fairy tale for the discarded

fairy tale for the discarded

once upon a time 
there was a little cloth doll that emerged from the assembly line slightly unstitched and slightly askew. errant strings stuck out of its sides and unnecessary  stuffing peaked from behind its plastic eyes.

with one look from the line supervisor it was tossed to the recycle bin. 
where it would have been lost forever had it not been for its cockeyed weight, which caused the doll to hit the side of the bin and flop to the floor. countless feet then kicked and shuffled it around until it eventually found a dusty corner for a rest stop. 

the factory was shut down in the evening and darkness slowly rose to power. the rats and roaches came out to roam, to gnaw and to gather, and spiders skittered across the doll like never ending shivers. hope was nearly lost to the ravages of misfortune…and the doll endured all.	 

finally, the lights crackled on as the cleaning crew arrived with the dawn. 
but this was no reason to rejoice. they had brought with them a terrible abomination to life, one that made a destructive racket as it swept across the floor and yanked the doll from its corner. 

the roar of the monster was deafening. it mounted in frustration as this stubborn doll refused to be devoured. this little doll that was unworthy of the price tag was defying the maw of this monster with every fiber of its stuffing. 
an epic struggle ensued until the creature sputtered and choked, until smoke escaped from all sides, and the defiant doll was spat out.

an enlightened eye saw what everyone else missed, and the doll was grasped with curious hands. hands that were as rough and cracked as the doll was malformed, hands that had nightly coaxed a child to sleep and kept the place of comforts they could not afford. 
hands that then carried this doll home to happily ever after. 

09/04/12
M. L. Michael 

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