Motivational Stories 1

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Motivational Stories

Vol. I


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Motivational Stories .................................................11. The Empty Field.....................................................................32. The Wolf Pup and His Shadow ....................................53. The Sapling in the Ancient Forest..............................74. The Battle Between the Rat and the Lion.............95. Lessons of the Bonsai Tree ..........................................126. The River of Fame and Fortune ................................147. Coconut Frustration ............................................................168. The Great Turtle Race......................................................18

9. Of Men and Fish Ponds...................................................2010. The Crippled Hunter........................................................22


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1. The Empty Field

A factory worker grew tired of accepting long hours, little pay, and atyrant for a boss, so he left the city for the country. He wanted toharvest his own crop and reap the wealth of the earth. He took hisentire savings and bought a piece of land from a farmer.

"It's good land," the farmer said. "Lots of potential. It'll yield you adecent crop."

Excited at the idea of one day harvesting a great bounty, the factoryworker thanked the farmer with a hearty handshake. The he walked

out and sat in the middle of the field. He imagined all the crops hewould enjoy.

Over there would be corn. On that other side carrots and cabbage.On the end, he'd grow turnips. He loved sweet fruit, so he'd havestrawberries and blueberries too. It would be pure joy to eat foodgrown from a field he owned.

The factory worker spent a long time imagining his harvest. He

barely noticed the changes in the weather.

One crisp cool day, the farmer found him lost in thought in the emptyfield.

"Oh, hello," the factory worker said when he stopped daydreaminglong enough to notice the farmer. "What are you doing here?"

"I got my harvest in. I thought I'd see if you needed a hand withyours."

The factory worker blinked. "I don't have one yet."

"Didn't you plant any crops?"

"Well, I bought the land. I guess I thought..."


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"It'd grow on its own?" the farmer asked, mouth dropping in disbelief."It doesn't work that way. The land's just the beginning. You have toput in work to see a harvest."


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2. The Wolf Pup and His Shadow

On a warm spring day, a wolf pup crawled out of his mother's den. Itwas his first time venturing outside, and everything was so big!

Trees loomed overhead. Hawks squawked in the branches. Waterroared past in a fast-running river. A bear dug grubs from a log onthe other side. What was friend and what was foe?

Overwhelmed, and more than a little scared, the pup took hesitantfirst steps.

Then he spotted something on a flat boulder by the river. A fish hadbeen thrown clear of the turbulent white water, and it was floppingand thrashing.

This riveted the pup's attention. He didn't need world experience toknow a fish was something he could eat. It would be far tastier thanthe leftovers the adults in the pack gave the pups.

As he inched forward, the fish continued to thrash. Any moment, it

might wriggle itself back into the river, never to be seen again.

Sensing this, the pup walked faster. He was about to break into atrot, when a shadow startled him.

Startled, he raced back to the safety of the den. His instincts told himthat great birds roamed the skies, and a little wolf pup might make atasty meal for them.

From the safety of the den entrance, he peered into the blue

expanse, but he saw nothing up there but the sun.

And that fish beckoned him.... He could almost taste it. Salivadampened the fur around his mouth.

The pup strode out, intent on capturing that fish, but the shadowappeared again. Whining, the pup retreated. He paced anxiously at


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the mouth of the den. He wanted that fish so badly, but was afraid ofthe risk.

He gathered his courage and decided to dash for it.

The pup charged out of the den, ran across the beach, and pounced.

It was too late. With a flip of its tail, the fish finally launched itselfback into the river.

The pup skidded to a stop on top of the boulder and stared forlornlyinto the water. That was when he noticed the shadow again.

It did not move when he did not move. He took a few steps, and it

followed him. It was his own shadow, and it was harmless. Too late,he realized he had let his fear of the world create obstacles wherethere were none.


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3. The Sapling in the Ancient Forest

A tiny seed sprouted in a great ancient forest and knew right away ithad a problem. Tall trees loomed all around it blocking out almost allof the sun.

Since a tree cannot grow and thrive without sun, things did not lookgood for the little sprout. It might not live to become a sapling muchless a full grown tree.

