The Favorite Employee By.Danielle Carr Father: Owner/CEO of a company/ Nephew's uncle Younger Son: The CEO's nephew Older Son: A devoted employee who has been at the company for 15 years.
A owner and CEO of a successful computer company offered a job to his out of work nephew. The nephew had accepted the offer and began working as an assistant. He would fetch their mail and coffee. The nephew would make copies of papers and print out meeting schedules. This isn't exactly what the nephew thought the job would be like.
One day, the nephew asked if he could have an extra hour for lunch so he could meet a friend. The uncle agreed, thinking that it would be a one time thing. However, the nephew kept taking longer lunch breaks. He would come in the work late and leave early. Sometimes he wouldn't show up to work at all. One fellow employee was furious at the nephew. None of the work was getting done and he had to do all the things the nephew would forget to do.
A few weeks later, the company was having this big presentation about a new product. Everyone was ready and all set up except for the presentation. The nephew was given the disc that the presentation was on to make a copy for backup. However, the nephew never showed up to work that day. The company had lost their investors and the money that came with it. A few days later, the nephew returned to work. He apologized to his uncle and told him that he should be demoted or fired. The uncle embraced his nephew and told him that he was forgiven. The uncle had told the nephew that he would not fire him. In fact, he was promoted him to vice president. This had made the fellow employee angry. He had been there for 15 years and worked hard to get promoted to vice president. Then, this kid came in, who didn't even do his job, and took his position. The employee grabbed all of his stuff and stomped out of the company as the nephew and his uncle were talking about the duties of a vice president.
I was always the responsible one. I always did my chores and got good grades at school. All this hard work went unnoticed and unappreciated. It was my older sister who got all the attention despite the fact she never does what she’s told to. She’s ungrateful and spends money like its going out of style.
“Nathan can you help you sister?” a question I hear at least twice a week. “Sure.” I always answer reluctantly. I would help and get no thanks.
My sister started to wonder if what I would say had truth to it. After careful consideration she realized I was completely right. To my surprise when I got home from school the next day, I found my chores were already done. No dishes in the sink, the trash was taken out, and my bed was made.
I asked her why she did this and she said to me, “I’m your older sister but I’ve been acting like a spoiled 3 year old. I promise to never take you for granted again.” And I smiled.
There was once a man who had two sons; the younger son doesn’t listen to his father and makes bad choices, he said to his father “Give me my allowance!” so the father did. A few days later the younger son tells his father he can support himself better and that he’s leaving to live with friends. He had no money, and no job but his father let him go. The younger son’s friends said that they had money and everything he would need. They did have money but not for long and everything the younger son needed went as far as stale bread and old beer. They spent up all their money on silly things, it was like the great potato famine in Ireland; they had no food and nowhere to get it from. So the younger son goes out and looks for work, his skills are limited but he finds a job as a mechanic. It is hard, dirty work that lasts all day and when he finally gets his paycheck it is all spent up on beer, and fast food. Then he came to his senses and said, “After all the work I do, this is what I get? Why am I the only one that works!? This is not life, everything is being taken from me, and I’m hungry and dirty all the time and I’m the one who works!” the younger son decided to leave his life with his friends and return home. On his way home the father spots his son and without thinking he runs and meets him, kisses him and puts his arms around him. The son told the father about how terrible it was, about how selfish and lazy his friends were, and that he should have been a better son and stayed home with his father. But the father cuts him off, tells him to go in the house and shower, and put on clean clothes. He says that he’s going to prepare a wonderful dinner for this night, his son finally came home, and the father was so proud, so happy.
The oldest son was just getting off of work he doesn’t know his younger brother is at home. When he opens the door and sees what’s going on inside, his blood raises in his vines his breathe becomes tight in his throat and he is mad. He runs over to the dinner table demanding an explanation for this, the father looks up at him lovingly and says, “Why are you so mad? This is a night for joy not war, your little brother came home, aren’t you happy he’s back?” the older son looks down at them and through gritted teeth says, “I’ve worked hard all these years, I never disobeyed you, I did my homework and spent my money wisely, and you never treated me like this! And now your baby son is back after he left and said he could do better on his own, you make him a good dinner? He disrespected you, your rules and this is how you treat him? I can’t believe it, if I would have known that I would have spent my money on beer and junk just like your precious little son! “Listen son, calm down.” “You are precious too; you have stayed with me, and did all that I ask that’s why everything I have is yours. I celebrate today not to spoil your brother or make his mistakes seem good and your accomplishments nothing, I celebrate today, this night, because this is the night a little boy became a man, your little brother realized and accepted he couldn’t do better on his own, and instead of being immature and not accept he knew what he had to-do, he knew he had to come home and admit to his father he did wrong, that he failed and that deserves forgiveness and thanks I assume?” The older brother held down his head, a wave of understanding came over him and he sat down at the table and smiled at his brother saying, “Welcome home young man.”
Staring out of his car window, Ryan tried to recall what his parents had told him before he left the house. He remembered them telling him to come home by 12 PM. He thought his parents said something about him never coming home on time, but Ryan couldn’t remember. ‘Ah well’, he thought, ‘This won’t be the first time I haven’t come home on time’. Ryan suddenly glowered as he thought of his older sister, Amy. She never missed a curfew and sometimes even came home before the curfew! This boggled Ryan’s mind, but as he pulled into his friend’s driveway, he decided to have a good time and not worry about the curfew.
It was nearly 3AM when Ryan began to drive home drowsily. Not only was he tired, but he had also experimented with a few shots of alcohol. Ryan knew his driving wasn’t the best in the early morning, so he was thankful there was no one on the road. But as he passed under a green light, unexpected bright lights blinded him for a few seconds.
Kevin sat in his car tapping his fingers to the music. His radio was on and his air was on full blast to keep him awake. Abruptly, he spotted something in the darkness approaching his car very quickly. Kevin realized that it was a car going at top speed on the wrong side of the road and without warning, this car collided with Kevin’s car with tremendous speed and strength.
Later the next day, both Kevin and Ryan both woke up in the hospital. Both had sustained injuries, but Ryan had fewer injuries than Kevin because Ryan was driving a truck. Kevin’s car was totaled, while the nose and side of Ryan’s car were dented in very harshly. After being checked over, signing papers, and exchanging information for insurance purposes, Ryan asked to go home early. He didn’t want to stay in the hospital. He wanted to run away.
Instead of returning home right away, Ryan walked around for the rest of the day, just thinking about what happened and how his parents would react when he told them his story. He knew he had disobeyed his parents and that these were the consequences for not listening to his parents. Unfortunately, the other driver had to suffer with him, if not worse than him. Ryan knew that he had to go home, but he just hoped that his parents would accept him.
As Ryan walked up to his front door, he slowly pushed the doorbell. Almost as if someone had been waiting by the door, the door swung open and he was greeted with hugs from his mom and dad. His mom’s eyes started filling with tears as she kissed Ryan on the cheek and ushered him into the kitchen where she had prepared his favorite meal. Ryan sat down and began to eat, shocked at his parent’s reaction.
