To all of you that are returning to your routine – may it be an easy return, a good routine and here is a story to wish you all good luck!!
Wonderful Koby and the wonderful beans (Jack and the magical beanstalk) – the educational version!!!
Creative Koby was 11 and lived in a poor village somewhere.
Every day he would arrive at school at the right time, he would do his best to sit up straight in class, try to listen to the material, but he was not successful. He felt that he was a failure. The adults of his village typically did not understand his ideas and imagination and made him memorize and practice activities that he did not understand and did not know why they are necessary and how they will benefit him.
His mother was very hard-working and after toiling all day at her work, when she returned home she grew vegetables in their garden to enrich their diet and save money shopping.
The thing Koby wanted more than anything was a bicycle.
Every day he would ask his mother for a bike, but they did not have enough money. One day his mother suggested that he help her after school working in the garden. In this way they would save more money because they could grow more than they needed for themselves.
His mother offered him 5 shekels per day .. Koby knew math and quickly realized that in order to reach the amount needed for a bicycle, he would have to work a hundred days. He decided that this was too long for him and he did not even start because he knew he could not stand such a long-term task.
When Koby saw other children riding their bikes he was jealous and felt a failure.
Somehow, he always felt that way…
The family’s economic situation grew worse. One day it became so bad that his mother decided to sell their cow so they could pay the their electricity and telephone bills. She asked Koby to go to the market to sell the cow. When he reached the market he was offered less money than his mother expected to get. Koby was really depressed. He thought to himself how he would return home a failure again. Shortly thereafter he met a man who offered him a bag of bean seeds for the cow. The man with the beans told him about the legume family, of which the beans are members, which restore nitrogen to the earth by collaborating with a bacteria, thus enriching the soil for other crops. He said that the beans are very nutritious and can be eaten fresh or dry. He also said that it is possible to plant the beans for future seasons and so there will always be nutritious food for the family to eat.
That lit Kobys imagination. First of all, collaborations are always good, and besides, if their garden will yield more food, his mother would not have to work so hard. Moreover, if there is excess food they can sell it for money and maybe one day even buy a bike…
He came home with a bag of bean seeds in his hand and happy ideas in his head!
When his mother saw him and what he brought, his mood changed: "Beans!!” she said. are you crazy? !!!" And they both went to bed depressed.
Then began the long summer vacation and Koby did not forget his plans. He decided that he was going all the way, even if it is difficult, even if it takes a long time and even if it is not fun. Koby believed in his idea.
He cleared the rocks from a new patch in the garden, while a bunch of kids were laughing at him. "Koby and magical beans" they cried. He tried to explain to them that the beans’ ability to restore nitrogen to the earth is truly miraculous…. He dug and hoed while the other children rode around on their bikes. He tried to explain to them that almost certainly he will also be able to buy himself a bike and join them very soon. He cleaned the chicken coop to collect the manure and use it to enrich the earth in his new bean patch. The other children taunted him, saying "Koby playing with poop". He tried to explain that there is no waste in nature….. It was not easy, but he persisted despite the ridicule of the children and the considerable amazement of the adults.
About two weeks later after the plot was finally ready, he soaked about a third of his beans for the night to speed up the process of germination. He did not wish to take chances.
In the morning he woke up, got dressed, brushed his teeth and immediately went out to sow the seeds.
He barely even saw the group of laughing kids, he was so excited. He placed each seed, covered it well with earth, watered it and waited.
Two days later the sprouts began to protrude from the ground, green, delicate and cute. When they got to about 10 cm tall, Koby arranged a ground cover from organic matter to help the soil retain moisture and to protect the baby plants from weeds that would compete for nutrients in the ground. And so the seeds grew. Each morning Koby would go out to the garden to take care of what was needed.
One morning, one bean plant was huge and was so tall that it went up above the clouds. Kobys first thought was "harvest", but since he found no pods he started to climb and climb and climb the bean stalk. When he reached the top he saw a giant licking his lips and Koby was frightened. It has long been known that evil giants and cute children that look delicious are enemies.
But the giant sat there eating something and it was not a child. It was a Thai bean, 30 cm long. It was a bean that Koby grew on the hude beanstalk. Koby hesitated, not knowing what to do, but soon the giant turned to him with a question: "did you grow this?"
"Yyyyyes" stuttered Koby. "Let me taste it too!" he then said. The giant told him how he had never eaten such a delicious thing, much better than children. Koby told him that he can also cook the beans and they are full of high-quality protein and a lot of other good things. He suggested that the giant keep a number of the seeds so that he can grow them for himself.
The giant told him that up above the clouds there is no earth, and asked Koby to grow it for him. For every bag of beans Koby brings the giant will pay a bag of gold. Koby began thinking "Bicycle, bicycle!"
They shook hands and Koby joyfully climbed down to the ground.
Thus began an era of collaboration between giants and children. The giants’ health improved and they became strong enough to shake the clouds and bring rain for the children’s crops.
Koby currently rides his brand new muddy bicycle to school, to the market and between the many plots where children work together growing various crops. They make sure to grow a bean plant on each bed every year in order to maintain the nitrogen in the soil so it will continue to be fruitful.
And there was also a change in the adults in the village. In addition to being very proud of their children, they now always, always seriously listen to the children's ideas, no matter how unusual they are.
And that is the new and politically correct version of Jack and the beanstalk.
In Greek mythology, Hercules favorite dish was bean soup.
The Almighty Demigod Kyamites Kάτι was in charge of the bean crops, both the growers and the sellers. He said: You can believe in anything or be anything; but most important is to believe in yourself and be yourself.
"Be yourself; everyone else is already taken!"
Have a successful year, easy, and happy!!!
Yours,
The Rosenberg family and The Garden staff
We expect in our baskets,(draft only):
Onions
Potatoes
Rocket/Parsley
Sprouts
Cucumbers
Tomatoes
Lettuce
Butternut Squash
Thai Spinach
Sweet Potatoes
Pumpkin
Eggplant
Larger ones also:
Okra/ Green Beans
Peppers
Cilatro
Parsly
Fruit baskets:
Mangoes
Gala Apples in transition
Larger ones:
Grapes
And more mangoes