But afternoon brought a tiny ray of sun peaking through the canopy.The sprout basked in the warmth though it was short lived. It was

enough to offer hope.

As the sprout slowly and painfully struggled to get enoughnourishment to grow into a sapling, it noticed all the branches theother trees had. It must take energy to send those branches out inevery direction, the youngster reasoned. Perhaps I'll just createenough branches to nourish myself on this beam, and then wait until Ican see the sun to grow more branches. Then I won't waste anyenergy.

Years passed, and the sapling grew taller. It was frail from lack ofsunlight and crooked from straining to reach that one beam, but itnever gave up. Rains came and the heavy snows of winter, but thethin little tree did not bow beneath the weight.

Every day it told itself, "Soon I shall see the sky."

And then one day it brushed against the leave of the other trees.Though it was tired, it pushed itself to grow just a little taller, to pierce

the canopy and bask in the rich air above.

It could scarcely believe it had reached the heights of the other trees,but while it had thrown all its energy into growing, the ancient trunkshad merely grown a little fatter. So comfortable in their dominancewere they that they had not noticed the upstart until it was too late.


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Now all those great ancient trees are in the younger tree's shadow,and it has more sun than it could ever need.


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4. The Battle Between the Rat and the Lion

Long ago in a human town, pit fights were held that pitted one animalagainst another animal. Everyone gathered to watch these matches,to cheer--and make money betting on--the winners. The losers weresoon forgotten.

Usually the matches were fair, such as a lion against a tiger or a wolfagainst a dog. But one night, someone made a mistake, and outcame two unlikely contestants: a rat and a lion.

The audience grabbed their sides and laughed at the craziness of the

pairing. Yet nobody moved to stop the battle. Once the animalswere released, the fights did not end until one was dead. That wasthe rule.

While the humans chortled, the lion smiled. "I thought I would haveto fight tonight, but it seems I'll just be getting a snack." It flexed itspowerful muscles and showed its great fangs. "Though I don'tusually eat rats. You creatures so often carry diseases."

The rat lifted his chin, whiskers bristling. "I am not diseased, but ifyou want to eat me, you must fight me first."

"Don't be foolish. I'm bigger, stronger, faster, and my claws are aslong as your whole body. What will you do? Bite my toe? Why don'tyou just come over here and lie down. I'll make your death swift."

"I will not give up that easily." With that said, the rat charged.

The fight was predictable. The rat's teeth could not even pierce the

lion's thick fur to reach flesh. The lion laughed and swatted the tinycreature. It flew several yards and hit the wall.

The audience cheered and chanted: "Eat the rat, eat the rat!"

Though obviously injured, the rat limped back and attacked anew.This time he got in and bit the soft skin between his opponent's toes.


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The lion screeched, jerked back his paw, and struck. Again the ratflew far and landed hard. Yet again, he came back to the lion.

The lion dropped a paw and pinned the rat to the ground. Still the ratstruggled, thrashing and trying to escape.

By now, the audience had stopped laughing and jeering. Everyonewatched silently to see what would happen next.

The rat tried to bite the lion again, but its small teeth did no damage.The lion did not release his pinned opponent. He could easily eat thelittle creature now, but he hesitated.

"Why will you not give up?" the lion asked as the rat continued tostruggle. "Don't you understand? You can never win."

"You don't think I know that? Of course I can't win."

The lion twitched a furry ear. "Then why fight? Why make it harderon yourself?"

"To show everyone I am more than they think. When people seerats, they see vermin that sneak around and hide in the shadows.They think we carry disease. They go out of their way to put usdown, to destroy us. But when they see you, it's a different story.They respect your power. They think you're noble. They call you theking of the jungle, for crying out loud!"

That speech weakened the rat, and its struggles slowed down. Bloodseeped into the ground, draining from the rat's body, and the lionrealized his opponent's wounds were mortal.

"Some of us are born to better lots in life," the lion said apologetically."I'm sorry but that's simply how it is."

"It's worth fighting to change your lot," the rat whispered. "To changethe way people think about you."


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The lion lifted his paw. It seemed a shame to eat this rat. It had putup such a good fight, and he'd even call it noble, though its beliefswere surely misguided.

