The Green Ribbon
A Reimagining of “The Green Ribbon”
Jenny always wore a green ribbon around her neck.
She had it on the first day I met her.
She was sitting on a bench beside the school playground, her hair tied back, and around her neck was a thin green ribbon.
I thought it was just an accessory.
Like how some girls wore hair clips or bracelets—
I assumed Jenny simply liked ribbons.
We ended up in the same class.
At first, we barely talked.
But for some reason, I kept noticing her.
Jenny was quiet.
She smiled when others joked, and she read during lunch.
But the ribbon never changed.
Rainy days.
P.E. class.
School trips.
The ribbon was always there.
One day, I asked:
“Why do you always wear that ribbon?”
Jenny looked at me for a moment.
Then she said:
“I can’t tell you yet.”
I laughed.
I thought she was teasing.
As time passed, we grew closer.
We graduated middle school, then went to the same high school.
I asked her the same question many times.
“Can you tell me now?”
Jenny always gave the same answer.
“Not yet.”
Once, I reached out playfully to tug the end of the ribbon.
Jenny grabbed my wrist—harder than I expected.
She didn’t smile.
“You mustn’t untie it.”
After that, I never joked about it again.
We became adults.
We got marri