Under the Plum Tree with Grandma

“The Last Lantern of Yunnan”

In a quiet village nestled among the terraced hills of Yunnan, China, lived an old woman named Nainai Mei. Her tiny cottage sat beside a clear stream, with rows of jasmine flowers blooming around it. Every child in the village called her "Lantern Grandma" because she made the most beautiful paper lanterns anyone had ever seen.

Every year during the Lantern Festival, Nainai Mei would light a special lantern for someone she loved — her late husband, her parents, and even her old pet cat. Each lantern had a story. But one year, she stopped making them.

The children noticed and asked, “Nainai, why no lantern this year?”

She smiled and said softly, “Because this year, I’m waiting for a story to come to me.”

Days passed. One day, a young city girl named Liling came to the village to stay with her uncle. She was always on her phone, annoyed by the slow village life. But when she met Nainai Mei, something changed. Nainai told her stories under the plum tree, showed her how to fold paper into shapes, and taught her to listen to the wind.

By the end of winter, Liling had stopped using her phone so much. She started helping Nainai cook dumplings, sweep the courtyard, and even paint lanterns.

On the night of the Lantern Festival, the whole village gathered as Nainai Mei lit a single, glowing lantern — brighter than ever before.

“This one,” she said, “is for a new story. For a girl who found her light in the quiet of our hills.”

Everyone clapped. Liling cried.

From that year on, Liling visited every winter. And the lanterns never stopped glowing.