An acorn fell from a magnificent oak tree.  It landed on fertile ground, content and safe inside its shell.

Then one day, after the sun shone and the rains had showered, as spring turned into summer. a strange thing happened. The acorn started to outgrow its shell.   Its shell started to crack.

The grand design coded deep in every cell of the acorn, the blueprint of the oak tree, began to reveal itself.  The acorn quivered in its dilemma – to hold on or to let go.   Both seemed impossible. 

Then in a moment of insight, it perceived a new possibility.  As it decided to relax its hold, the cap popped off, and the swollen shell fell away from the tender seed. The acorn’s old identity fell away with it's shell.  

Tiny roots searched for the cool darkness of the earth .  .  .  And after a rest, a tender green shoot emerged from deep within the heart of the acorn and reached for the sun. As the acorn opened, the oak tree took  its place.

One day, the father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country with the express purpose of showing him how poor people live.

They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family.

On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, “How was the trip?”

“It was great, Dad.”

“Did you see how poor people live?” the father asked.

“Oh yeah,” said the son.

“So, tell me, what did you learn from the trip?” asked the father.

The son answered: “I saw that we have one dog and they had four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a creek that has no end. We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night. Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon.

“We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go beyond our sight.

“We have servants who serve us, but they serve others. We buy our food, but they grow theirs.

“We have walls around our property to protect us, they have friends to protect them.”

The boy’s father was speechless.

Then his son added, “Thanks Dad for showing me how poor we are.”