Goat Story: Grandpa Goat and His House of Love
One day, Grandpa Goat bought a hoe and a shovel and started working busily in the forest. He found a piece of land without trees, first clearing away the weeds and then digging small pits one by one. After finishing with one plot, he would move to another and continue digging.
The small pits Grandpa Goat dug were arranged without any pattern; one here, one there. The distances between the pits varied, some short, some long. The sizes of the pits were also different. Some were big enough to hold a volleyball, while others could only fit a ping pong ball.
For several months, Grandpa Goat continued doing this. He didn’t mind getting tired or dirty and was always cheerful. All the empty spaces in the forest were dug up by him.
Once, Rabbit Mama bumped into Grandpa Goat and curiously asked, “Grandpa Goat, what are you digging these small pits for?”
Grandpa Goat stroked his white beard and replied with a smile, “These small pits are houses of love. I’m going to use them to store love!”
Rabbit Mama first shook her head, then nodded, saying, “Store love? Houses of love? That’s wonderful!”
Grandpa Goat was the first principal of the forest school, having taught countless students over his lifetime. Now, retired and old, his students never forgot him and constantly came to visit their old principal.
Grandpa Goat had a cloth bag specifically for holding the gifts his students brought.
In the spring, a large group of magpies came to visit Grandpa Goat, bringing many ripe loquats to honor their old principal. Grandpa Goat was so happy he couldn’t stop smiling. He said, “I can’t eat all these loquats by myself. Come, help me eat them. After eating, put the loquat seeds in the cloth bag. I’m going to store your love!”
After the magpies left, Grandpa Goat took the half-bag of loquat seeds to an empty space in the eastern part of the forest. He planted one seed in each pit and then covered them with soil, storing the magpies’ love in his houses of love.
In the summer, a group of monkeys passed by Grandpa Goat’s house and brought a big basket of red peaches as a gift. Grandpa Goat was so delighted he was practically skipping. He said, “There are so many peaches, I can’t eat them all by myself. Come, each of you take one to quench your thirst. After eating, put the peach pits in the cloth bag. I’m going to store your love.”
Early the next morning, Grandpa Goat took the bag of peach pits to an empty space in the southern part of the forest. He planted one pit in each hole, carefully storing the monkeys’ love.
In the autumn, the squirrels gathered at Grandpa Goat’s house and brought a basket of honey dates. Grandpa Goat’s eyebrows danced with joy as he said, “Thank you for remembering your old principal! There are so many honey dates, I couldn’t finish them in a month. Come, each of you take ten. After eating, leave the seeds behind. I’m going to store your love in my cloth bag.”
After eating the honey dates, Grandpa Goat and the squirrels went to an empty space in the western part of the forest. Knowing that the small pits were Grandpa Goat’s houses of love, the squirrels helped him distribute and store a bag of honey date seeds.
In the winter, before hibernating, Black Bear sent a big box of gifts to Grandpa Goat, making his face wrinkle with joy. He opened the box to find bags of chestnuts. He said, “I won’t eat these chestnuts this year.”
Grandpa Goat poured the chestnuts into his cloth bag and carried them to an empty space in the northern part of the forest. He gave each chestnut a pit, like finding them a new home, and covered them with loose soil, like tucking them in with a blanket.
The next year, in the blossoming spring, all the seeds Grandpa Goat had stored sprouted, broke through the soil, and grew into small trees. People called these trees “love trees.”
Year after year, the love Grandpa Goat stored grew more and more, turning the empty spaces on the mountain into orchards.
The day Grandpa Goat passed away, some of the love trees had started to bloom…
Thank you for reading! ” Sitestorys “
