And everyday the boy would come, and he would gather her leaves,
and make them into crowns and play king of the forest.
He would climb up her trunk, and swing from her branches.
And eat apples, and they would play hide and go seek.
And when he was tired he would sleep in her shade.
And the boy loved the tree, very much.
And the tree was happy.
But time went by.
And the boy grew older, and the tree was often alone.
Then one day the boy cam to the tree, and the tree said, "Come boy, come and climb up my trunk and swing from my branches and eat my apples and play in my shade and be happy."
"I am too big to climb and play," said the boy, "I want to buy things and have fun. I want some money. Can you give me some money?"
"I am sorry," said the tree, "but I have no money. I only have leaves and apples. Take my apples, Boy, and sell them in the city. Than you will have money and you will be happy."
And so the boy climbed up the tree and gathered her apples and carried them away.
And the tree was happy.
But the boy stayed away for a long time...and the tree was sad.
And then one day the boy came back and the tree shook with joy and she said, "Come boy, climb my trunk and swing from my branches and be happy."
"I am too busy to climb trees," said the boy. "I want a house to keep me warm," he said, "I want a wife and I want children, and so I need a house. Can you give me a house?"
"I have no house," said the tree, "The forest is my house, but you may cut off my branches and build a house, then you will be happy."
And so the boy cut off her branches, and carried them away to build his house.
And the tree was happy.
But the boy stayed away for a long time.
And when he came back , the tree was so happy, she could hardly speak.
"Come, Boy," she whispered, "come and play."
"I am too old and sad to play," said the boy.
"I want a boat that will take me far away from here. Can you give me a boat?"
"Cut down my trunk and make a boat," said the tree. "Then you can sail away...and be happy."
And so the boy cut down her trunk and made a boat and sailed away.
And the tree was happy, but not really.
And after a long time the boy came back again.
"I am sorry, Boy," said the tree, "but I have nothing left to give to you. My apples are gone."
"My teeth are too weak for apples," said the boy.
"My branches are gone," said the tree. "You cannot swing on them."
"I am too old to swing on your branches," said the boy.
"My trunk is gone," said the tree, "You cannot climb."
"I am too old to climb," said the boy.
"I am sorry," sighed the tree. "I wish that I could give you something...but I have nothing left. I am just an old stump. I am sorry..."
"I don't need much now," said the boy, "just a quiet place to sit and rest, I am very tired."
"Well," said the tree, straightening up herself as much as she could, "well an old stump IS good for sitting and resting. Come, Boy, sit down. Sit down and rest."
And the boy did.
And the tree was happy. The end."
First off, if you read all of that- I am impressed! Anyway- I absolutely love this book. I always have. But yesterday as I thought about this book, I had a different thought.
My thought was, that we should be like this tree. God calls us to be like this tree. We need to give, and give, and give, until we have nothing left. And we should give to make others happy, and while we give we need to be happy. Give to those around us, give to those out of the country. From adopting a child, to taking a meal to someone, or even just making a card. We need to give.
Give until we have nothing left to give. Just like this tree, The Giving Tree.
~Thanks for reading~Bailey~Philippians 4:13~
