The Last Snowflake

"The Last Snowflake of Winter"

Softly, gently she floated downward.
Twirling, spinning and drifting toward the Earth.
Closer and closer she came, until she fell into the orchard.

Landing with a gentle plop, she settled on a soft pink flower petal.
"Welcome! Welcome!" her sisters cried.
She could see them resting on other pink petals.

She was the very last snowflake of winter,
falling onto the spring blossoms of a cherry tree.
It had been warm earlier in the week,
but a cold northern wind crept down for a last blast on the land.
There she lay swaying gently in the breeze on the smallest branch of the tree.

"You're so beautiful!" she cried to her sisters. "You're so lovely!"
They piled one atop the other in tiny white mounds on the flowers.
The sun came out and shone through them, making them sparkle brightly.

Hours passed and the sun crept higher.
"Oh no! I'm melting!" the snowflakes began to cry.
More and more of them melted, creating drops falling to the ground.

Soon, all the other snowflakes had melted
and the last snowflake was the only one left.
With a shiver, she melted into a dewdrop and fell to the ground.
Then like all the other snowflakes, she soaked into the earth.

The sun warmed the sky for more and more days.
As a reminder of all the beautiful snowflakes of winter,
The tree sent down a fluttering shower of pink petals.

Twirling, spinning and drifting toward the earth they fell.
Falling in clouds of petals, piling in pink mounds under the trees.
There the drifts rested, reminding the world of their beautiful ice-sisters.

In autumn, the leaves will fall from the trees.
Reminding us eternally of the beauty of the snowflake.
Until once again the last snowflake of winter drifts down.