Week 14: Famous Last Words

Well, this marks the end of this class for me! It is really a bittersweet feeling. I have thoroughly enjoyed allowing my creative juices to flow these past 4+ months. I've written things, both in storytelling assignments & for my storybook, that I didn't know I was capable of writing. I was able to learn more about myself as a writer and what style suits me best. I learned more about what kinds of stories I like and what kinds I don't really enjoy as much. I was able to meet new people through this class and catch up with old friends. This has to be one of the best classes I've taken, and I've been at OU for four years, so that's saying a lot! The way this class was set up was the absolute best. I didn't have to worry about someone's opinions getting in the way of grading. Sometimes I felt like in other classes, I had to write to the style of the teacher and not write how I liked to (still grammatically correct and all). It's a bit hard to explain, but I was just incredibly happy to have a class where we were graded one effort and doing our best. For 20+ years, we've been graded the same and as humans, we are all different and learn in different ways and therefore perform differently as well--not necessarily worse or better, just different. That's why I have enjoyed this class so much. We are all students trying our best, writing our best, creating stories and projects to the best of our abilities. And the results of that were amazing! I read so many great stories and learned so many things from other writers. I loved this class and will recommend it to any of my friends that need the credit but also a class to learn more about themselves and others as students. I could write on and on about my experience in this class but all I have to say is it was an A+ course that I enjoyed to the fullest.

We did it ya'll (Image Source).

Growth Mindset: Meme

I am almost finished with my classes. I still have three finals left but this past week has been my most hectic one. It should be all downhill from here, God willing! We are almost done with school and the beginning of summer vacation. Here is a little motivation for us all.

We almost done with the semester (Image Source).

Tech Tip: Happy Me Meme Generator

A little Dead Week motivation (Image Source).

Week 14 Reading Diary: The Giant Crab and other Tales

The Giant Crab and Other Tales retold by W.H.D. Rouse

For my last week of reading, I want to finish off with...you guessed it! More children's' stories.

One of the stories I read was one I read before for a previous reading diary assignment. It tells of a crocodile wife who wants monkey's heart to eat so the husband tries to get it for her. In the first story I read, it was the son who wanted to get it for his mom. In the story, the crocodile's husband tries to trick the monkey into getting on its back to get delicious fruit on the other side of the river. After the crocodile gets the monkey on its back and the monkey realizes what is happening, he tells the crocodile that he left his heart in the tree. The crocodile falls for the trick and ends up taking the monkey back to safety! Even though I've read this story twice, it never fails to entertain me and show that the power of wit is a strong weapon indeed!

Another cute story was called the Mouse and the Farmer. In the story, the farmer always took care of the mouse and to repay his kindness, the rat brings the farmer a piece of treasure buried in his farm. From that gold, the farmer buys food and gives some to the rat. This continues day after day until the rat gets nice and fat, noticed by the farmer's cat. As the cat is about to eat the rat, the rat makes a deal that he will give the cat all the food the farmer gives him. The rat gets skinnier, noticed by the farmer, who then gives him a "glass home" to protect himself. When the cat comes by and demands food, the rat rejects him, which results in the cat eating the rat, glass and all. I laughed in the part of the story where it said cats can digest pretty much anything...just not glass. So the cat ends up dying and the rat escapes. The story ends with the rat and farmer continuing on with their friendship of generosity and kindness! Such a cute story!

The unlikely friendship (Image Source).

The last of the stories that I really enjoyed was called The Monkeys and the Gardner. A master's gardner was needing to go away for a bit but needed someone to tend to the garden. He then asks monkeys in the trees to water the plants while he was gone. They agree and end up taking the plants out from the ground, because they thought they could measure the water the plants needed according to their roots' length. The gardener comes back to see his plants drooping and scolds the monkeys, calling them fools. The master then says the gardner is the fool, leaving monkeys to take care of a garden. This story was so funny!! The last line by the master was the highlight of the story!

Week 13 Storytelling: The Merchant of Seri

Author's Note. In my reading for this week, I read a few children's tales. I especially liked one that told of two merchants who go around town selling and trading brass and tinware. The first merchant (we'll call him John) goes to the house of an old lady and her granddaughter (we'll call her Emily). The grandmother has nothing but an old bowl to trade, not realizing it is actually made of gold! The merchant realizes this and attempts to trick the grandmother by telling her it's worthless and goes on his way (hoping to return back later). The second merchant (we'll call him Jacob) also visits the grandmother. However, this time, he realizes it's gold and tells the grandmother that it is too expensive for him to afford! After some discussion, they make a trade and the merchant goes on his way back home. When the first merchant comes back to the grandmother's house, she lets him know of the trade that had already happened. The merchant realizes how his greed and lying had cost him a sale. I absolutely loved this story as it teaches a great lesson. I want to retell it in a way where we get to see the whole story from the greedy merchant's point of view, getting an insight into his thoughts and his realization of his mistake at the end. Enjoy!


