What is wrong with Lolita?

By Ana Betancourt

Lolita has always been a very happy and clever girl, but today she seems different. She is very sad today. Nobody knows what is wrong with Lolita. Her friends came to visit her from school, and asked her if she was sick, and she answered, “No, I am not”. Her grandfather came to take her to eat her favorite dessert, but she didn’t want to go. Her favorite cousin came from a very far distance to invite her to go for a swim at her favorite beach, but she also refused that. “What is wrong with Lolita?,” everyone asked! Nobody knows what to do to make her feel better.

Her brother also shared a banana with her, but she didn’t want to accept it. “That is just completely shocking,” her brother said. “Lolita always fights with me to eat my bananas,” screamed his brother. “It is just very worrisome!” everybody said at the same time.

Then, her mother that had been watching Lolita and the whole situation finally approached the little girl and asked her, “What is wrong Lolita?”

Lolita didn’t want to say anything. She was sobbing and you could see that she was biting her lips so strong because she wanted to hold on to her feelings, and let nobody enter her heart. But mom kept staring at her with that loving and calming way that only moms know how to do, and it was then when Lolita gave in. She didn’t scream. She just whispered, “The butterfly didn’t come to see me today.”

“What butterfly?” asked her mother. “Mom, it is a beautiful butterfly that comes every morning to see me and flies around me”, replied Lolita. “Ah, that butterfly”, said her mother when she finally recalled having seen her fluttering around the house. “But why is so important to you?” asked her mother. Lolita then paused to think and exclaimed, “Mom, it’s her wings! I could imagine that I fly with her wings!” Lolita screamed really loud.

Then her mother smiled and with her hand on Lolita’s heart said, “My dear daughter if the butterfly forgets about you, use your own wings to fly.”

Lolita didn’t understand what her mother meant at first, but then everything became clear as a lightning flash. My mother wants me to use my own imagination to fly, thought Lolita. And with the biggest smile that she had ever shown to anyone said, “Yes, mother, I will do that. I will use my own wings to fly, and I will soar so high that I know with time I will meet other butterflies.”

From that time on Lolita was never sad again. She kept flying and believing that her wings were strong enough to make her fly. Some people said that the butterfly came back one day, but it was too late for her. But why? You may ask. Well, it was too late for her because Lolita had finally met other butterflies!

- Total nr. of readings: 4,525 Copyright © The author [2020] All Rights Reserved. This story may not be reproduced without the express written permission of the author except for personal use.