Little box

          In a very popular line of pizza stores the boxes were stacked in towers of different shapes and sizes, they had a purpose and all was well with their world, they were all happy little boxes.  All except one.

          Our little box wasn’t at all happy, he didn’t want to be a pizza box, he wanted to be more.

          The other boxes tried to comfort him at first, “but,” they exclaimed, “we’re not going to hold just any old pizza.”  They held their heads up high and puffed out their chests (as much as boxes can puff out their chests), “We’re going to hold Domino’s pizza”, they announced.

          Our poor little box wouldn’t be consoled,” I don’t want to be a pizza box,” he cried, “I don’t want to get hot and covered in tomato and cheese, you’re all going to get greasy and smelly and then get thrown into the trash,” he bellowed, “I want more!”

          Well that did it, our little box had stomped all over their feelings and the other boxes turned their backs on him, leaving him to sob alone.

          The tower of boxes slowly shrank as each box fulfilled its destiny and proudly carried a pizza each to their new addresses.  Our little box closed his eyes and clenched his teeth ready to face his fate … but wait … what’s this … he wasn’t opened and filled with a pizza, he was handed over the counter and given away … empty !

          He was carried out into the cold and wind, thankfully, it wasn’t raining.  Eventually our little box was carried into a big building where he was taken to a room and left on a table.  One or two people who walked through the room over the next few hours picked up the pizza box and shook it gently to see if there was a pizza inside, one person even opened it to make sure it was empty and eventually the box just sat alone while the clock ticked off the minutes as they went by.  It would appear that even though it was now the middle of the night, lunch time had arrived as the little box was moved out-of-the-way for an array of different food to be placed on the table and eaten, but there were no pizzas and before long the little box was again left in the quiet until morning arrived when he was bustled into a room full of lockers and placed on a chair.

          A large shopping bag was plopped on top of him but no sooner had it been unceremoniously dumped it was whisked away and taken out of the door while our box remained … on his own … sitting on the chair.

          A short while later something strange happened,  the little box was carefully lifted from the chair and tucked away gently underneath one of the locker units.

          There he sat all day, protected from the busy comings and goings of the day until night arrived once more, abandoned, and a little lonely with only the odd mobile phone singing out from a locker for company, he thought about the other boxes in the tower at the pizza place, he had wanted to be more than just a pizza box,  had he wished for too much?

          Our little box stayed safe in the dust underneath the lockers, night passed slowly in the quiet locker room but as morning approached people arrived for the start of another day.

          The little box wondered what was to happen to him, but his wondering was cut short by a huge sweeping brush sliding along against the wall and disturbing him along with the dust, he was taken out from his hiding place and propped up against the chair. The dust and debris was scooped up into a plastic bag and the little box braced himself, was this to be it, would he be crumpled into the bag and thrown into the trash?

          “No, my box.”

          The words filtered through to him.  Bewildered, he found himself again sandwiched between the chair seat and the shopping bag, but this time he was carefully lifted and carried away too, carried out into the cold damp air, but he didn’t mind, after the hours spent underneath the locker he could do with a little fresh air, he didn’t even mind that it was a little too fresh.

          Eventually he was taken into a warm house and placed on the floor next to a flat round object.  Was this it this time ?  Was he to be just a pizza box after all ?  He stole a look at the pizza next to him, wait, it wasn’t “just” a pizza, there was no cheese, no tomato, just a shiny green surface with golden coloured balls on top, this was no ordinary pizza, a pizza fit for a king, a royal pizza maybe.

          A few moments later the pizza was lifted up from the floor, not with a large flat paddle as the other pizzas had been so long ago in the shop, but by the centre, and as it was lifted above the little box he could see it was a christmas tree, fully dressed in its orange tinsel rope and gold baubles.

          The tree was lowered into the box and it collapsed back into its round pizza shape, the stand was added and the lid was closed…

          Not just a pizza box indeed … our little pizza box finally puffed out his chest in pride.  He was to guard the little christmas tree and keep it safe ready for its return for next year.