Chapter Seven: The Apple Tree.

Once upon a time, a girl planted an apple tree in her yard.

The girl took good care of her tree carefully, with help from her mother and her father; they helped her water the seed carefully, and it grew into a small, healthy shoot.

As the years passed, the little shoot grew into a strong and healthy little tree. The girl continued tend to her tree lovingly; the tree's leaves grew shiny, as though the girl had waxed them, and it often bore beautiful white blossoms, which everyone admired prettily. When the girl grew older, her father and mother told her that she was growing up, and she must learn to care for the tree herself.

As the years passed, the tree bore its first small crop of apples. The girl was quite disappointed, because she had looked forward to seeing a treeful of apples, but she cheered up, for the taste of the first harvest is always sweet. She picked all the apples she could find, and gave them away; the children whom she longed to play with let her join them, for she had given them some apples.

Ah, but then, as she grew older she began to pay less attention to the tree. Often she would forget to water it, or to feed it with fertilizer. The poor tree began to look rather tired and miserable; the leaves were no longer shiny and fewer and fewer blossoms appeared. Soon, the tree stopped flowering altogether. It was a sad sight. Meanwhile, little girl spent all her time playing games with her new friends, and in no time at all the poor tree began to look dry and withered. She had forgotten all about it.

One day, the girl's father felt like eating some apples, and so he asked his daughter for an apple from her tree. The girl ran out to pick one for him, but to her dismay, she found the tree withered and dying, and not a single apple to be seen. Seeing how she had neglected her tree, her father spanked her soundly, whilst her mother cried bitterly, for she had not imagined her child to be so irresponsible.

Angry at her parents, the girl went back to her friends, but alas, they began to shun her, as she had no more apples to give them. How lonely she felt! She crept back home, still weeping, and her parents wept with her. Together, they tried to save the tree by tending it with the care that they had neglected to give it earlier.

Soon, the tree began to grow healthy again. The leaves were once again shiny and plump, and in no time at all the little yard smelled sweet, for the tree began to flower again. The seasons passed, and glossy red apples sprouted abundantly; happily, the little family set to picking them, and had a merry feast to celebrate the harvest.

Sadly, the little tree had to face yet another trial, for weeds sprouted madly about it, and stole its water. Try as she might, the girl was not able to pull any of the weeds out, for she was not strong enough, and neither was she able to heft enough water for both the weeds and the tree. The tree began to bear less and less fruit, and the apples grew smaller, and less sweet.

What is she to do? If apples are no longer sweet, what can make them sweet again?