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The Man and the Coconuts
Based On a Folktale From the Philippines
Long ago, an old man saw he had almost run out of food. He hitched a small cart to his horse and went to look for coconuts.
Coconuts grow high in coconut trees. The man was too old to climb trees, so he looked for coconuts that had fallen to the ground. The man had to go very far to find coconuts. People had already taken all the coconuts from the trees near the village.
Finally, the man found trees with lots of coconuts. Many coconuts had fallen to the ground. He filled his cart with coconuts, then he set off for home. He was tired and wanted to get home quickly.
After a while, the man saw a boy walking down the road. He asked the boy, “Is the village near? Will it take me long to get home?”
The boy looked at the cart full of coconuts. Then he said, “If you go fast, it will take a long time. If you go slowly, you will be home soon.”
“What a foolish boy,” the man thought. He made his horse go fast. The road was bumpy and many of the coconuts fell off the cart. It took a long time to pick them up and put them back on the cart.
“Now I have wasted time picking up coconuts,” the man said. “I had better hurry so I can get home soon.” Once again, the man made his horse go fast. Once again, coconuts fell off the cart. The man stopped to pick them all up.
“Maybe that boy was not so foolish after all,” the man said. He made his horse go slowly, and soon he was home.
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