Deep, deep under the ground, a tiny brown bean seed lay sleeping in the dark, damp soil. It was warm and quiet down there. The little seed did not know that above, the whole world was waiting.
One day, something warm touched the earth above. It was the sun, shining down with golden fingers. The warmth crept slowly, slowly through the soil until it reached the little sleeping bean. The bean began to stir.
The bean seed yawned and stretched. Its brown coat cracked open just a tiny bit. Out poked a small white root, reaching downward like a little foot feeling for the ground. "I must hold on tight," the root seemed to say.
The white root grew longer and longer, pushing deeper into the dark soil. It spread out little root hairs like tiny fingers, grabbing hold of the earth. Now the bean seed had a strong anchor to hold it in place.
Then something green peeked out from the top of the bean. A pale green shoot! It pushed upward through the heavy, dark soil, squeezing past pebbles and around worms. Up, up, up it went, reaching for the light.
The little shoot pushed and pushed. The soil was heavy, but the shoot was strong. It bent its head like a tiny green hook and kept on climbing. It could feel the warmth getting closer and closer.
Pop! One bright morning, the green shoot broke through the top of the soil and felt the sunshine for the very first time. The warm golden light fell on its face, and the little sprout seemed to smile.
The sprout lifted its head and unfurled two round, green leaves — like two tiny hands opening wide to catch the sunlight. They were fresh and bright, and they drank in the golden warmth happily.
Then the rain came — soft, gentle silver drops falling from a friendly gray cloud. Pitter-patter, pitter-patter. The little plant drank the cool water, and its stem grew taller and its leaves grew bigger.
Day after day, the sun shone and the rain fell. The bean plant grew taller and taller. It grew new leaves and curly green tendrils that reached out and wrapped around a stick, climbing higher and higher toward the sky.
One morning, something wonderful appeared. Pretty white flowers opened along the bean plant's stem! They were soft and delicate, like tiny butterflies resting on the green vine. Bees came buzzing to visit.
And then, where each little flower had been, a small green bean pod began to grow. Inside each pod, new little bean seeds were sleeping — just waiting for their turn to be planted in the warm, dark earth and grow up too.