After dinner, and after telling his story, Ryan sat down with his parents and apologized multiple times over for his disobedience, recklessness, and disregard for authority. His parents forgave him, but his sister, who had not welcomed him, was rather upset that her parents had not punished Ryan further.
As her father stood up to leave the living room, Amy confronted her father. “Why are you forgiving him when he has been disobeying you since he got his license? Your truck is now wrecked because of Ryan and now you have to pay for multiple hospital and car bills! Why do you welcome him back with open arms? I always come home on time, sometimes before my curfew, and all I receive is a ‘hello’ and ‘thank you’.”
Her father explained to her that even though Ryan had a bad past, he had been waiting patiently for Ryan to turn his life around and realize that he was in the wrong. With Ryan coming home with a humble heart and repentance, he knew that he had to welcome Ryan home with open arms. Her father continued to explain that Ryan had already suffered enough punishment. As long as Ryan continued on the right path, he would overlook his past and his waywardness, for Ryan’s eyes had been opened.
Original Details (characters, places, things) Allegorical Meaning Updated Details (characters, places, things)
The father God Billionaire Dad
The younger son Rebellious Party son
The older son Faithful Shy son
There once was a billionaire father. He was an entrainment prodigy and he has everything you could ever ask for. He had two sons. The first one asked for the keys to his father’s nicest car and his checkbook and went out into the town and partied all night and all day until he had spent all of his father’s money and wrecked his car. He wandered the streets for days, wondering how he would face his father. With nowhere else to turn, and starving, he returns home. His father sees him at the end of the driveway, and he runs to him. He picks him up and jumps for joy. He gives him his nicest robe and tells the butler to clean him up and feed him. The older brother, who was looking from the window, and has done nothing but help his father, and make money for him, becomes angry. The father then calls all there friends and has a giant party. He rents to grandest ballroom and invites all the world-class stars to attend. The brother seeing this becomes angry and questions his father. His father tells him that his son left him, but has returned, and this is reason to rejoice!
“Dude! Come on! We’ve already missed the previews!” I tapped my foot and glared at my watch. Sarah’s reply was muffled from her position: on her hands on knees, her head under the bed. “Alright, give me five more minutes. Or at least help me look!” “Seriously? You’ve got like nine other pairs of shoes to wear! Grab some and let’s go, I want to get good seats!” “They’re my favorite pair! Look, you can leave without me if you want, I’ll catch up.” I considered, but Sarah was my best friend. I threw open her closet and began to rifle through her belongings. One deflated soccer ball, a couple of hats, crumpled up school assignments…but no missing shoes. Meanwhile, Sarah opened and slammed her dresser drawers. Half an hour passed. I abandoned the idea that we’d be seeing a movie anytime soon. We’d swept Sarah’s corners, completely evacuated the area underneath her bed, cleaned out her closet completely…and still no shoes. But Sarah still wouldn’t give up hope. Finally, just as we were about to expand the search to Sarah’s basement, her little sister walked in, holding a pair of purple high tops. “Hey! Sorry, I borrowed these earlier while you were…why are you looking at me that way?” Sarah pounced on the shoes and put them on immediately. I expected her to yell at her sister, but instead, she grabbed both of our hands and led us out the door. “Alright, guys, this calls for a celebration! Shoe-finding party at the bowling alley!” And to this day, those are still her favorite shoes.
Writing: Updating a Parable - “The Talents” By David T. Hudson Jr.
There once was a construction overseer who needed some heavy lifting done. So he ordered three men to do the job. The first man weighed 200 lbs., the second man weighed 150 lbs., and the third man weighed 100 lbs. He said that he wanted each of them to lift there own weight in heavy cargo. So as it were, the man who weighed 200 lbs. lifted exactly 200 pounds of cargo. The second, weighing 150 lbs., also lifted his weight in cargo. The third and lightest man, however, went home, sat down, and watched Oprah. Sure enough, the overseer, who was also the boss, returned to check on the progress of his workers. The first man gave him his report, and the boss heard it and it pleased him very much. The second man also gave his report that he had lifted his own weight in cargo, and this also pleased the boss. “But where is the third worker?”, thought the boss. The other two told him that he didn’t do a thing, but, rather, went home to watch Oprah. The boss was furious! He decided to give “Mr. Lazy” (in his own words) a call. The phone rang, and the third worker picked up his home phone. “Hello boss, how are things?” “Not so good, we are behind in schedule because you didn’t do any work.” “Oh, well, I was afraid I would hurt myself, you know, being as light as I am.” “I didn’t ask more of you than I thought you could take.” “Well, that’s all in the past now, right sir? Hey, can I take the month off?” “Sure, in fact, take a ten year vacation.” “Alright! Hey, wait a minute!” The boss hung up, and the third worker knew he was fired now.
Bobby has never been excited about his academics, going to class and doing homework has always been a struggle. This past year he seemed like he was on the right path, he was in the basement on his computer and didn’t seem to be struggling with any of the work, or with being in the basement when his classes started. But when the progress reports came in, things began to look a little different.
Out of thirteen classes in the school year, he failed eight of those courses. Needless to say my parents were far from pleased, they reprimanded him and yelled at him thinking that it might sink in that he couldn’t sit on the computer and play games all day, he needed to take some initiative and work. But that only made it worse.
In his anger he decided not to speak to any of us, and that he had still tried his hardest to pick up his grades but my parents didn’t believe that excuse. So they began to take things away from him in an effort to prepare him for the coming school year. They took away his computer usage, his friends, and his phone. In his rage he threw his digital camera and broke it, that was a big loss for him since he uses it on a daily basis. He then decided to say that if he went to a real school in the fall that he would improve his grades. He apologized to my parents and in return my mother decided to buy him a new camera.
I had been watching this whole event and my main question that I posed to my parents was “How come he is being rewarded for being inadequate?” To which no one has given me an answer. I think that it is completely unfair that he uses the computer now when no one is home, he got his phone back, and he is out with his friends all the time. I don’t think that he has learned his lesson, and that he is just playing along to get what he wants, but it is not my responsibility or my place. I understand that he is only being rewarded because he does not seem to have the natural desire to succeed in his academics. And I have gotten used to the fact that since I naturally do my homework that I will not be rewarded for doing something that I’m supposed to do. But I’m still doing to ask for a pony as a reward.
Once there was a chicken farmer named Danny. One day Danny got an advertisement in the mail promoting a new up and coming chicken farmers convention. This intrigued him very much so he decided that he’d go check it out. He couldn’t go and leave his chickens without anyone taking care of them, so he arranged for three of his employees to look after them while he was away. He called each of them up and told them to meet at his house so he could talk to them about some extra work.
The first call he made was to his hardest working employee- a fella by the name of Sam. Sam came over right away and gladly accepted the offer of looking after five-hundred of the eight-hundred chickens that Danny owned.
