The Tree That Gave the World Its Light

🌳✨ The Tree That Gave the World Its Light

Category: Fiction / Fantasy / Mythic
Word Count: ~850 words


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Long Before the World Went Silent…

Before machines hummed and cities swallowed the sky, the world was lit by a single source:
The Heartroot Tree.

It stood alone in the middle of an endless valley, roots buried deep into the soul of the Earth, branches rising into clouds no one could touch.

But it didn’t just give fruit or shade.
It gave power.
Not electricity. Not fire.
But the kind of power that made people kinder.
That healed grief. That restored balance.

From every leaf, a light shimmered. From every petal, hope grew.

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The Gift of the Tree

The Heartroot Tree gave its power in silence.

Whenever a child cried from loneliness, the wind near the tree would whisper comfort.
Whenever someone lost their way—spiritually, emotionally, or literally—the golden leaves would fall and lead them home.
Whenever a village suffered, the tree would bloom early, its flowers releasing a scent that soothed anger and fear.

No one knew why the tree existed.
But everyone knew: without it, the world would fall apart.


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The Day the Leaves Stopped Falling

One day, the leaves stopped falling.

No golden glow.
No whispers in the wind.
No guidance.
No healing.

The tree stood still—alive, but quiet.

A coldness crept across the valley.
Storms came earlier. Crops failed.
People grew bitter. Fights broke out over small things.
Children stopped laughing. Lovers stopped writing poems.
Even the stars, once bright above the tree, began to fade.

The world began to forget what light felt like.


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A Child Named Solen

But not everyone forgot.

In a quiet village near the base of the mountain, a child named Solen remembered.
She had once fallen asleep under the Heartroot Tree and dreamed of her mother—who had died before she could speak.

In that dream, her mother had kissed her forehead and whispered, “As long as this tree lives, so will love.”

So when the world began to darken, Solen made a promise:
“I’ll find out what the tree needs. I’ll help it heal.”

The village laughed. “You’re just a child. The tree is ancient. What can you do?”

But Solen didn’t answer.
She just began to walk.


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The Journey to the Tree

The tree had become harder to reach.
Once it welcomed visitors. Now, winds pushed travelers back. Shadows danced across paths that used to be warm and open.

But Solen walked.
Through rain. Through snow.
She fed birds. She whispered to animals. She picked up stones and cleared paths.
She gave kindness, even when no one was watching.

And finally, after days and nights that blurred together, she stood at the base of the silent tree.

It was still beautiful.
But it looked tired.


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The Question That Opened Everything

Solen placed her hand on the bark and asked only one question:

“What did we forget?”

The ground trembled gently.
A leaf, golden but faint, floated down and touched her palm.

In that moment, Solen saw everything.
Generations of people taking from the tree, asking, hoping, wishing—but never giving back.
Not even a thank you. Not even a moment of stillness.

The tree hadn’t stopped giving.
It had simply grown lonely.

It had given everything—and no one had loved it in return.


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The Gift She Gave

Solen sat beside the tree for seven days.
She didn’t ask for anything.

She told the tree stories.
She sang lullabies her mother once sang.
She cried.
She laughed.
She placed her small, warm hands on its bark every morning and whispered:
“Thank you for everything.”

On the seventh day, a bloom opened at the top of the tree.

Light exploded across the valley.
Warmth returned. The golden leaves rained again.
Villagers woke to laughter they hadn’t heard in years.
Grief lifted. Eyes sparkled.


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The World Remembered

People from far and wide came to the valley, amazed.
“What happened?” they asked.
“What did she do?”

But Solen didn’t speak.
She simply pointed to the tree—now glowing brighter than ever—and smiled.

A plaque appeared on the roots of the tree the next morning.
Carved into it were words no one had seen before:

> “Power does not come from taking.
Light does not grow in silence.
Love only lives when it is returned.”



And from that day on, once every year, people from all lands would visit the Heartroot Tree—
Not to ask. Not to beg.
But to give.

A song.
A flower.
A story.
A moment of gratitude.

And the tree never dimmed again.