"Look, I'm not going to eat you, but you didn't accomplish anything."The lion gazed up at all the people watching from above. "They'llforget you by tomorrow. You'll never change anybody's mind aboutrats."

The rat wheezed and drew in its last breath. "I changed yours, didn'tI?"


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5. Lessons of the Bonsai Tree

Peter circled the table and frowned at the overgrown shrub sitting in apot on the table. "What is it?"

"A bonsai tree," Yukio said.

"Uhm, I've seen the Karate Kid. That's no bonsai tree."

"It is so." Yukio scowled. "It just hasn't been trimmed."

"Oh."

"My grandfather left it to me when he died, but I want to learn how toshape it before I do any cutting."

Yukio pulled a stack of books off the shelf. Bonsai for Beginners.How to Shape a Bonsai Tree in 10 Easy Steps. Inner Peace ThroughBonsai.

"Okay," Peter said. "I get that I guess. How long have you had it?"

"Three years."

"Three years? And you haven't snipped a branch yet?"

"I don't want to screw it up," Yukio said. "This is a rare species andvery valuable."

"So, you're just going to let it sit there and get bushier and bushier?"Peter asked. "Have you read the books yet?"

"Yes."

In fact, the spines were creased, and each one was full of underlinedpassages and dog-eared pages. Yukio returned them to the shelfbefore his visitor could discover the truth of just how often they hadbeen read.


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"Well," Peter said. "You might want to start clipping those branchessoon. You're about one winter away from being able to hangornaments and put presents under this thing."

"I don't have any experience. It's hard to teach yourself from a book."Yukio touched a branch gently. "I don't want to ruin it."

"I'm no Einstein, but I'm pretty sure you actually have to do somethingto get in experience. Why don't you clip a branch? What's the worstthat could happen?"

"I could kill it," Yukio said glumly.

Peter raised his eye brows. "How likely is that?"

"Not very. I guess the worst that would happen is it wouldn't comeout anything like what's in my head. I have this really pretty picture inmy mind... but I don't think I can do that."

"So, what? It'd grow back, right? And you could try again."

"Yeah, in a couple years."

"There you go." Peter shrugged and left the room.

Yukio stood in silence and gazed at the tree for a while. He looked atthe shelf and all the books he had read, and he looked back to thetree. Yes, perhaps it was time to do something.

He found a pair of cutters and took the first snip.


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6. The River of Fame and Fortune

A young man decided to leave town instead of taking theapprenticeship his parents has lined up for him. He wanted to seefame and fortune, and a traveler told him of a river that led straight toit.

Of course, the river was plagued by many obstacles: rapids, bandits,and bears to name a few. But if one followed it to its end, one arrivedat fame and fortune.

The young man pursued odd jobs around town until he could afford a

small boat. He waved goodbye to his parents and friends, and he setsail down the river to fame and fortune.

The traveler had not lied. The waterway sported many obstacles,everything from jagged boulders protruding from the shallows torobbers who would shoot arrows from the banks.

Still, the young man did well until a great storm came upon him. Hedid not pull his boat into shore in time, and the gales hurled him

against a rocky cliff. The impact shattered his craft and left him aloneand helpless in the rough waters.

Through some luck, he reached an island in the center of the river.When the storm passed over, he found himself so far from shore oneither side, that he dared not try to swim across. Fortunately, theisland offered plentiful berry bushes, and the man soon fashioned afishing pole, so he could catch his meals.

A couple days later, two merchants on a raft happened by.

"We're heading down the river toward fame and fortune," they said."Do you need a lift?"

The man eyed the handmade raft, which was barely more than a fewlogs lashed together. "Thanks, but I think I'll wait for the next boat."


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A couple weeks passed before the next craft came by, a little dingywith a single oarsman.

"Do you need a way to get to fame and fortune?" the oarsman asked.

"Thanks, but I think I'll wait for a bigger boat. These waters arerough, you know."

Other vessels drifted past, and many of the owners asked if the manwanted a ride. By this time, the man had created a simple but decentshelter on the island, and he had saved some fish and berries. It wasa hard life, but the idea of risking the storm again scared him. Hedecided to wait until a large armored vessel that could not possibly bedamaged by the river's obstacles sailed past. Then he would ask for

passage.