The next call was made to a nice young guy who was just recently married. His name was Michael. Michael was also one of Danny’s hardworking employee’s but he already had two jobs so he lessened the work load for him. Michael was soon at Danny’s place and they were discussing the job responsibilities. Danny decided that Michael could easily handle taking care of two-hundred chickens so that’s what he left to him. Michael eagerly accepted the offer and went home to his wife.
The third and final call was made a young teenager by the name of Jake. Jake was a newer employee but Danny thought that this would open up an opportunity for Jake to prove his ability. Jake shuffled into the old brick farm house and after being told of his small task of looking after one-hundred chickens he hesitantly accepted then left.
After Danny was satisfied with his decision he packed up his belongings and headed out for his three week adventure. As soon as Danny was gone the three men got to work.
Sam fed and watered the chickens, cleaned out their living space, collected their eggs, then began to do some heavy thinking. He wanted to keep the chickens as happy as possible so he decided to fence in an area outside for them to frolic and eat all the bugs their little hearts desired. He also decided that he would incubate a few hundred eggs so that there would be more money coming to his boss when it came time to butcher the chickens.
Michael found that with only two-hundred chickens to look after he had some extra time left on his hands between this and his other job. Michael was generally a more mechanically minded guy so he thought a little bit different than Sam. Instead of pleasing the chickens he wanted to please the boss so he went and searched out something that needed to be fixed. He found that the egg collector conveyor belt was all broken down. After every day of his normal duties he used his extra time fixing the egg collector.
Jake didn’t really want to accept the extra responsibility because he was afraid he would mess something up, but he did it anyway because he was asked. Everyday he would go, fed the chickens, water the chickens, make sure they were all in their cages, then head home- relieved that nothing went wrong.
The men continued their work day after day till their boss finally came home. The day of his return the three men were all working when they spotted him coming up the driveway. They quickly finished their work and greeted him as he got out of his car. Danny was curious how everything went but he waited till they all got into the comfort of his home before he started asking questions. Once seated at his recliner, he turned to Sam and asked if everything went smoothly and if the chickens were all in good condition.
Sam proudly smiled and said “Sir, your chickens are just fine. In fact, I’d go even further and say they’re better! I reckon you noticed that there fencing on your way in”
Danny nodded and replied “Yeah, I did notice that and was actually going to ask what you were using it for.”
“Well Sir, it’s like this. I figured if I was a chicken I’d like me some place to run around and breath good fresh air. I’d get terrible bored cooped up in that cage everyday bein’ fed the same victuals. So’s I took it upon myself to fence in that spot over yonder to kinda cheer the little critters up and ya know- it worked! Since they’re eatin’ all those bugs and what not they don’t have as big a appetite for the chicken grub you bought ‘em. So, the store-bought food lasts longer and the chickens are happier. I also took it upon my self to hatch a few hundred eggs so’s you’ll have more money a-comin’ to ya when the butcher comes ‘round.”
“Wow, Sam! I’m really impressed! You’ve gone above and beyond what I required of you. Since you’ve proven to be such a trustworthy worker I’m going to permanently put you in charge of the five hundred eggs you watched for me plus the eggs you’re hatching.”
“What about you young fella?” Danny asks turning to Michael.
“Well Sir, since you left me with only two-hundred chickens to tend to I found that I had some extra time on my hands so I made use of it. I noticed your conveyor belt stopped working. I searched out the problem and discovered it was something I could fix, so I fixed it. Now you won’t have to pay extra money for the time people spend collecting eggs because they won’t have to collect them anymore!”
“Great job, Michael! Since you have proven to me that you are a good steward over your time and a hardworking, ambitious man I’m going to let you permanently take care of those two-hundred chicken and you’ll also be the farm mechanic!”
“Well, Jake. How’d everything go with you?” “Uh, well… I fed and watered the chickens like you asked. And I made sure they were all locked up in their cages before I went home.” “That’s it?! What about cleaning out their cages?” “Oh, opps. I-uh, I forgot I guess.” “Jake, I hoped that by giving you this extra responsibility you would’ve proved to me that you’re worth keeping around. Unfortunately, I’m going to have to fire you because frankly, I can’t trust you to follow instructions and employ your time wisely. Goodbye, Jake!” Jake looks down at his shoes a bit disappointed then quietly walks out the door.
My updated parable is about: “The Talents” By Sean Faulkner
Edmund Jones was the manager of the large new 2/5ths Bank He had several employees in which he had great confidence in to help make his business grow. Mr. Jones thought that he knew his employees well and that they knew him well enough that they could work without him. So Mr. Jones decided to take an extended trip abroad and see if he could pull in some new investments.
He decided that he would put each of his employees in charge of specific departments. For his Stock investment Department he put Mr. Howard in charge. He told Mr. Howard that this was a really important department; this could bring prosperity to the bank. This department had three people working under the department head.
Next, for his Loan Department he put Mr. Smith in charge. This also was a very important department and he had every confidence in Mr. Smith to run it properly. This department had two people working under the department head.
Now lastly there was the New Customer Department. This department would bring in new customer along with their money to help the bank prosper. For this department he put Mr. Bennett in charge. This was also an important department. This department had only one additional employee that handled customer accounts.
Off on his trip Mr. Jones went, feeling confident in his choices of department heads that he had left behind. He knew his trip would be good and he had no worries about leaving the business behind. He would be back soon enough to see how they do. Continued
My updated parable is about: “The Talents” Continued
By Sean Faulkner
Upon Mr. Jones departure, Mr. Howard immediately went and started investing in the stock market. He started to make rather large gains and cashed them in for the bank and filled their books with additional funds. He had made so much money that he hired two more employees to work in his department to help with additional stock investments.
Next Mr. Smith started working with the local businesses encouraging them the take out loans to expand their businesses. With these new loans came a return on investment in the form of interest. These new loans helped his department grow. Soon he was able to hire another employee to help with the additional work the loans had created.
Lastly, there was Mr. Bennett in the New Customer Department. Now Mr. Bennett, unlike Mr. Smith and Mr. Howard did not start right off the bat to increase his customer base. He thought that too many customers might make the bank to large and unmanageable and that would in turn make Mr. Jones unhappy. So while the others kept moving right along making money for their departments Mr. Bennett sat in his office reviewing the accounts of the only customers his bank had. Since no new accounts came in there were no additional funds or accounts to add to the department so he was unable to add any new employees.
