Classical:

Once upon a time there were a bunch of blind mice who were friends. They were together. Suddenly, they noticed that there was something large near them. So one by one they went over to see what it was. The first mouse ran over and felt something big and round coming out of the ground, so she thought it was a fire hydrant. The second mouse ran over and felt something hanging out of the sky, so he thought it was a rope. The third mouse climbed up the thing and ran to the edge, thinking it was a cliff. The fourth mouse climbed the thing and slid down what she thought was a slide. The fifth mouse felt large, soft, and warm things, so he thought it was a blanket. After getting together, telling each other what they thought the thing was and arguing, a wise sixth blind mouse who had just joined them put everything he was told together and decided that the thing was an elephant.

This story teaches a very important lesson, the importance of accepting all views of something before making a decision. It shows that other people's opinions are just as valid as your own. No one's interpretation is better than another person's, one may just be more accurate, encompassing all the others. It also shows the importance of communicating with others, not struggling on one's own. It shows the value of team work, of working with others, and not arguing constantly.

Personal:

During the summer before fourth grade my family went for a vacation with my grandparents to the U.S. Virgin Islands. It was my favorite trip to the beach, with a whole different inland ecosystem from Florida and much better snorkeling reefs. We stayed on St. Johns in buildings which were one room each and had two concrete walls, two screen walls, and a concrete floor. Behind one of the buildings we were staying in was a coconut palm tree. We had eaten maybe one or two coconuts up to the end of the week we were spending there, found on the ground after falling off the coconut palms. Well, we all wanted to taste a coconut which had recently been picked. Because I was the best at climbing the basketball pole at home, they gave me the job of climbing the coconut tree and picking the coconut.

There was a bank behind the tree behind our building, so I got up on that in order to have a head start. I grabbed the tree and began climbing, instantly noticing that I was not used to the width of the tree and the bending of the trunk. Because coconuts grow on the underside of the palm fronds and on the underside of the curve, I had to swing around to the more difficult side of the tree as I climbed. I was scared. I felt like I would fall and for some reason I didn't think I would be caught by my dad or land on my feet. My hands started sweating and I started to shake. I wanted to stop and come down when I was two thirds of the way done. But I continued climbing and reached the top. In order to pick the coconut I had to let go of the tree with one hand and mainly use my feet to keep myself up. That is pretty hard when you are almost hanging upside down. I didn't want to let go. When I finally reached out and grabbed the coconut, it wouldn't come off easily. It was still growing and the stem was pretty strong. I had to put some of my weight into picking the coconut. This scared me crazy because I kept thinking, “What if the coconut suddenly comes off and I can't hold on well enough with my feet and my free hand?” But I took the chance and pulled the coconut free, dropping into the hands of my dad who passed it off to my little brother, staying below me, ready to catch me if I fall. I finally was able to drop from the tree and get back on my feet.

This story teaches about facing my fears and taking risks. Risk taking is very important in life. Without taking risks there are no great successes. I learned that with the support of my family underneath me I can make any reasonable risks I want to. Because I took the risk we were able to enjoy the delicious taste of a last, handpicked coconut before heading back to the continent. And if I remember correctly, that coconut tasted much better than all the others we ate that week.