The Unlabelled Pot

Maryam found a small pot at her door, left by her neighbour before she went away. A slender stem with two leaves stood in the soil. Maryam looked for a label with the plant’s name, but found nothing. She placed it by the window, then waited for something to happen that would tell her what it was.

Days passed without a flower. Maryam moved the pot from one window to another, giving it more water whenever she worried. When one of the two leaves began to turn yellow, she asked the owner of a nearby plant nursery. He could not identify it from the photograph, but asked about the light and the soil. She went home, checked how damp the soil was, and gave the plant time between waterings.

By the time her neighbour returned, a new leaf had opened. The neighbour said the plant was basil and held one of its leaves close for Maryam to smell. Maryam smiled at the familiar scent, then looked at the new leaf. “I thought I first had to know what it would become,” she said. She placed the pot in the morning light, where it finally found its place.