Updated Version of The Talent by Sarah Taylor There once was a business man of great wealth who loved to gamble his money. Often would he be found at the casinos where he made his millions rise. One day in the middle of a huge tournament, the wise old man was in the led of the poker game with 8,000 dollars in chips, when he suddenly had to leave the table for an important phone call. He split his 8,000 dollars chips. To one man he gave up 5,000 dollars in chips to, to another man he gave 2,000 chip value, and to the last man only 1,000 chips. All three men gladly took in the new chips and then the games begun. All of these men have played in the casino before therefore they all know how the gambling world goes. The man who inherited the 5,000 dollars in chips started to bid higher and bet out more chips, he soon doubled his 5,000 dollars in chips. The man who took in the 2,000 dollars in chips had a slower start but also played his cards right and doubled his chip value. The third man was scared, he was scared to lose and it cost him his chips, the third man stayed folding his hands. The goal of gambling is to make more than what you had. When the wise old business man returned to the table, all three of the men he had given his chips to had big bright eyes. The first man’s eyes were huge in excitement and the old man thanked him for doubling the 5,000 dollars in chips. The second man eyes were also huge with excitement and the old man thanked him as well. When the old man saw the third man’s eyes were huge filled with tears he lashed out on him and exiled him for not profiting his money. Come to find out, this old man was the millionaire owner of the casino and he granted the first two men jobs working for him because they were so trust worthy. The third man was banished and told never to return the casino. The End
A mob boss was looking for fresh blood to pad the upper branches of the family, but he needed people who knew how to handle themselves and take a good opportunity when they saw it, the family had enough no brain lackeys to call on and he needed something more.
He decided to test a new batch of associates he recently accepted into the family in proper. He called them into his office one by one and told them he had important business to do out of country, and was entrusting them with a large deal of money to see to themselves, and reminded them of their obligations to the family. The first associate was given 20k USD, the second 10k USD, and the third a measly 5k. He departed the next day and left them to their work, to return two months later.
The first man invested his money into stocks of utilities and medical corporations, things that would always be worthwhile and were totally legal. His efforts bore fruit, he double his starting amount of money with a little extra to make sure things kept going his way. Upon returning home the boss was pleased with his careful methods of acquisition, and he was promoted to a high ranking position in financing the family.
The second man, knowing he was at a large disadvantage to the first, decided to be riskier. He used his funding to establish organized crime rings, a good deal of the profits from these all made their way back to the family, and in time the second man also managed to double his starting amount, albeit after one too many close calls with the police and other gangs. The boss was still pleased at him putting his own neck on the line for the family, and provided for him a spot in the family's shadier departments.
The third man feared what would happen if he squandered the money, the boss was a very powerful man. He decided not to take chances, and hid the money in an old mattress in his attic where no one would find it. When the boss returned the man retrieved the money and gave it back to the boss, who scolded the man for not taking advantage of the most gracious opportunity he provided for him. He expelled the third man from the family, and told him to never show his face in their establishments again.
Jeff was a caring loving father who owned a bakery. Both of Jeff’s sons worked at the bakery with him, helping to keep the family business going. Jeff’s oldest son was Dino; he didn’t work as many hours because he was also in college, but every chance he was off school he was at the bakery hard at work. The younger son Craig, who was employed full time, barely showed up from work and was always out partying since he dropped out of college the first week. Whenever Craig decided not to show up for work Jeff had extra work to do and would wind up not coming home till very late and Dino was stuck leaving school early or missing homework because he came to his father’s rescue to help at the family store. One day as Jeff was waiting for Craig to show up to work he realized as the time went by that Craig probably was a no show again. So Jeff took care of the day himself and stayed extra late at work falling behind in schedule. Almost a week had past and Craig had not shown up yet. Jeff went to the bank to see if there was any activity on his younger son’s credit cards to soon realize that Craig took out the loan his father was saving for Craig when he finished college. Jeff was very disappointed and realized that Craig wouldn’t be coming back. Dino wound up going to college part time only now and taking in a much bigger responsibility now that his younger brother wasn’t there at all to help. Dino had no free or fun time to himself and was always exhausted. A couple months later Jeff was walking out his front door on his way to work when he saw his youngest son walking up the driveway at the crack of dawn. “Father I know I have betrayed you and our family business, but I will work extra hard and find my own place to sleep if you want. I am broke and miss you and my brother and just want to come back home.” Craig’s father looks at him and says, “Come home son, I have missed you so much, I will close the store just for this special occasion and tonight all the family shall come over and we will have a nice big dinner just for you.” When Dino found out he was furious and didn’t understand how his father could hurt him like that. “I work every day hard for you, I miss school for you, I never steal from you and my brother who stole money and left us, you have a party for him just because he came home?” Dino’s father looked at him and simply said “Craig is my son just as you are. He was away and I missed him greatly and he came back to us instead of leaving for good.”
Mike was always getting away with everything that I couldn’t. I sat, hunched over my test, shooting bitter looks at him, while he managed to cheat on another test. He was grinning as he took the little slip of paper out from his pocket and skimmed over the tightly scrawled answers on it. I wanted to speak up to Ms Whitman, her back turned and oblivious that her “new star” was not actually improving at all. But, Mike was my best friend, one of the few people that decided to stick by my side. I simply could not do it.
After school, he was leaning against a wall on the North side of the building, his eyes on the ground, his lanky black hair hanging like a curtain around his face. He was, by definition, a bad boy. The girls would shoot him curious looks in the hallways while they acted blind against those that were actually putting thought into our future. There was something that attracted people to him, like a moth to a light, he had a light inside of him that was shining and attracting everyone around. But why did he deserve it? He didn’t deserve most of the praise he got!
That night, I waited patiently for him to come over. He was from a fortunate family, that much was true. He’d come over with the newest game system, or the newest game, and we’d play until it was time for me to go to bed. But the clock began to tick the seconds, no, hours away, as the phone lay silent, never ringing. I was beginning to tire, but I was never worried. No, Mike could get out of any situation couldn’t he? So I retired earlier than usual, angry thoughts buzzed in my head until finally, I drifted to sleep.
Mike wasn’t in school the next day. I still wasn’t worried, but by the third day, I was growing anxious. I called his parents, in which they told me some shocking news. Mike had been arrested. I was shocked, though I shouldn’t have been. I should have known that he wasn’t invisible to the law, and that his dark life would eventually catch up to him. But I was shocked, nonetheless.
He stood in prison for about a month. By this time, I remained convinced he would fail the year and I would finally be free of his burden, of “helping” him with his homework while he played the playstation. But, as Mike’s luck would have it, he had to meet with the school counselor, a woman who was renowned for being one of the most caring and warm person in the entire school. Indeed, she was forgiving, she believed everyone had the potential to exceed, all they needed was a push. And she saw the potential in Mike, and she guided him a long, all the while, showing him better things to do with his time. The teachers were forgiving too, they didn’t persecute him but instead, welcomed him back with open arms. They saw potential in every student. So now, as I sit here next to Mike, waiting to go up on stage to get our diplomas, I now have a respect for him. He was redeemed and forgiven.
