The Needle Tree

There were once two brothers who lived at the edge of a forest. The elder brother was very mean to the younger brother – he would eat up all the food and steal his good clothes. One day, the elder brother went into the forest to find some firewood to sell in the market. As he went around, chopping tree after tree, he stumbled upon a magical tree. The tree said to him, “Oh kind sir, please do not cut my branches. If you spare me, I will give you golden apples”. The elder brother agreed at first, but was left disappointed with the number of apples the tree gave him. Greed overcame him, and he threatened to cut the entire trunk if the tree didn’t give him more apples. The magical tree, instead, showered upon the elder brother, hundreds upon hundreds of tiny needles. The elder brother lay on the ground, crying in pain, as the sun began to lower down the horizon.

The younger brother grew worried and went in search of his elder brother. He found him lying in pain near the tree, with hundreds of needles on his body. He rushed to his brother and removed each needle, lovingly and gently. After he finished, the elder brother apologised for treating him badly and promised to be better. The tree saw the change in the elder brother’s heart and gave them all the golden apples they could ever need.

Moral of the Story

It is important to be kind and gracious, as it will always be rewarded.