In the park stood a tall apple tree that never, ever fell down. Kabir wanted to be just like it.
He lifted one foot. He raised his arms. Wobble, wobble, plop! Down he went.
He tried again. Wobble, wobble, plop! “I am a terrible tree,” said Kabir.
A breeze blew, and the apple tree swayed. Its branches wobbled left. They wobbled right. But it did not fall.
“You wobble too!” said Kabir. The leaves rustled as if to say: every tree wobbles. We just keep our roots still and breathe.
So Kabir pressed his standing foot into the grass, like a root. He looked at one apple and did not look away. He breathed in slowly. He breathed out slowly.
One second. Two seconds. Five whole seconds! The next day it was seven. By the end of the week, Kabir could stand like a tree for as long as it takes to sing a song.
He still wobbled sometimes. But now he knew that wobbling is just part of growing.
The end.
Talk about it
- Can you stand like a tree? Count how long.
- What is something you got better at by practising?
An original Healthy Juniors story. More stories