Of course, such a craft never came. However, many of those whohad passed survived the perils of the river and made it to fame andfortune. The man grew old and died on the meager island.


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7. Coconut Frustration

After a storm washed her overboard, Samantha found herself

stranded on a desert island (perhaps that deep-discount cruisevacation hadn't been the best investment).

Since Samantha did not know how to fish, the only food was in thetrees.

Beautiful, ripe coconuts hung from the branches high above her. Shestared longingly at them, but none littered the beaches. They allhung high out of reach.

She attempted to climb the coconut tree trunks, but they had nobranches to grab onto, and her arms were not strong enough to scalethem unaided. Though she tried several times, she could not climbeven close to the height of the coconuts.

By the third day, she was weak with hunger. The large ripe coconutsmerely taunted her from the treetops.

She dropped to her knees and prayed.

"Lord, I'm so hungry. Please drop a few coconuts. I'll be eternallygrateful."

That night a great storm blew in from the sea. Waves surged up thebeaches, and rain pelted down from the black sky. Samantha couldonly huddle beneath the trees and wait for the storm to pass.

When dawn and the sun returned, she ventured out. She expected abeach full of coconuts that had been blown down, but only driftwood

met her gaze. If any coconuts had fallen, the waves had washedthem into the ocean.

She screamed and grabbed a chunk of driftwood. She hurled it at thenearest bunch of coconuts. The stick missed its target, thuddedagainst the trunk, and fell to the ground.


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From that futile act came an idea.

Samantha gathered several pieces of driftwood, selecting those thathad some heft, but were not too bulky to throw. She hurled the firstinto the air again, this time putting more effort into aiming.

The projectile flew wide, but not by far. On the tenth try, a chunk ofdriftwood struck a coconut. It fell to the ground at her feet.

Samantha squealed and jumped in the air. She pumped her fist invictory and grabbed her prize. She had no knife, but she soon founda jagged rock, which she used to bash open the coconut.

The milk slid down her throat, the smoothest sweetest beverage she

had ever drunk. The meat tasted better than anything she everremembered eating.

She used the driftwood to snag several more coconuts from the trees.When she was full, she lay down and gazed contentedly at the sky.

"You sure make things hard, God," she observed, hardly expectingan answer.

But a voice drifted to her on a breeze: "That which is given ischerished for a short while, but that which is earned is valued for alifetime."


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8. The Great Turtle Race

Two turtles entered into a race. At the end lay a golden shell, a prizeany turtle would enjoy.

As soon as the race official shouted, "Go!" the first turtle, Milfred,started plodding toward the finish line.

The second turtle, Manny, shook his head in disgust. Everybodyknew turtles were slow. It would take her all day to reach the finishline like that. It would be hard work too.

Many took out a map he had snuck into the race. He looked forshortcuts, spotted a couple of likely routes, and chose the bestlooking one.

That route took him up a hill. He huffed and puffed, telling himself itwould be easier in the end. But he eventually came to a spot where arock avalanche had buried the path.

Manny reluctantly turned back and tried another shortcut. This time,

he came to a ten-foot high cliff. A human or a monkey might havebeen able to climb it, but a turtle certainly couldn't.

Grumbling, Manny retraced his path and headed for the thirdshortcut. It seemed a likely route, and he would surely shave hoursoff his race time if it continued to the end. But he came to a spotwhere a river had changed course and now ran right over the trail.The water was too swift and wide for a turtle to cross.

Manny had to turn back again.

By now, the sun hung low in the western sky. Then things got worse.

The official returned with the news. Slow, plodding Milfred hadfinished the race and won the golden shell.


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Manny was still at the start line. Not only that, but in recounting all hissteps, he realized he had walked farther than Milfred.


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9. Of Men and Fish Ponds

A man stalked into a fish store in a huff. He located the owner outback, attending a tranquil water garden. In a large pond, fish swamhappily in clear clean water.

The man barely noticed the peaceful setting. He thrust a bag full ofwater out for the owner to see. A small, runty fish twitched its tailinside.

"I bought this last summer," the man said.

