and began to dream--a dream so beautiful that perhaps it will
last forever.