Deep in the warm, dark earth, a small seed awoke. It was a little bean, and she named herself Beanie. She stretched, yawned, and pushed out a tiny root to drink some water. Then she sent up her first green shoot, which broke through the soil and looked curiously at the world. "Wow, how beautiful!" Beanie whispered to herself as the first ray of sunshine caressed her. All around her was green grass, bees were buzzing, and white clouds floated across the sky like puffs of cotton wool. She felt strong and full of joy. Every day she grew a little, and her stem became longer and longer.
One day, however, a stronger wind began to blow. Beanie swayed and nearly touched the ground. "Whoops!" she yelped in fright. "I'm like a thin piece of string. What if the wind breaks me?"
Just then, a wise old earthworm named Rainy was crawling by. She poked her head out of the ground and spoke with a smile, "Don't be afraid, little one. You're not like the grass that just bends. You are a climbing plant. You need something to hold onto." "Hold onto? But how?" Beanie asked, confused. "I don't have any hands." "Oh, but you do," Rainy laughed. "Just take a good look. Soon you will grow special searching fingers. They are called tendrils." With these words, she crawled back into her underground home.
Beanie was curious. She waited all day, and sure enough! Tiny, thin green threads began to sprout from her stem. They were like curious little hands that reached out into the space and began to twist and feel everything around them. She named the first one Searcher. "Alright, Searcher, go for it! Find me something sturdy," Beanie encouraged him.
Searcher stretched out and touched a clump of soil. He slowly began to wrap himself around it. It almost seemed to work, but the clump was dry and crumbly. It crumbled to dust, and Searcher swung helplessly in the air. "Never mind! That was just the first try," Beanie told herself bravely. "Now we know that soil isn't a good support. We'll try something else."
The second tendril, which she named Grabber, grew a little higher. Grabber looked around and saw a dry leaf lying nearby. It was large and looked strong. "Try that leaf, Grabber!" Beanie directed her. Grabber cleverly reached out and wrapped herself around the leaf's stem. "I've got it!" she would have cheered, if she could talk. Beanie was delighted and tried to lean on the leaf. But just then, the wind blew, lifting the light leaf into the air, and Grabber went for a ride with it as if on a carousel. Luckily, the wind died down after a moment, and the leaf fell back to the ground. "Phew, that was close," Beanie sighed. "So now we know two things. A support must not be crumbly, and it must not be too light. It has to be firm in the ground."
Beanie felt a little sad. She was already quite long and tired of lying on the ground. Her leaves were touching the damp soil and weren't getting as much sun as they needed. "What if I never find anything?" she whispered, her thin tendrils searching helplessly in the air.
Just then, the door of the house opened and two children, the siblings Mia and Alex, ran into the garden. "Look, Alex, see how nicely our little bean is growing!" Mia said, pointing to Beanie. Alex knelt down and looked at her closely. "Yes, but it's lying on the ground. You know what Grandpa said? That climbing plants need support so they can grow towards the sun." Alex looked around the garden, then ran into the shed and came back with a thin wooden stick. Carefully, so as not to damage the roots, he pushed it into the ground right next to Beanie. "There you go, little one. Now you can hold on," he said, gently stroking her leaf.
Beanie held her breath. Suddenly, her tendrils Searcher and Grabber felt something new. Something tall, firm, and rough. It was perfect! Searcher was the first to touch the stick. He felt it for a moment, as if checking if it was strong enough. Then, without hesitation, he began to wrap himself around it. Once, twice, three times! It formed a firm green spiral. Grabber joined in right behind him. Together, they hugged the stick as if they never wanted to let go.
How wonderful it was! Beanie suddenly felt stable and safe. With new strength, she straightened up and began to pull herself up the stick, higher and higher, straight towards the sun. Every new tendril that grew immediately found its place on the stick and held on tight. She was no longer lying on the ground. She grew proud and upright. Her leaves bathed in the sun's rays, and soon, beautiful white flowers bloomed on her, which later grew into long green pods full of new little beans.
Sometimes, when the wind blew, Beanie would only sway gently, held firmly by her wooden friend. She remembered her first failed attempts and smiled. Every attempt had taught her something. And thanks to them, she knew how important it is not to give up and to keep searching for the right way up.
What do you think, children, will you find any other little plants on your next walk in the garden that have clever little hands like Beanie? With your parents' help, try planting a pea or a bean in a flowerpot and place a stick next to it. You will see how they begin to climb it, all the way to the sky.