-Manager (also the father of the workers) -Worker 1 -Worker 2 -Worker 3
It was a simple day at the restaurant. People come and go. They talk, eat, and leave. The manager had his 3 best workers with him at the restaurant. Worker 1 has been there for over 5 years. He’s put his own money into the place. Worker 2 has been there for 2 years. He has put very little money into the place. Worker 3 however, has not put money into the restaurant, and has been there for little over a year. He’s also caused the most trouble, causing police to charge the restaurant with fraud. One day, the manager decided to ask the workers for help again. He needs more money to put into a special project. “Here’s the deal,” said the manager, “If you put money into the place, you will receive a raise.” How this pleased the workers. “Take a day or two to decide on the decision.” said the manager again. The workers had to make a decision, and they knew they couldn’t let the boss down. In the next two days, there was trouble again. Worker 3 almost caused an entire sickness of the restaurant. “Listen son,” said the manager, “if you cause one more major mistake, I’m gonna have to let you go.” This upset the worker. He was sick of the way he treated him. He helped him in the past. So to get him back, he stole the money the other worker’s put towards the restaurant, and put it in his bank account. The next day, the manager called in the workers. “So, did you decide to put money towards the place?” he asked. They nodded. “Well, let’s see how much you guy’s put towards.” said the manager. As he went towards the envelope, the third worker stopped him. “Sir, I’m sorry.” he said. The manager gave him a confusing look. “I stole it, and put it in my account.” he confessed. He told him everything else; why he did it, and when how he was going to spend it. He said he was going to “use it for the special project”. This upset the manager. “You still lie!? I gave you a chance to do some right, and you betray your brothers and me!?” he yelled. The worker nodded. “Son, I’m proud you told me the truth, but, you still stole from your brothers, and you lied to me! YOU’RE FIRED!” the manager shouted. The third worker nodded, accepting the fact that he did do wrong. He apologized, and left. Later, he received a call from his dad, and he said, “Good job for telling the truth, my son.”
Once a man left his two sons in charge of his recording studio while he took a two week cruise. The father had always favored the younger son, Josh. He knew it was wrong, but he just connected with Josh better. When he left he expected that Josh would be responsible and take care of the studio. He didn’t really have any high or low expectations for the older son, Chris. Chris had never disappointed him, but he also had never been emotionally connected to Chris the way he was Josh. The father left on a Tuesday and called everyday at precisely 9:15 pm just to check in on the boys. Chris always answered the phone, which made his father suspicious. In reality the reason that Chris was always in the studio was because he was trying to clean up the mess from his brother who slept and watched tv all day, and partied at night. Chris worked endless hours to make up the time that Josh had wasted by not doing what he should have been. When the father returned from his vacation he was disappointed. Not in Josh, because he didn’t believe that Josh had done this, he believed that Chris was the irresponsible one. Even after hours of trying to convince his father, Chris was still hopeless. His father didn’t believe him. After a few years life went back to normal and Chris forgot about the incident. When the father suddenly died of a heart attack and the will was read, Josh inherited the studio, a place Chris loved more than his own life. Chris was furious, and didn’t speak to his brother anymore. He despised him for taking the one thing he truly cared about, especially since he knew he wouldn’t take care of it.
"An Unexpected Decision" by: Kayla S. Milner Father: Judge Younger Son: Felon on trial Older Son: Victim of the felony
In the small city of Warren, Ohio lives only 20,000 people. The city was going through rough times, the city's key source of jobs was working in a very productive factory called: ONEStop. This factory mass produced steel-related items.
But due to the world economy and world trade, it was cheaper to make steel-related items in other countries. So, the factory closed down and it put 2,575 people out of work. The city fell into a depression.
One day, a 16-yr. old teenager by the name of Antonio Rodderick was on his way to school when he overheard a conversation. It was between his mom and dad, they were discussing how they were going to pay their overdue mortage payments. $600 worth of overdue mortage payments. Antonio was worried about what would happen to his family, what would happen if they lost their house, and where would they go? Everyone else in their family was suffering since the factory closed down.
The thought bothered him all throughout school, to where he couldn't take it anymore. He decided to take matters into his own hands, and do what he had to do. Even though the thought was simply absurd, he figured that desperate times called for desperate measures. It was now or ever.
He'd been fighting with his morality and conscious for weeks. But overhearing the conversation confirmed it. On his way home from school he always passed the "Millionaires Circle", a semi-rich people neighborhood. There was one house that he had been casing for weeks.
The house was three levels, had a gorgeous 3/4 in. green yard with a iron gate blocking the front. The house was made of a rare red brick, and everyday a silver Jaguar left from 6am - 7pm. He had no idea who the owner was, but everytime he passed the house he saw a vase in on a side table in the front window. He figured he could take the vase and sell it to an unexpecting pawn shop, the vase had to be worth enough for the mortage.
Antonio went his usual route home, but he took a detour. He walked right through the backyard, he walked through the 6 ft. pine border. The backyard was an average 3x6, so it only took minutes to reach the back door.
After he picked the lock, he got down on all fours and slowly crawled to the front window. Thankfully, the curtains were closed, but he wasn't going to take any chances. Once he had the vase in his hands, the front door opened wide. There stood a 5'6'' slightly graying middle-aged man in a black suit with a striped tie. Antonio was in big trouble.
On the day of the trial, Antonio was sweating bullets. He was being represented by a lawyer provided by the city, his parents couldn't afford an independent one. His parents waited patiently and supportively in the guest pews. It turns out that the man he was attempting to 'steal' from was Mr. Robert Lourdis, the meanest and most successful lawyer in the city of Warren. He was representing himself, obviously.
When it came down to the judge, he sentenced Antonio to 200 hours of community service instead of the required 3 months in the city jail. Antonio was relieved, but Mr. Lourdis was not. When he approached the judge, the judge told him: Mr. Lourdis, during these bleak times; people enact crimes out of desperation. Not because they
20 comments:
The Favorite Employee
By.Danielle Carr
Father: Owner/CEO of a company/ Nephew's uncle
Younger Son: The CEO's nephew
Older Son: A devoted employee who has been at the company for 15 years.
A owner and CEO of a successful computer company offered a job to his out of work nephew. The nephew had accepted the offer and began working as an assistant. He would fetch their mail and coffee. The nephew would make copies of papers and print out meeting schedules. This isn't exactly what the nephew thought the job would be like.
One day, the nephew asked if he could have an extra hour for lunch so he could meet a friend. The uncle agreed, thinking that it would be a one time thing. However, the nephew kept taking longer lunch breaks. He would come in the work late and leave early. Sometimes he wouldn't show up to work at all. One fellow employee was furious at the nephew. None of the work was getting done and he had to do all the things the nephew would forget to do.
A few weeks later, the company was having this big presentation about a new product. Everyone was ready and all set up except for the presentation. The nephew was given the disc that the presentation was on to make a copy for backup. However, the nephew never showed up to work that day. The company had lost their investors and the money that came with it. A few days later, the nephew returned to work. He apologized to his uncle and told him that he should be demoted or fired. The uncle embraced his nephew and told him that he was forgiven. The uncle had told the nephew that he would not fire him. In fact, he was promoted him to vice president. This had made the fellow employee angry. He had been there for 15 years and worked hard to get promoted to vice president. Then, this kid came in, who didn't even do his job, and took his position. The employee grabbed all of his stuff and stomped out of the company as the nephew and his uncle were talking about the duties of a vice president.
