Bear does not know what to do with all of the time he has
to spend by himself in summer vacation. "This is going to be a long summer without
anything to do." Bear looks down at the rich brown earth as he scuffles his toes in
the dirt. "Maybe I'll just go over to Coyote's house and we can think of something to
do." But when Bear arrives, Coyote does not want to play, he is busy working very
hard to make a vegetable garden.
Bear has always eaten the wild berries along the trail and
taken the honey comb from the bees in the old fallen tree, but he has never grown his own
food.
"Would you like to help me with the garden Bear?"
asks Coyote. "If you help me it will be hard work, but it will also be a lot of fun
to watch our plants grow and eat them when they are ready."
Bear does not want Coyote to think he has never grown a
garden before, and so he tells Coyote a fib. "I’ve grown a lot of gardens,
before, Coyote, this will be easy for me!"
"Good!" says Coyote, "When the garden has
produced its harvest we will share everything half and half."
Bear wants Coyote to think he is as good at business as he
is at gardening and makes another suggestion. "We will share everything half and
half, but I want everything that grows below the ground as my half, just like the sweet
bulbs and roots of spring grow."
Coyote is bewildered by Bear's decision. The garden they
are planting is corn, but he allows Bear to make his own decision, and also to teach Bear
the consequences of not telling the truth or in asking for guidance and help from others
that you trust.
COMMENTARY:
A story about seeking the truth, in asking questions to
increase ones ability to learn, and in the simple way in which we sometimes must seek
knowledge and the happiness it brings when we have added another valuable lesson of
learning in our life. This story encompasses the seasons, the growth of seeds into harvest
and the proper care and keeping of a garden that nourishes both body and spirit, as well
as the forethought of loving friends.
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