John opened the door of his house and squinted against the bright morning sun as he made his way down the street, ready to begin another day of trade. John prided himself on his skills as a merchant, able to bargain and trick customers in order to get the price or product he desired. Today, was no different. He made his way down the road yelling "brass and tinware for sale! Get it here. Cash or trade! Get it now!" He walked until he saw a house he hadn't visited yet. He made his way to the door and knocked.

A frail, old grandmother answered the door. After explaining about his business, the grandmother told him to wait as she went to look for something to make a trade with."

"Emily, Emily. Theres a man at the door who is selling brass and tinware. I don't know that we even have anything but this old bowl your grandfather you used to love to have his morning porridge in."

"Grandmother, we might as well try. Who knows, he could be kind and make a trade for it!"

As they made their way back to the door, the grandmother handed John the bowl. John held it and used a needle to see what it was made out of. To his amazement, he discovered that this old bowl was actually made of gold! He couldn't believe his eyes.

"Oh my. This bowl is worth more than everything I own. They don't seem to know its worth. Well, well...looks like it's my lucky day. But I need to make them think its worthless and then come back later to buy it for cheap." These thoughts were racing through his head, as he fought to control his facial expressions, not wanting to give anything away.

"Well lady, this is a rather old bowl that is worth mere pennies. My products are worth a good price and I can't accept scrap for them." John left the house and smiled as he walked down the street, sure he was going to make a great deal with them later in the day. He was going to hit the jackpot with that gold bowl. Or would he?

John tries to trick the grandmother (Image Source).

Later in the day, John had made his rounds around town, making trades here and there. He could barely concentrate as the thought of the grandmother's bowl remained at the forefront of his mind. He made his way back to their house and knocked on the door. He prepared his face to look unconcerned, ready to trick them into giving him the bowl for a paltry price.

The grandmother opened the door and frowned, realizing who it was. "How may I help you?"

John was taken aback by her tone of voice and frown apparent on her face. "...Uh, yes lady...ma'am. I just wanted to come back and buy your go...I mean old bowl. I can make an exception today for my high quality brass and make the trade for your old bowl."

The grandmother shook her head, feeling pity for the merchant who lacked honesty and manners in conducting business. "Listen, I have already sold the bowl, to a nice young fellow named Jacob. He told me the truth about the worth of the bowl. It was gold after all! My husband had told me of its worth once but I thought he was just teasing me, as he always used to do. You should be ashamed of yourself, attempting to trick a little old lady like me."

John stood in stunned silence. It had been years and years since he had been scolded. He felt as if it was his own mother getting on to him. He bowed his head, realizing his terrible mistake, and spoke to the grandmother.

"Ma'am. I am deeply sorry. Greed had blinded me. When I thought you wouldn't know anything about the worth of the bowl, I thought I had hit the jackpot and was about to make the biggest trade of my career. I realize now that greed and dishonesty gets you nowhere. I apologize for trying to trick you. I am glad you sold it to Jacob, as he is an honest and trustworthy merchant. I sincerely beg for your forgiveness and swear to always conduct my business with honor in the future."


~The End~



Bibliography.
Jataka Tales by Ellen C. Babbitt. Web Source: The Baldwin Project.

Week 13 Reading Diary: Jataka Tales

Jataka Tales by Ellen C. Babbitt

This week, I decided to continue with reading some children's tales. I really enjoy them because they are short and sweet while also teaching a lesson at the same time.

The first story I read was actually really entertaining! Usually it takes me a couple of stories in to really find a story I enjoyed. In the story, titled The Monkey and the Crocodile, the dumb crocodile attempts to catch and kill the monkey, to give his mother the monkey's heart she so desired. I liked the story because it was a sort of back and forth battle of wits between the two animals and of course the monkey came out victorious over the dumb crocodile.

The monkey tricks the crocodile and gets to safety (Image Source).

The next story I liked was about two merchants who made this living selling and trading tinware and brass. When the greedy merchant come across a grandmother and granddaughter who have nothing to trade but an old bowl, the merchant realizes it's actually a bowl made of gold! He tries to trick them by telling them it's worthless and leaves. When the second merchant pays them a visit, he tells the grandmother that it is made of gold. In the end, he pays her a large sum of money in exchange for the bowl and goes on his way. At the end of the story, the greedy merchant tries to go back to get the bowl from the grandmother, but learns that the other merchant had already bought it. He learned his lesson that his greed and trickery made him lose an opportunity to make a deal, and an honest one at that.

The last story I really enjoyed was about an ox who was the strongest in the land. After his owner brings him to town and boasts about his strength, he makes a bet that his ox could move a hundred carts. However, after speaking rudely to the ox and whipping it, the ox remains still. The man lost the bet and paid the dues. After he goes home, he talks with his ox who tells him that he had never been spoken to rudely or mistreated by the man. The man apologizes, realizing his mistake and vows to never talk harshly or mistreat the ox again. The ox then says that they shall go to town tomorrow and repeat the bet. The next day, the man and ox make their way into town, to the jeers of the crowd. However, this time around, the man speaks kindly and the ox shows everyone his strength, winning the bet! I loved this story because it deals with the importance of treating animals kindly!

