Why Roses Have Thorns

Once upon a time, there was a wolf. Unlike other wolves, he traveled alone; no one knows why, but he seemed quite content to stay that way. He was by no means a selfish wolf, but he never had any reason to love or care of anyone else.1

One day during his travels, he came upon a flower garden. He had seen flowers before, so he thought nothing of walking through it. As he walked, he eventually got to the center of the garden, and in the very center was a white rose. Now, at this time all roses were white, but this rose was the most beautiful rose ever to grow. When the wolf saw the rose, he was so mesmerized by her beauty he stopped dead in his tracks. Never had he seen anything like it, and in his heart he knew he never would again. For you see, he had fallen in love with the rose, and although he knew he could never truly be with her, he vowed in his wolf tongue to serve and protect her as long as he lived.2

Many people do not know this, but every living thing has a spirit, and this rose was no different. She could not understand what the wolf spoke to her that day, but she did know it was something important. She had never seen a wolf before, so she did not think to be afraid. She merely watched him and waited. He ran off, to quickly return with a dead squirrel which he laid at her feet. The soil she rested in took from the squirrel and fed the rose. It was then that she realized his love for her, and she discovered she felt the same. She tried to tell him, but just as she couldn’t understand wolf, he couldn’t understand flower. After leaving his gift, the wolf left to hunt for himself, but he never went far from her.3

This went on everyday for some time until one day the sheepherder’s wife who grew the garden came to get some flowers to put in her house. The wolf saw her approach shears in hand, and fearing for his beloved lunged into the air and blocked her path. The terrified woman ran back in the house and told her husband what happened. The sheepherder grabbed his gun from the rack and went to kill the wolf. The wolf was just where his wife said he would be, standing in front of the roses as terrifying as Hell itself. The herder faltered, but only for a moment. He then raised his gun and shot the wolf right between the eyes. 4

The rose cried out in horror as he fell, and she begged her sisters to help her. All the roses in the garden stretched out and grew in answer to her plea until they completely covered the wolf. The herder was so frightened by the sight that he ran back to his house and didn’t’ come out again till daybreak. As it was well known then, flowers have magical powers, but the superstitious man did not seem to know that all their healing powers could not have harmed him. Despite their best efforts, the poor wolf died. The rose was so shattered with grief that she took his fangs and adorned herself with them to show she was in mourning. Her sisters were so moved by the display that they too adorned themselves with his fangs. And as each rose dipped her head to his mouth, blood from his wound fell upon their heads so that they all were stained red for the rest of their days.5

The wolf watched all this from Heaven and was filled with joy; for he was able to fulfill his vow to the rose even in death. With his body, she would be nourished, and with his fangs she would be protected.6

And so, that is why the rose has her thorns.