LET ME SHARE WITH YOU ONE LOVELY STORY
that I heard from someone at a party.
It recounts of two men moving afloat—
a scholar and a man who rows the boat.

ALONG THE JOURNEY, A LEAF WAS FLOATING;
the scholar saw it and asked him rowing,
“Boatman, what can you say about the trees?
Oh, how they’ve served man through all centuries!”

THE BOATMAN REPLIED WITH A SHAME THAT’S SLIGHT:
“Sorry, sir, but I am no read, no write.”
The scholar rejoined, sounding like a gripe,
“Then you have wasted one-fourth of your life!”

DECADES AGO, WHEN I WAS JUST A LAD,
I planted a mango tree in my yard.
Days after, how I wished with fruits it weighed,
Law of Nature dictates I had to wait.

HAVE THE PATIENCE OF THIS WONDERFUL TREE.
It’s the tree called the ‘Chinese Bamboo Tree.’
To those longing for a fruitful life,
here’s that tree’s story to inspire you right.

PLANT THE SEED OF A CHINESE BAMBOO TREE,
water and fertilize it tirelessly.
Be stunned not of what you are going to see,
“for after a year of caring—no tree!”