Once, a farmer was selling pears. Soon, an old monk begged him for a pear but the farmer did not give him any. By then a large crowd had gathered there. Finally, a man bought a pear and handed it to the monk. The monk thanked the man and said, “I invite all of you to eat the pears that I have grown.” The monk ate his pear until there was just one pip left. He planted the pip in the earth. The people were astounded. In front of their eyes there stood a pear tree with sweet-smelling pears. The monk handed the pears to the people. Then the monk cut the pear tree and went on his way. The farmer was amazed. He looked at his barrow. It was empty. One of the handles of the barrow was missing too. The farmer now knew that the old monk had used his pears to create the pear tree. The farmer was very angry.
The Monk and the Pear Tree
