The Princess and the Peace

By Sophia de Castro

 

Once upon a time,

There was a princess

Who dreamt of the day she would sleep peacefully,

Unbothered by the peas underneath her mattress.

 

The princess’s mattress laid piled high

On top of thousands of other mattresses,

Trying to suppress the feeling of

The peas.

 

Every night,

However,

The princess would fail to sleep in peace,

Twisting and turning

As she felt each and every pea,

 

A symbol of the lack of peace

A symbol of the lack of equality

A symbol of the lack of justice

 

In the world.

 

 

 

Then,

One night,

When the princess,

Yet again,

Failed to sleep in peace,

She jumped down from her mountain of mattresses.

 

One by one,

The princess removed each of her mattresses

And placed them in a pile nearby.

 

When only one mattress remained,

The princess faced the pile of peas that had prevented her from a peaceful sleep.

 

The princess,

In dire need of such peaceful sleep,

Did not turn to the nearby pile of mattresses,

Now free of peas,

For rest.

 

Tonight,

Instead,

The princess turned to the pile of peas

Twisting and turning

As she crushed each and every pea,

Conquering the peas,

 

A fight for peace

A fight for equality

A fight for justice

 

In the world.