Prodigal Son Updated was
Lawrence Kimble
I was always the responsible one. I always did my chores and got good grades at school. All this hard work went unnoticed and unappreciated. It was my older sister who got all the attention despite the fact she never does what she’s told to. She’s ungrateful and spends money like its going out of style.
“Nathan can you help you sister?” a question I hear at least twice a week. “Sure.” I always answer reluctantly. I would help and get no thanks.
My sister started to wonder if what I would say had truth to it. After careful consideration she realized I was completely right. To my surprise when I got home from school the next day, I found my chores were already done. No dishes in the sink, the trash was taken out, and my bed was made.
I asked her why she did this and she said to me, “I’m your older sister but I’ve been acting like a spoiled 3 year old. I promise to never take you for granted again.” And I smiled.
Writing: Updating a Parable: The Prodigal Son
There was once a man who had two sons; the younger son doesn’t listen to his father and makes bad choices, he said to his father “Give me my allowance!” so the father did. A few days later the younger son tells his father he can support himself better and that he’s leaving to live with friends. He had no money, and no job but his father let him go. The younger son’s friends said that they had money and everything he would need. They did have money but not for long and everything the younger son needed went as far as stale bread and old beer. They spent up all their money on silly things, it was like the great potato famine in Ireland; they had no food and nowhere to get it from. So the younger son goes out and looks for work, his skills are limited but he finds a job as a mechanic. It is hard, dirty work that lasts all day and when he finally gets his paycheck it is all spent up on beer, and fast food. Then he came to his senses and said, “After all the work I do, this is what I get? Why am I the only one that works!? This is not life, everything is being taken from me, and I’m hungry and dirty all the time and I’m the one who works!” the younger son decided to leave his life with his friends and return home. On his way home the father spots his son and without thinking he runs and meets him, kisses him and puts his arms around him. The son told the father about how terrible it was, about how selfish and lazy his friends were, and that he should have been a better son and stayed home with his father. But the father cuts him off, tells him to go in the house and shower, and put on clean clothes. He says that he’s going to prepare a wonderful dinner for this night, his son finally came home, and the father was so proud, so happy.
The oldest son was just getting off of work he doesn’t know his younger brother is at home. When he opens the door and sees what’s going on inside, his blood raises in his vines his breathe becomes tight in his throat and he is mad. He runs over to the dinner table demanding an explanation for this, the father looks up at him lovingly and says, “Why are you so mad? This is a night for joy not war, your little brother came home, aren’t you happy he’s back?” the older son looks down at them and through gritted teeth says, “I’ve worked hard all these years, I never disobeyed you, I did my homework and spent my money wisely, and you never treated me like this! And now your baby son is back after he left and said he could do better on his own, you make him a good dinner? He disrespected you, your rules and this is how you treat him? I can’t believe it, if I would have known that I would have spent my money on beer and junk just like your precious little son! “Listen son, calm down.” “You are precious too; you have stayed with me, and did all that I ask that’s why everything I have is yours. I celebrate today not to spoil your brother or make his mistakes seem good and your accomplishments nothing, I celebrate today, this night, because this is the night a little boy became a man, your little brother realized and accepted he couldn’t do better on his own, and instead of being immature and not accept he knew what he had to-do, he knew he had to come home and admit to his father he did wrong, that he failed and that deserves forgiveness and thanks I assume?” The older brother held down his head, a wave of understanding came over him and he sat down at the table and smiled at his brother saying, “Welcome home young man.”
Consequences
By Jennifer Wang
Staring out of his car window, Ryan tried to recall what his parents had told him before he left the house. He remembered them telling him to come home by 12 PM. He thought his parents said something about him never coming home on time, but Ryan couldn’t remember. ‘Ah well’, he thought, ‘This won’t be the first time I haven’t come home on time’. Ryan suddenly glowered as he thought of his older sister, Amy. She never missed a curfew and sometimes even came home before the curfew! This boggled Ryan’s mind, but as he pulled into his friend’s driveway, he decided to have a good time and not worry about the curfew.
It was nearly 3AM when Ryan began to drive home drowsily. Not only was he tired, but he had also experimented with a few shots of alcohol. Ryan knew his driving wasn’t the best in the early morning, so he was thankful there was no one on the road. But as he passed under a green light, unexpected bright lights blinded him for a few seconds.
Kevin sat in his car tapping his fingers to the music. His radio was on and his air was on full blast to keep him awake. Abruptly, he spotted something in the darkness approaching his car very quickly. Kevin realized that it was a car going at top speed on the wrong side of the road and without warning, this car collided with Kevin’s car with tremendous speed and strength.
Later the next day, both Kevin and Ryan both woke up in the hospital. Both had sustained injuries, but Ryan had fewer injuries than Kevin because Ryan was driving a truck. Kevin’s car was totaled, while the nose and side of Ryan’s car were dented in very harshly. After being checked over, signing papers, and exchanging information for insurance purposes, Ryan asked to go home early. He didn’t want to stay in the hospital. He wanted to run away.
Instead of returning home right away, Ryan walked around for the rest of the day, just thinking about what happened and how his parents would react when he told them his story. He knew he had disobeyed his parents and that these were the consequences for not listening to his parents. Unfortunately, the other driver had to suffer with him, if not worse than him. Ryan knew that he had to go home, but he just hoped that his parents would accept him.
As Ryan walked up to his front door, he slowly pushed the doorbell. Almost as if someone had been waiting by the door, the door swung open and he was greeted with hugs from his mom and dad. His mom’s eyes started filling with tears as she kissed Ryan on the cheek and ushered him into the kitchen where she had prepared his favorite meal. Ryan sat down and began to eat, shocked at his parent’s reaction.
After dinner, and after telling his story, Ryan sat down with his parents and apologized multiple times over for his disobedience, recklessness, and disregard for authority. His parents forgave him, but his sister, who had not welcomed him, was rather upset that her parents had not punished Ryan further.
As her father stood up to leave the living room, Amy confronted her father. “Why are you forgiving him when he has been disobeying you since he got his license? Your truck is now wrecked because of Ryan and now you have to pay for multiple hospital and car bills! Why do you welcome him back with open arms? I always come home on time, sometimes before my curfew, and all I receive is a ‘hello’ and ‘thank you’.”
Her father explained to her that even though Ryan had a bad past, he had been waiting patiently for Ryan to turn his life around and realize that he was in the wrong. With Ryan coming home with a humble heart and repentance, he knew that he had to welcome Ryan home with open arms. Her father continued to explain that Ryan had already suffered enough punishment. As long as Ryan continued on the right path, he would overlook his past and his waywardness, for Ryan’s eyes had been opened.
