Okay, I'm running out of pre-written stories that I feel ready to share, so it might take me some time to finish up and coming ones. In the meantime, here's a fable that I wrote recently from a good source of inspiration. There are a few words that I change and then change back occassionally, but this is the finished product. See what you think. (And sorry about the layout - it doesn't seem to like my tab indents, any ideas?)

Is a Fable Still a Fable if it Doesn’t Have a Moral Lesson?

One day, a tree standing alone in the middle of a grand forest saw a man walking by. The tree called out to the man.

‘Hello, there,’ the tree said.

‘Hello,’ the man replied, ‘what can I do for you?’

The tree thought it was very kind of the man to ask, and realised that there was something it needed help with. ‘Well, if you don’t mind,’ started the tree, ‘I’ve been trying to bear fruit for a long time with no success. Could you help me?’

The man looked at the tree for a moment, and then – not unkindly – he asked, ‘Why should I help you?’

‘Hmm,’ the tree thought for a while, but in the end it admitted to the man that there was no reason for him to help.

‘I think it’s good of you to be honest,’ the man told the tree, ‘but I’m going to help you anyway.’

The tree was pleased, and the man smiled as he cut the end of one of his fingers with a knife; he dropped blood onto the soil around the tree. ‘Thank you,’ said the tree, and the man nodded and moved on.

A few days later, after the tree had fully absorbed the strength from the man’s blood, the man walked by again. This time he came over to the tree without being called, and the tree voiced its thanks for the second time, ‘I really appreciated your gift,’ said the tree, ‘I can already feel the beginnings of the fruit process.’

‘I’m glad I could help,’ said the man, ‘and if you even need me again…’

They stood together in silence for a short time before the tree spoke. ‘Well, actually – and I know it’s asking a lot – but, could you spare a few more drops?’

The man seemed to smile at the request, ‘Of course,’ he said simply. He sprinkled a generous helping of red at the base of the tree and sucked his finger until the liquid stopped flowing.

‘Thank you so much,’ said the tree, ‘I don’t know why you’re so kind, but you’re really helping me to produce some fruit.’

‘Oh, not at all,’ the man shrugged off the thanks, ‘you asked, and I said yes, that’s all.’

They continued talking for a little bit before the man went on his way, but that night the tree considered the words of the man and found that they did not satisfy the tree’s growing curiosity.

Another five days passed, and the man came walking through the forest towards the tree.

‘Hello,’ said the tree, ‘it’s nice to see you again.’

‘Thank you,’ replied the man, ‘it’s nice to see you again, too.’ They held a contented silence for a short while, and then the man spoke. ‘I’ve been thinking,’ he said, ‘and I’d like to help you through the entire fruit-bearing process.’

The tree was taken aback, but it agreed and was very grateful to the man. ‘I hope you don’t mind me asking,’ said the tree later, ‘but why are you helping me?’

The man smiled at the tree. ‘Do I need a reason to want to help?’

‘Not at all,’ answered the tree, ‘but I think there is one nonetheless.’

The man nodded sensibly but his only words were, ‘Well, I’ll let you think about it.’

From then on the man visited the tree everyday, giving it a little more strength and providing it with much welcomed conversation. The tree, in turn, asked the man why he was helping each time he arrived, only to receive the same reply – I’ll let you think about it.

This continued for several years, and then many decades, by which time the tree had produced good fruit numerous times. Eventually, however, the tree grew old and it knew its time to die was near. It was then that the tree asked the man for an answer…

‘Will you not satisfy the curiosity of an old tree?’ it asked the man.

‘Even though we’ve been set in our ways for so long?’ said the man, a familiar smile on his lips.

‘Even though,’ the tree told him.

‘Okay,’ said the man cleanly, ‘I will tell you.’ He leaned against the flaking bark and continued, ‘You are not the biggest, nor the strongest tree in the forest, but your fruit is as sweet as any other, and your manner is just as gentle. So, there was no reason why you should be chopped down and thrown into the fire, especially when you were willing to ask for help.’

The tree thought carefully about the man’s words all through the night, and when the man appeared again the next day – the tree’s end only a few days away now – it had perceived that there was yet more to the explanation.

‘More?’ asked the man.

‘Yes,’ the tree said, ‘something subtle, but important.’

At that, the man laid an affectionate hand on the trunk of the tree and smiled. ‘Yes,’ he said, ‘there is one more thing. It’s simply that I love you.’

The tree felt the truth of the words, but it still did not understand. ‘Why?’ it asked the man.

‘Why do I love you?’ the man asked in return.

‘Yes,’ confirmed the tree, ‘there are many other bigger and better trees in the forest. Why do you love me out of all the others?’

The man looked at the tree compassionately. ‘I love all of the trees in the forest.’

‘Why?’ asked the tree again, ‘some of them – me included, had it not been for your help – don’t even bear fruit. Why would you love us so much?’

The warmth from the man’s palm was amazing to the tree, but the answer he gave was even more so, and when the tree died – three days later – the words of the man were still cradled deep within it, treasured as nothing else had ever been…

‘Because it was I who planted you.’