Once two seeds of the same kind lay in the ground together. They had waited there many months, and life was growing rather monotonous to them, when they heard a strange voice whispering to them, and bidding them bestir themselves and reach up from the earth into the world that lay around.
“But how can we do it?” said one of the seeds. “We are too little. The earth above us is very heavy. We could never force our way through all that stretch of black, thick soil.”
But the wonderful voice kept on urging them. “Just take hold, dears,” it said, “of the bit of water that is next to you, and see what will happen.”
“It is of no use,” said the first seed. “What good could that do?”
But the second seed was more obedient, and did as the strange voice bade it. It took hold of the water, swallowed it, and very soon it noticed that it was a little larger.
“Now once more,” said the strange voice, “and again, and again.” And as the seed kept on in its obedience it began to swell, drawing in the nourishment which the water brought it from all the rich soil for many feet around.
Still its neighbor remained sulky and unbelieving, but the obedient seed kept on growing, still in the dark, and with that great weight of earth pressing it down. No earth, though, even if it is many feet deep, can long hold down a growing seed. The white sprouts shot upwards more and more rapidly, the soil crumbling before them, and very soon they appeared above the surface, two little green blades, that reached out eagerly into the wonderful sunlight, and bathed themselves in the fresh air, smiled at the blue sky, talked to the birds and the butterflies, grew and widened, became tall, thick, and strong, and at last after many weeks became a wonderful flower that the people for many miles gathered to see. And all this while the first seed was sulking in the ground, saying in response to the strange voice, “It’s no use, I can’t do it,” until at last the water that it refused to swallow took hold of it and mildewed it so that it rotted away.
From this little story, children, you can learn how to make hard things easy. It is simply by doing as this seed did, taking vigorous hold of all our duties, beginning them without waiting, and growing in power as we work, so that the things that at first seem impossible rapidly become possible to our increasing strength.