📗 The Garden of Dreams
From the Luminous Treasure Series
By Obasi Laura C.
Every morning, Amadike rose before the sun. He swept the palace garden, watered the plants, and carefully tended the King’s precious seeds.
Though he missed school, the garden had become his classroom. He learned the names of flowers and herbs, how to mix soil, and how sunlight and rain made things grow.
The royal gardener, a kind old man named Papa Rufu, noticed Amadike’s dedication.
“You have good hands, my boy,” Papa Rufu said one morning. “The plants listen to you.”
Amadike smiled. “Maybe it’s because I listen to them too.”
One afternoon, while digging behind the tool shed, Amadike discovered a small, forgotten corner of the garden. It was wild and overgrown—but something about it called to him.
He asked Papa Rufu, “Can I care for this part of the garden?”
Papa Rufu nodded. “If you clean it, it’s yours.”
So every day after his chores, Amadike returned to the little patch. He cleared weeds, tilled the soil, and soon planted a few royal seeds he had been given as a gift for his good work.
The space became his own—his garden of dreams.
Weeks passed. Then, something strange began to happen.
One evening, as the sun dipped low, Amadike noticed a soft glow in his patch. The leaves of the plants were shining—faint but beautiful, like stars trapped in green.
He rubbed his eyes. “Is it magic?”
He ran to fetch Papa Rufu. But when they returned, the glow had vanished.
“Maybe you imagined it,” Papa Rufu said gently. “Or maybe this garden is trying to tell you something.”
Amadike didn’t know what it meant, but he felt a growing wonder inside.
One morning, the King came to inspect the garden.
When he reached Amadike’s patch, he paused. “Who planted these?”
Amadike stepped forward. “I did, Your Majesty.”
The King studied the plants, then smiled. “These are unlike any I’ve seen.”
That night, Amadike crept out again, curious. As the moonlight touched the plants, they glowed brighter than ever—and this time, the light formed a shape.
A symbol—like a tree with a golden fruit.
His heart pounded. Was this the beginning of the luminous treasure?
From that day, the King gave Amadike permission to study special seeds. He was given books and tools, and his small patch became a place of discovery.
The other workers began to notice the boy with the glowing garden. Some were amazed. Some were jealous. But Amadike stayed humble.
At night, he still dreamed of school. Of helping his village. Of doing more.
And as his plants stretched toward the sky, so did his hopes.
The treasure had not yet come. But something was growing—inside him and all around him.
Something magical.
Something true.
Something waiting.
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