Grand’ma, do you have secrets?

She smiled at the little girl’s question. Of course, she had secrets, who didn’t? Lilly had a fixation on the concept of secrets, since she had gotten in a little fight with a friend at preschool. From what she had understood, the said friend had told Lilly a secret, that she just didn’t manage to keep.

She tried to explain, as well as she could, the importance of keeping secrets except with one’s parents, of course. But the five years old seemed to have trouble dealing with the excitement of holding information others didn’t know about.

But, Granny, how do you do?

She got up and told Lilly to go get her coat. They dressed up for the early spring frisky weather, and headed for the forest. After a short walk, they stopped in front of a tall oak tree.

Wow Granny!! That’s a biiiig tree!

Lilly danced around the trunk, asking what this tree had to do with keeping secrets…

Oh yes, but it was a lot smaller, when I was a little girl like you. You see that hole in the bark? – Lilly nodded –  That’s the tree’s ear… When I have a secret I can’t tell anyone, but that I really itch to talk about, I come here and tell my secret tree.

She leaned toward the trunk, and whispered something, her lips almost brushing against the bark.

See Sweetie? Trees are the best secret keepers!

And she winked at her grand daughter. A little puzzled at first, Lilly’s eyes brightened when she understood her grand mother’s trick.

What did you tell the tree, Granny?

She picked the girl from the ground, and rubbed her nose to Lilly’s.

I can’t tell you… It’s a secret!

They giggled their way back to the house.

Via Fandango’s Flash Fiction Challenge