"My Apples are Gone"

"but I have nothing left to give you----" "My apples are gone." "My teeth are too weak for apples," said the boy. "My branches are gone," said the tree. "You cannot swing on them------" "I am too old to swing on branches," said the boy. "My trunk is gone," said the tree. "You cannot climb--------" "I am too tired to climb," said the boy. "I am sorry," sighed the tree. "I wish that I could give you something------ but I have nothing left. I am just an old stump." "I don't need very much now," said the boy. "just a quiet place to sit and rest. I am very tired." "Well," said the tree, straightening herself up as much as she could, "well, an old stump is good for sitting and resting. Come, Boy, sit down. Sit down and rest." And the boy did. And the tree was happy.

© Shel Silverstein

pic via All Things Amazing. Such an awesome photo… love it.

Here are some interesting tidbits I found while looking for a good tree story:

*The Amazon is the world's largest river basin and the source of one-fifth of all free-flowing fresh water on Earth. Incredibly the Amazon is also home to one in ten known species on Earth.

* The word 'jungle' comes from Sanskrit jangala, meaning 'uncultivated land'.

* Although tropical rainforests cover only 2% of the planet's surface, they are home to half of all species on Earth.