"Is there a problem?" the owner asked.

"It's tiny! You sold me a bunch of defective fish. I wanted ones likethose." He pointed to the long, sleek fish gliding through the pond.

"They are the same breed, sir," the store owner said.

"They can't be. Yours are magnificent and mine are stunted. Youkeep all the best ones for yourself and give the customers the rejects.

Admit it!"

The owner clasped his hands behind his back and did not respond tothe accusation. Instead he merely said, "Please, sir, tell me aboutthe pond where your fish live."

"Well, it's about this big." The man stretched his arms, indicating asize much smaller than the store pond.

"Yes, how many fish are in it?"

"Eight."

"That is very many fish for such a small pond, sir. Are they fed well?"

"Of course," the man said. "Well, actually my wife handles that.Sometimes she forgets."


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"And the water?" the shop owner asked. "Is it clear and fresh?"

"It's a little murky," the man said. "We're busy, and we don't havethat much time for pond care."

"I think I see your problem, sir. This kind of fish is just like a person.To reach its full potential, it must be in an environment that nurturesgrowth."


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10. The Crippled Hunter

A great hunter named Hawk woke in the medicine man's hut. Hisarm ached fiercely, and when he reached over to touch it, he foundthe bottom half removed. He lay there, stunned.

"I'm sorry my son," said the medicine man from the smoky interior ofthe hut. "You are a cunning hunter, but you were hurt gravely savingLittle Wing's life. You are a hero to all our people, but the spirits saidI must take your arm to save your life."

Beneath the wraps on Hawk's arm, the injury ached. He let his

remaining hand fall limply to the blanket.

"What can I do now?" he asked numbly.

"You will not be able to use a bow any more," the medicine man said,"but your years providing food for the tribe will not be forgotten. Youwill find a way to contribute."

"You mean I can join the old women and the cripples who tend to the

hunter's catches," Hawk growled. He could barely restrain the tearsthat pricked his eyes. A hunter did not cry.

But if he was a hunter no longer, did it matter?

Hawk spent a lot of time alone while he was recovering. He went onmany long walks. He tried to use his bow, but he could see no way toshoot an arrow with his arm mangled.

People told him to relax, to do the work he could do to contribute to

the tribe, such as preparing meat and tanning hides. But even thiswork was difficult for him with only one hand. Besides, he did notwant to tan hides for the rest of his life.

Something else bothered him. Winter was coming and game hadbeen scarce all year. The tribe had not put in as much meat for the


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hard months as it should have. They needed every hunter out therecatching food. They needed him.

"Not like this," he muttered and glared at his useless stump.

One day Hawk abandoned the menial work--others did it so muchmore efficiently than him anyway--and walked away from camp. Hefollowed a canyon rim. Far below a tiny stream meandered through,but anyone who fell would be splattered on the rocks.

For a moment he considered falling. What was his life if he could nothunt?

But what a cowardly end. Surely the spirits would be disappointed.

Hawk sighed and looked over his shoulder. Fields of tall yellow grassstretched before him. Then he noticed dark shapes in the distance.Buffalo. A small herd, more than enough to provide meat for hispeople through the winter.

A hunting party was out, but they had gone the other direction. Theymight miss these buffalo altogether.

Hawk looked from them to the cliff and back. An idea formed.

He waited until the buffalo came as close to the canyon as theywould, then tested the wind. Perfect.

He set a fire in the tall grasses behind the buffalo. The flames soongrew and smoke filled the air. This terrified the buffalo, and theystampeded.

Hooves struck the earth so hard it was like being in an earthquake.

Hawk had set the fire in just the right spot, and many of the hugecreatures ran blindly at the canyon cliff. Their instincts told them torun from fire, and they went right over the edge.

After the fire had died down, Hawk returned to the tribe for helpskinning and preparing all the meat on the canyon floor. Now hispeople would have enough food for the winter. The tribesmen and


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women looked at him with awe. They had never looked at him likethat before, even when he had been a good hunter with two strongarms.

"How did bring down so many when you're a cripple?" one blunt boyasked.

"I learned that you don't have to be stronger and faster than thebuffalo, just smarter than it."

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Motivational Stories 1