The Girl with Only One Arm
There was a girl who was born without a right arm. On her ninth birthday, she asked her parents if she could join a karate club. They were delighted by the idea and the girl quickly became a regular at the local club. The girl wanted to compete in a tournament and asked her master, “Is this possible?”
The master replied, “Yes! Of course it is possible… but only if you listen carefully and trust me.” The master taught the girl one move and one move only. The girl practised it diligently but after a while she was worried. The other girls in the club were learning a range of moves and she only had one. She asked her master to teach her other moves but her master refused. He urged the girl to keep practising that one move.
On the day of the tournament, the girl won the first round of the competition and then the next round and then the one after that! Until eventually… she won the tournament!
The girl was baffled! How did she do it? “Master,” she asked timidly, still confused. “How did I, a girl with only one arm and only one move, win against the other competitors who have a range of other moves?”
The master chuckled, smiling at her. “It is only one move but it is a very tricky move. There is only one defence against it. You have to grab the attacker by the right arm.”
(246 words)
Waiting by the Tree
Long ago, there was a lazy rice farmer. One day he took a break in the shade of a tree at the edge of his rice field after working in the hot sun.
Suddenly, there was a loud thump! A rabbit had run into the tree! It had been trying to run away from a fox.
The farmer was thrilled at this unexpected good luck! He picked up the rabbit and took it home, forgetting about the work in the rice fields. He cleaned the rabbit and cooked a delicious rabbit stew for dinner.
The next morning, he took the rabbit skin to the market and sold it. The farmer was very happy and thought, “If I can find a rabbit every day, I will have delicious food to eat and more money than I can make working as a farmer! Then I don’t have to work in the hot sun anymore!”
So the next day, the farmer did not go to work. He simply sat under the same tree to wait for another rabbit to come by.
However, there was no rabbit running into the tree!
He waited under the tree for a rabbit every day, completely ignoring his rice fields. “You should work on your rice fields,” persuaded his friends but the farmer refused to listen. “Why should I? If I can get a rabbit every day it would be much better!”
In the end, he had nothing – neither a rabbit nor rice.
(245 words)
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