The Tree No One Wanted. Glenn Goree

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      The Tree No One Wanted

      Copyright © 2017 Glenn H. Goree. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical publications or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission from the publisher. Write: Permissions, Wipf and Stock Publishers, 199 W. 8th Ave., Suite 3, Eugene, OR 97401.

      Resource Publications

      An Imprint of Wipf and Stock Publishers

      199 W. 8th Ave., Suite 3

      Eugene, OR 97401

      www.wipfandstock.com

      paperback isbn: 978-1-5326-3737-7

      hardcover isbn: 978-1-5326-3738-4

      ebook isbn: 978-1-5326-3739-1

      Manufactured in the U.S.A.

      I dedicate this book to my two awesome grandchildren, Xaia and Nico.

      The Tree No One Wanted

      There was once an enormous seed that seemed to appear out of nowhere. It was so large it looked like a displaced rock in the forest. The seed was hard, covered in pockmarks, and sported a dirty, brown outer shell. On the morning the odd-shaped seed materialized on the forest floor, it tried to wiggle its way deep into the soil. All the other newborn seeds were normal, small, and soft, with beautiful tan coloring, and resembled spear tips. Not only were they easier on the eye because they looked like seeds, but they were able to burrow into the soil more readily than the misshapen seed.

      No matter how intensely the ungainly, rotund seed tried to tunnel itself deep into the life-giving earth, it could not burrow like the other seeds. One by one his fellow seeds found a home beneath the soil’s surface and were quickly nourished by the nutrients and moisture they found. Meanwhile, Outsider, as the seed was nicknamed by the others, was only halfway buried and it seemed he could penetrate no deeper.

      The rest of the seeds laughed at him and called him all sorts of degrading names because he was not handsome like they were. His plain and ugly exterior was reason enough for them to ignore him as they talked among themselves. Outsider epitomized the face that would look through a house’s window from the street wishing he could join in the fun and games, but knew no one would notice him, let alone invite him in.

      Finally, after what seemed an eternity, the large seed felt nutrients and moisture soaking into his thick coat even though he couldn’t dig any deeper. Like all the other seeds, he began to submerge his roots deep into the soil to lay a foundation for a steady, secure new home.

      As the forest of seeds grew, their slim, tender stems shot skyward, beautiful and as smooth as silk. That is, all except our huge, oddball seed. By all accounts, he should have produced a thick, strong stem. But no. His stem was as puny as a weed. It was less than half the height of the rest of the seedlings, bent and crinkled.

      “What kind of tree are you going to be?” everyone asked.

      All the other saplings and their parent trees took bets on whether or not he would survive the winter.

      However, several years passed, and all the trees, except the tree no one wanted, had grown to become strong, tall, and study. Their parents were proud. In the dark of the evening, when no humans were around, the entire group of parent trees gossiped and bragged.

      “My son will grow up one day to be a fine sturdy beam in a mighty house. He will hold the rest of the roof’s weight and carry the load all by himself, for generations.”

      “That’s nothing,” another parent tree said. “My son will grow up to be the crossbeam over a mighty door in the governor’s home. He will be so thick and solid those humans will abandon the use of the stone arch and use him alone.”

      “You two have nothing on my son. He will grow up so straight and tall he will be used as a mast on a Roman ship. He will tower above all other masts on the lead ship in the Roman Navy. He will travel the world and have tales to tell no one else around here has ever heard.”

      Finally, not to be out done, another mother and father tree spoke up and said, “Our son will be a mighty warrior. He will be made into the long beam of a catapult and will hurl massive stones thousands of feet to break down the walls of cities the Romans conquer.”

      Amidst all this chatter expressing ego, pride, and parental vanity, nothing was heard from the parents of the tree no one wanted. Seems they were the only two of their kind, and none of the other trees had seen where they came from either. As far at the forest inhabitants knew, this was the first time the odd trees had produced an offspring.