The Three Trees

In a small village lived a poor couple and their three sons. The two older ones were smart and cunning, but they were rather lazy. The youngest one, called Jock, wasn’t the brightest of lads, but he was ever so kind and had a heart of gold.

However, no one paid much attention to him and everyone considered him a fool since he wasn’t as smart or as cunning as his two older brothers.

One fine morning the father called his sons to him and said: “Sons of mine, you’ve grown into real men now. As you well know, we’re not exactly the richest family. You know how we barely manage to scrape by! It would be best for all of you to go out into the world and look for a bit of luck. Who knows, perhaps you find a nice woman to spend your days with!”

The next morning all three of them set out into the world. They wandered aimlessly together for quite some time. None of them knew where to go until they had reached a three-way fork. They stopped for a moment, chatting and considering which way to go.

The older brothers suggested they should split up and each take one of the roads. The eldest chose for himself the widest most travelled road and chose the second largest road for his middle brother. They told the youngest one, Jock, to take the narrow path into the woods.

The younger brother agreed and began working his way through the tall grass covering the path. It was nearly as tall as he was and he used an old whip to make an easier trail. He trudged through the thick, dark forest through thickets. His arms and his legs were scratched all over from the…