Many Moons and many Moons ago in the far back times back when the one legends talked with us there was a large apple tree that sat in the forest and the tree was very lonely. Each day it sat there all alone then one day down there , Down the path there was a little boy walking on the path. As the boy came closer the tree spoke to the little boy and the little boy said that he was lonely. The tree said climb up on my branches and i will keep you company. Soon the boy and the apple tree were close friends and every day the boy came to play in the branches of the tree. This went on for a long time and the boy grew up playing in the tree , and the tree was happy.

        As the boy grew older he started coming to the tree less and less until finally he didn't come at all. The years went by and each day the tree looked down the path for his friend. Then one day as the tree looked down the path there he saw what he thought might be his friend the boy who was now a young man. As the young man who was a boy came near the tree the tree invited him to come play in his branches but the young man said he had no time for play now the people of his village were hungry. the tree said well , take my apples to the people and they will help them not to be so hungry. So the boy who was now a young man climbed the branches and picked all the apples then he climbed back down and thanked his friend the tree , and the tree was happy.

        many years passed as the tree looked down the path each day for his friend the boy who was now a young man then one day .... way down there, down the path the tree saw what he thought was the boy who was now a man. As the man who was the boy came near the tree the tree invited him to come play in his branches but the man who was the boy said he had no time to play in the branches for it was cold and winter and his family was freezing. The tree said well , i have my branches and trunk and they will keep you warm. So the man who was a boy cut down the tree to keep his family warm and the tree was happy.

        many more moons passed and the stump that was a tree still watched down the path for his friend who was a boy who was now a man. Then one bright day as the stump that was a tree watched there came the boy who was now an older man and as he came closer to the tree the tree said I'm sorry but i have no branches for you to play in and i have no apples for you to eat but i do have a stump for you to sit on. The older man who was once a boy said oh that all right him too old to climb in your branches and i have no teeth to eat your apples and its a beautiful warm day so i am not cold and do not need your wood but i would like to sit with you awhile. And the tree was happy.

        This is an old story and not the only version of it.
Story by JoAnn