
The Pear Tree That Grew in a Morning
On a dusty autumn morning in old Shandong, a pear seller who cannot bear to give away a single fruit meets a ragged wandering Daoist, who plants one seed in the market square and lets a whole tree of sweetness pass into the hands of the crowd. Walking home with an empty barrow, the farmer discovers a gentler kind of fullness.
Retold from The Chinese Fairy Book, edited by Richard Wilhelm.