Original Details (characters, places, things) Allegorical Meaning Updated Details (characters, places, things)
The father God Billionaire Dad
The younger son Rebellious Party son
The older son Faithful Shy son
There once was a billionaire father. He was an entrainment prodigy and he has everything you could ever ask for. He had two sons. The first one asked for the keys to his father’s nicest car and his checkbook and went out into the town and partied all night and all day until he had spent all of his father’s money and wrecked his car. He wandered the streets for days, wondering how he would face his father. With nowhere else to turn, and starving, he returns home. His father sees him at the end of the driveway, and he runs to him. He picks him up and jumps for joy. He gives him his nicest robe and tells the butler to clean him up and feed him. The older brother, who was looking from the window, and has done nothing but help his father, and make money for him, becomes angry. The father then calls all there friends and has a giant party. He rents to grandest ballroom and invites all the world-class stars to attend. The brother seeing this becomes angry and questions his father. His father tells him that his son left him, but has returned, and this is reason to rejoice!
I did the lost coin instead of the Prodigal Son.
Hannah Orchard
The Lost Coin
“Dude! Come on! We’ve already missed the previews!” I tapped my foot and glared at my watch. Sarah’s reply was muffled from her position: on her hands on knees, her head under the bed.
“Alright, give me five more minutes. Or at least help me look!”
“Seriously? You’ve got like nine other pairs of shoes to wear! Grab some and let’s go, I want to get good seats!”
“They’re my favorite pair! Look, you can leave without me if you want, I’ll catch up.” I considered, but Sarah was my best friend. I threw open her closet and began to rifle through her belongings. One deflated soccer ball, a couple of hats, crumpled up school assignments…but no missing shoes. Meanwhile, Sarah opened and slammed her dresser drawers.
Half an hour passed. I abandoned the idea that we’d be seeing a movie anytime soon. We’d swept Sarah’s corners, completely evacuated the area underneath her bed, cleaned out her closet completely…and still no shoes. But Sarah still wouldn’t give up hope. Finally, just as we were about to expand the search to Sarah’s basement, her little sister walked in, holding a pair of purple high tops. “Hey! Sorry, I borrowed these earlier while you were…why are you looking at me that way?” Sarah pounced on the shoes and put them on immediately. I expected her to yell at her sister, but instead, she grabbed both of our hands and led us out the door.
“Alright, guys, this calls for a celebration! Shoe-finding party at the bowling alley!” And to this day, those are still her favorite shoes.
Writing: Updating a Parable - “The Talents”
By David T. Hudson Jr.
There once was a construction overseer who needed some heavy lifting done. So he ordered three men to do the job. The first man weighed 200 lbs., the second man weighed 150 lbs., and the third man weighed 100 lbs. He said that he wanted each of them to lift there own weight in heavy cargo. So as it were, the man who weighed 200 lbs. lifted exactly 200 pounds of cargo. The second, weighing 150 lbs., also lifted his weight in cargo. The third and lightest man, however, went home, sat down, and watched Oprah. Sure enough, the overseer, who was also the boss, returned to check on the progress of his workers. The first man gave him his report, and the boss heard it and it pleased him very much. The second man also gave his report that he had lifted his own weight in cargo, and this also pleased the boss. “But where is the third worker?”, thought the boss. The other two told him that he didn’t do a thing, but, rather, went home to watch Oprah. The boss was furious! He decided to give “Mr. Lazy” (in his own words) a call. The phone rang, and the third worker picked up his home phone.
“Hello boss, how are things?”
“Not so good, we are behind in schedule because you didn’t do any work.”
“Oh, well, I was afraid I would hurt myself, you know, being as light as I am.”
“I didn’t ask more of you than I thought you could take.”
“Well, that’s all in the past now, right sir? Hey, can I take the month off?”
“Sure, in fact, take a ten year vacation.”
“Alright! Hey, wait a minute!”
The boss hung up, and the third worker knew he was fired now.
Bobby has never been excited about his academics, going to class and doing homework has always been a struggle. This past year he seemed like he was on the right path, he was in the basement on his computer and didn’t seem to be struggling with any of the work, or with being in the basement when his classes started. But when the progress reports came in, things began to look a little different.
Out of thirteen classes in the school year, he failed eight of those courses. Needless to say my parents were far from pleased, they reprimanded him and yelled at him thinking that it might sink in that he couldn’t sit on the computer and play games all day, he needed to take some initiative and work. But that only made it worse.
In his anger he decided not to speak to any of us, and that he had still tried his hardest to pick up his grades but my parents didn’t believe that excuse. So they began to take things away from him in an effort to prepare him for the coming school year. They took away his computer usage, his friends, and his phone. In his rage he threw his digital camera and broke it, that was a big loss for him since he uses it on a daily basis. He then decided to say that if he went to a real school in the fall that he would improve his grades. He apologized to my parents and in return my mother decided to buy him a new camera.
I had been watching this whole event and my main question that I posed to my parents was “How come he is being rewarded for being inadequate?” To which no one has given me an answer. I think that it is completely unfair that he uses the computer now when no one is home, he got his phone back, and he is out with his friends all the time. I don’t think that he has learned his lesson, and that he is just playing along to get what he wants, but it is not my responsibility or my place.
I understand that he is only being rewarded because he does not seem to have the natural desire to succeed in his academics. And I have gotten used to the fact that since I naturally do my homework that I will not be rewarded for doing something that I’m supposed to do. But I’m still doing to ask for a pony as a reward.
The Talents Parable Updated
Once there was a chicken farmer named Danny. One day Danny got an advertisement in the mail promoting a new up and coming chicken farmers convention. This intrigued him very much so he decided that he’d go check it out. He couldn’t go and leave his chickens without anyone taking care of them, so he arranged for three of his employees to look after them while he was away. He called each of them up and told them to meet at his house so he could talk to them about some extra work.
The first call he made was to his hardest working employee- a fella by the name of Sam. Sam came over right away and gladly accepted the offer of looking after five-hundred of the eight-hundred chickens that Danny owned.
The next call was made to a nice young guy who was just recently married. His name was Michael. Michael was also one of Danny’s hardworking employee’s but he already had two jobs so he lessened the work load for him. Michael was soon at Danny’s place and they were discussing the job responsibilities. Danny decided that Michael could easily handle taking care of two-hundred chickens so that’s what he left to him. Michael eagerly accepted the offer and went home to his wife.
The third and final call was made a young teenager by the name of Jake. Jake was a newer employee but Danny thought that this would open up an opportunity for Jake to prove his ability. Jake shuffled into the old brick farm house and after being told of his small task of looking after one-hundred chickens he hesitantly accepted then left.
After Danny was satisfied with his decision he packed up his belongings and headed out for his three week adventure. As soon as Danny was gone the three men got to work.
