HUMILITY 


In a forest far away two trees grew side by side. One was a huge Yellowwood tree and the other was a small Keurboom. The Yellowwood was very, very tall. It had a great thick trunk and very thick branches. The small Keurboom had lots of thin branches and it was not even half the height of the Yellowwood tree. The Yellowwood had plenty of self-love. "I am the biggest tree in the forest, and the most important," he used to say. "No tree is as big or important as I am.. You are so little and weak," he said to the Keurboom. "Why don’t you grow up and become a proper tree like I am?" What could the little Keurboom say? He just stood there and felt sad. Then one day some birds came flying by. "Watch out! Watch out! A huge wind is coming! It is a hurricane! Run, run, hide away!" But trees cannot run away and hide. "Oh, I don’t worry about those silly little birds and what they say," said the Yellowwood. "I am so big and strong that nothing can harm me!" Then the wind began to blow harder and harder. The trees began to wave their branches and wave in the wind. "Ha! Ha!" laughed the big Yellowwood. "There is just a little wind and you are waving and bending about. Look at me. I just stand firm and laugh at the wind." The wind got stronger and stronger and the Keurboom waved about and bent over. "You weakling – so weak! Why don’t you stand tall and strong like I do?" Just then suddenly, the wind blew even harder and there was a terrible cracking noise and the big Yellowwood began to break. Some of the branches broke right off and then with a terrible crash the main trunk broke in half and crashed to the ground. The little Keurboom just bent and waved in the strong wind but it did not break.

It is better to be quiet about ourselves than to show off.