The Withered Seed

Through the vast canopy of the Earth, inside the unexplored scenery, lies a stream and an old, big mango tree that gave many fruits throughout its season. Many different animals come to feast on the delicacies and cool themselves off by the stream. By the end of the season, the fruits fall to the ground, and from the rotting fruits, new trees germinate from the seeds. As the season marks its end, many of the seeds are already ready to go into the ground to be reborn into trees and seem excited. However, one particular mango is still hanging on the tree. It tries to shake itself several times to drop but cannot. It just stares at the other seeds below and gives up, thinking that it will definitely rot and die on the tree itself, losing hope in life. The other seeds mock it, as all the other mangoes have already dropped. The mango is left disappointed and angry at its fate, wondering why it should be the only one to face an early death. It slowly rots on its flesh.

But after a few days, a storm arrives, finally freeing the mango from the tree. The mango is carried by the stream to another empty place where it can't see any of the other seeds. It grudges to itself, wondering why this only happens to it, and curses its fate. The other seeds are already inside the ground, so they are not affected. The lone mango lies there and goes to sleep, wanting to die. But as it wakes up, it sees itself sprouting, which gives it light and fills it with rays of hope for a new life. It goes on to bury itself, and as the days go by, it grows rapidly, benefiting from the abundance of nutrition without competition from other trees for space. It thrives and bears fruits the next season, while the other seeds are unable to survive due to their struggles for space and nutrients, ultimately dying.

This simple story holds an underlying message for everyone about life—not to envy others' privileges but to keep our hope alive in fate. Eventually, patience will bring us abundance and richness in life.