Storytelling for Week 12: The Poor Man and the Flask of Oil

Author's Note.
I read a collection of children's stories this week. One of my favorites was titled the Poor Man and the Flask of Oil. In the story, an poor man (we'll call him Thomas) is living next to a rather rich neighbor (we'll call him William) who sells oil and honey. After his neighbor gifts him with a flask of oil, all the poor man can think about is selling his flask of oil and seeing what he could buy with it, how much money he'd make, how he'd spend it and so on. Before he knows it, his vision for his future is shattered as he breaks the bottle on accident while imagining all he could do if he sold the bottle. Although this was a short story, it did teach a good lesson about not being too greedy and being patient to take things as they come. He was already thinking so much ahead and got too ahead of himself, resulting in the loss of his precious bottle of oil. In this week's storytelling assignment, I want to expand the story a bit so that readers can really get to see how getting too far ahead of himself cost him in the end.

It was a beautiful sunny day as Thomas walked out of his house to water his garden. He took great joy in coming out every morning to water it. Due to his diligent care, what resulted was a spectacular, colorful bed of flowers. He made his living on selling his flowers. Although it didn't give him an enormous income, it still provided him with just enough to keep living in his small house. As he made his way through the garden, he heard the sound of a door closing. He looked up and saw his neighbor, William, leaving his house to head off to work. Everybody in town knew William. He was a wealthy merchant who sold the best oil and honey in the land. He and Thomas were friendly with each other, as neighbors should be. Just the other day, Thomas had brought over some pastries he had gotten from the bakery to give to William. 

Meanwhile, William looked up and saw that his neighbor was again watering his garden. He chuckled to himself as he looked at Thomas focusing on his flowers, careful not to give them too much water. William was on his way to work but stopped in his tracks as he remembered that he had intended to repay Thomas for giving him pastries the other day, instead making his way to the garden.

"Good morning, Thomas! The flowers look incredible. You have all the colors of the rainbow in your front yard. It looks absolutely splendid!"

Thomas smiled at at his neighbor, happy that his garden was getting so many compliments. 

"Why thank you, William! This garden is like my own child. I have to look after it with care, and look how they all grow!"

William, nodded, admiring how beautiful the flowers looked. 

"Say, Thomas. I'm off to work but I wanted to give you this. It's the new oil I'm selling. It's yet to be on the market, but as my neighbor who is always generous to me, I wanted to give you this as a gift. I hope you enjoy it! It can be used for almost anything. Hair care to cooking! It's extremely versatile. Take good care of it, as it is still not on any stores' shelves yet! I'll see you later, my friend!"

William's gift to Thomas (Image Source).

Thomas watched as his neighbor headed off to work, speechless that he had just received such a lavish gift. He looked down at the bottle of oil, almost glowing in the morning sunlight. He walked as fast as his feet would take him and heading into his house, being careful not to drop the bottle. He walked into his house and put it on the top shelf in his kitchen. Although William had told Thomas all about the uses of the oil, the only thing Thomas could focus on was on its price and scarcity in the market. This flask could be his gateway to making money and living comfortably, not having to worry about making the bare minimum selling his flowers.

"Oh my. This is one of the most expensive things I have ever owned. It's not even on the market yet! And I own it now! Oh, what I could do with it. I can sell it to the town next to ours. I know it's filled with such rich families. They would jump at a chance to own this oil. If I sold it to them, I could make a great chunk of money. From the money, I could buy the sheep I've always wanted to own. And you know what, after that, I can sell some of the sheep and have a big income. That way, I could finally marry a beautiful wife and be able to support her financially, with no worries! And we could have kids. Oh I could even have a son, who grows up to be tall and mighty. He could become a guard in our town, protecting everyone. And if anyone messes with him, he'd be able to fight them like this.......and like this.....and swing at them like this......and..."

At that moment, his arms were flailing in every which way, trying to act out how his future son might protect the town. As he was lost in his reverie, he failed to notice how close he was to the shelf on his kitchen wall. Within moments, his arm had hit the shelf and the flask of oil on top began teetering until, almost in slow motion, it spiraled in the air before coming crashing down on the floor. The glass shattered and the oil splattered everywhere, Thomas dropped down to look at what he had caused.

"Alas, because of my impatience and greed, I have ruined a precious gift that my neighbor has given me. I should not have been so hasty in trying to sell the flask. It was given out of the kindness of William's heart and all I could see was the money I could get from it. I should have appreciated what I have with my beautiful garden, providing me with a living. This flask of oil could have helped me in my daily life and now I can't even use an ounce of it. From this day on, I promise to be patient, be thankful for what I have, and not think too far ahead into the future as things could change at any moment."

~The End~

Bibliography.

"The Poor Man and the Flask" by Maude Barrows Dutton (1908). Web Source: The Baldwin Project.