A lesson for a little boy

I read this book to Isaac tonight before bed.

Someone once told me that they hated this book. In shock I asked why? It is such a sweet, somewhat sad story. They said that it teaches children that they have to give away everything they have to make someone else happy. Hmmm....

As I was reading it to Isaac, we went through each page where the boy grows and the tree continues to give little parts of herself to the boy. And it says in doing so the tree was happy. And we got to the part where the tree is down to just a stump and it says "she is happy...but not really." I asked Isaac why is the tree sad? Is it because she gave everything she had away or is she sad because she doesn't have her boy with her and nothing left to give to him. He said she was sad because the boy, who she loved very much, was gone. I asked did he think she might be just a little sad that she had given everything away and he surprised me by saying "No, Mom. The book said when she gave to him it made her happy, so she wouldn't be sad for having gave."

The ending of the book confirms his theory when the boy comes back as a withered old man, the tree sadly says she has nothing left to give. The boy says all he needs is a place to sit for he is very tired. So he sits on her stump...and the book tells us the tree was happy.

I told Isaac I would say a special prayer for him tonight. And I took his little (well...ok..big!) hands and prayed that God would grow him into a man who regards others as more important than himself, and that he would give without thinking of the cost to him.

For I know that in doing so, he will be the richest man in the world.