DRN Yakima, Washington
Sarah was a majestic oak tree. She stood in the midst of a great grove of many kinds of trees. Many who passed through the area took shelter in her shade from the hot sun. From her powerful branches hung many acorns. One day a wind arose that blew through Sarah’s branches, shaking them around and blowing off some of the leaves. From this shaking fell one particular acorn named Seth. Seth fell down through the leaves and branches, bouncing off the boughs as he fell to the earth. As he fell he began to think about what his life would be. Down he fell past all the branches until he landed on the ground. It was a very hard landing. He careened off of a fallen log and flew through the air until he hit a large rock. He then deflected off the rock and bounded down a long slope, far away from Sarah and the life he had known so far. He finally landed on the ground in a pile of leaves and twigs. The storm continued with strong winds and much rain. He found himself on the cold wet ground and was soon covered with leaves until he was in total darkness. "What is my life now?" he wondered, "What will happen to me if I stay here in this cold damp place?". He pondered his existence over and over for many days. Nothing changed. He felt the world closing in around him more and more. More leaves fell and he could begin to feel them decomposing around him. He began to think that his life was over and amounted to nothing. Then he remembered the stories his mother had told him of the great master woodsman who had planted the grove of trees long ago. He remembered that she said he would take good care of all the trees and there would be nothing to worry about as long as he would simply trust him to do what he knew how to do. Seth began to be calm and decided to just relax without a worry or care. Many other seeds were there with him. The storm had caused many of the trees to shed seeds and leaves and twigs. Seth began to encourage those around him that everything would be OK. Soon they all chose to submit to the master woodsman and soon all was darkness and they fell asleep, unaware of anything. Much time passed. Seth didn’t even notice that he had sunk deep into the soft earth covered with leaves from the many trees of the grove.
During the great storm another acorn also fell from the branches of this great tree. This acorn’s name was Jared. Jared fell from a branch very near to where Seth had grown. Jared fell through the leaves and boughs and landed on a pile of leaves on top of a big flat rock. He laid there for a while, also wondering about his life. He looked around and noticed that from his spot on top of the rock he could see the whole valley and the whole grove of trees. The rain continued to fall along with leaves from the trees. Some fell on top of Jared. As the leaves blew away they slid off of Jared. They rolled him around the other leaves and he soon became polished by this rustling of leaves and he was the most radiant acorn around. "This is my destiny, to be the ruler of all this valley" he began to think. He was a great leader of all the seeds of the grove. He began to teach them what it meant to be a great seed. He encouraged them to be bold and proud of their heritage. "To be a good seed one must make himself a grand example for all the others" he preached, "Be polished, clean, bright and shining. Let the warm sunshine reflect off of you for all others to see." Jared remained atop the large rock for days, weeks and even months. The leaves beneath him began to dry up and crumble. One day a light breeze came through the valley and all the leaves on the rock with him were blown away. Jared was there alone. This didn’t bother him at all. "Now all will be able to see me even better" he thought. He continued to stand proud and tall above all the other seeds of the grove. He was a splendid example to all the valley. Many seeds followed his example and did as he did. They stood tall and proud throughout all the spring months. Soon it became summer. The sun began to get hot during the longer days. Jared and the others of the valley enjoyed the long days of sunshine glistening off their polished shells. Jared began to illustrate that their time was limited because the sun would soon be too hot. "This is just the way life is" he explained, "you simply fall to the earth and then you make the best of your short life here." He continued, "Be proud of what you are. Climb to the highest level that you can and show all how to be a good example of your species. Remember to be loving and show that you care about all other seeds in the valley so that they will in turn do the same to the others as they fall into place here on the earth." He continued to give great words of encouragement.
Before long Jared’s beautiful polished shell became dull in the hot sun. Day after day the heat robbed the precious moisture from Jared’s life. His shell became hard and brittle. Finally the day came when a strong breeze came through the grove. Jared no longer had the base of leaves to help hold him on top of the rock. The wind blew him over and he began to roll off the side of the pinnacle he had been on for so long. Down he rolled, bouncing from point to point until he landed on a small patch of dirt. The wind continued to blow, blowing leaves around and covering Jared much in the same way as Seth had been covered also. All the seeds of the valley watched in awe of Jared’s final moments. Jared was no more. The entire grove mourned for Jared for weeks.
Years had passed seemingly unnoticed. Finally, one day the ground began to split open. A small sprig began to emerge from the earth. Jared became aware that he did still exist. He was growing. He was becoming an oak tree. Then there was another movement in the soil. Another sprig sprouted forth. Seth also had sprouted roots and broken through into a princely existence..
Many years passed and these two young oak trees continued to grow. Up and up they grew. Their branches reached for the bright sunshine. Their roots reached and stretched for the cool damp soil. This is when Jared began to be concerned. There was no deep rich soil for his roots to grow into. Because of this his branches became thin and his leaves were sparse. Seth’s roots were in the best of ground. His roots continued to reach for the rich nutrients of the earth. His branches became strong and full. He was becoming the most magnificent specimen in the valley.
One day the master woodsman came into the valley. With him were a number of his servants carrying axes and other tools. They walked up to Jared. The master looked him over closely. Then he began to explain to those with him. "See the weakness in this one’s branches?" he said. "Notice how sparse the leaves are." "This is because of the lack of moisture as a seed." "When it fell to the ground it laid on the top of the earth and dried out." "When it finally did reach the soil it had no depth to it, therefore it is no good for anything but firewood." "Cut this one down and take it to the ovens," he commanded.
They then proceeded over to where Seth stood. The master walked around the kingly tree in admiration. "This is what an oak tree is all about. Notice the majesty of the branches, the thickness of the trunk is like no other in the forest. The roots are deep and strong." "Take this one carefully to my mill at the top of the hill. This one shall be used in my new mansion and the wood from this tree will be admired by all for all eternity."
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