Sam fed and watered the chickens, cleaned out their living space, collected their eggs, then began to do some heavy thinking. He wanted to keep the chickens as happy as possible so he decided to fence in an area outside for them to frolic and eat all the bugs their little hearts desired. He also decided that he would incubate a few hundred eggs so that there would be more money coming to his boss when it came time to butcher the chickens.
Michael found that with only two-hundred chickens to look after he had some extra time left on his hands between this and his other job. Michael was generally a more mechanically minded guy so he thought a little bit different than Sam. Instead of pleasing the chickens he wanted to please the boss so he went and searched out something that needed to be fixed. He found that the egg collector conveyor belt was all broken down. After every day of his normal duties he used his extra time fixing the egg collector.
Jake didn’t really want to accept the extra responsibility because he was afraid he would mess something up, but he did it anyway because he was asked. Everyday he would go, fed the chickens, water the chickens, make sure they were all in their cages, then head home- relieved that nothing went wrong.
The men continued their work day after day till their boss finally came home. The day of his return the three men were all working when they spotted him coming up the driveway. They quickly finished their work and greeted him as he got out of his car. Danny was curious how everything went but he waited till they all got into the comfort of his home before he started asking questions. Once seated at his recliner, he turned to Sam and asked if everything went smoothly and if the chickens were all in good condition.
Sam proudly smiled and said “Sir, your chickens are just fine. In fact, I’d go even further and say they’re better! I reckon you noticed that there fencing on your way in”
Danny nodded and replied “Yeah, I did notice that and was actually going to ask what you were using it for.”
The Talents Parable Updated (Continued)
“Well Sir, it’s like this. I figured if I was a chicken I’d like me some place to run around and breath good fresh air. I’d get terrible bored cooped up in that cage everyday bein’ fed the same victuals. So’s I took it upon myself to fence in that spot over yonder to kinda cheer the little critters up and ya know- it worked! Since they’re eatin’ all those bugs and what not they don’t have as big a appetite for the chicken grub you bought ‘em. So, the store-bought food lasts longer and the chickens are happier. I also took it upon my self to hatch a few hundred eggs so’s you’ll have more money a-comin’ to ya when the butcher comes ‘round.”
“Wow, Sam! I’m really impressed! You’ve gone above and beyond what I required of you. Since you’ve proven to be such a trustworthy worker I’m going to permanently put you in charge of the five hundred eggs you watched for me plus the eggs you’re hatching.”
“What about you young fella?” Danny asks turning to Michael.
“Well Sir, since you left me with only two-hundred chickens to tend to I found that I had some extra time on my hands so I made use of it. I noticed your conveyor belt stopped working. I searched out the problem and discovered it was something I could fix, so I fixed it. Now you won’t have to pay extra money for the time people spend collecting eggs because they won’t have to collect them anymore!”
“Great job, Michael! Since you have proven to me that you are a good steward over your time and a hardworking, ambitious man I’m going to let you permanently take care of those two-hundred chicken and you’ll also be the farm mechanic!”
“Well, Jake. How’d everything go with you?”
“Uh, well… I fed and watered the chickens like you asked. And I made sure they were all locked up in their cages before I went home.”
“That’s it?! What about cleaning out their cages?”
“Oh, opps. I-uh, I forgot I guess.”
“Jake, I hoped that by giving you this extra responsibility you would’ve proved to me that you’re worth keeping around. Unfortunately, I’m going to have to fire you because frankly, I can’t trust you to follow instructions and employ your time wisely. Goodbye, Jake!”
Jake looks down at his shoes a bit disappointed then quietly walks out the door.
My updated parable is about: “The Talents”
By Sean Faulkner
Edmund Jones was the manager of the large new 2/5ths Bank
He had several employees in which he had great confidence in to help make his business grow.
Mr. Jones thought that he knew his employees well and that they knew him well enough that they could work without him. So Mr. Jones decided to take an extended trip abroad and see if he could pull in some new investments.
He decided that he would put each of his employees in charge of specific departments. For his Stock investment Department he put Mr. Howard in charge. He told Mr. Howard that this was a really important department; this could bring prosperity to the bank. This department had three people working under the department head.
Next, for his Loan Department he put Mr. Smith in charge. This also was a very important department and he had every confidence in Mr. Smith to run it properly. This department had two people working under the department head.
Now lastly there was the New Customer Department. This department would bring in new customer along with their money to help the bank prosper. For this department he put Mr. Bennett in charge. This was also an important department. This department had only one additional employee that handled customer accounts.
Off on his trip Mr. Jones went, feeling confident in his choices of department heads that he had left behind. He knew his trip would be good and he had no worries about leaving the business behind. He would be back soon enough to see how they do.
Continued
My updated parable is about: “The Talents” Continued
By Sean Faulkner
Upon Mr. Jones departure, Mr. Howard immediately went and started investing in the stock market. He started to make rather large gains and cashed them in for the bank and filled their books with additional funds. He had made so much money that he hired two more employees to work in his department to help with additional stock investments.
Next Mr. Smith started working with the local businesses encouraging them the take out loans to expand their businesses. With these new loans came a return on investment in the form of interest. These new loans helped his department grow. Soon he was able to hire another employee to help with the additional work the loans had created.
Lastly, there was Mr. Bennett in the New Customer Department. Now Mr. Bennett, unlike Mr. Smith and Mr. Howard did not start right off the bat to increase his customer base. He thought that too many customers might make the bank to large and unmanageable and that would in turn make Mr. Jones unhappy. So while the others kept moving right along making money for their departments Mr. Bennett sat in his office reviewing the accounts of the only customers his bank had. Since no new accounts came in there were no additional funds or accounts to add to the department so he was unable to add any new employees.
Updated Version of The Talent by Sarah Taylor
There once was a business man of great wealth who loved to gamble his money. Often would he be found at the casinos where he made his millions rise. One day in the middle of a huge tournament, the wise old man was in the led of the poker game with 8,000 dollars in chips, when he suddenly had to leave the table for an important phone call. He split his 8,000 dollars chips. To one man he gave up 5,000 dollars in chips to, to another man he gave 2,000 chip value, and to the last man only 1,000 chips.
All three men gladly took in the new chips and then the games begun. All of these men have played in the casino before therefore they all know how the gambling world goes. The man who inherited the 5,000 dollars in chips started to bid higher and bet out more chips, he soon doubled his 5,000 dollars in chips. The man who took in the 2,000 dollars in chips had a slower start but also played his cards right and doubled his chip value. The third man was scared, he was scared to lose and it cost him his chips, the third man stayed folding his hands. The goal of gambling is to make more than what you had.
When the wise old business man returned to the table, all three of the men he had given his chips to had big bright eyes. The first man’s eyes were huge in excitement and the old man thanked him for doubling the 5,000 dollars in chips. The second man eyes were also huge with excitement and the old man thanked him as well. When the old man saw the third man’s eyes were huge filled with tears he lashed out on him and exiled him for not profiting his money. Come to find out, this old man was the millionaire owner of the casino and he granted the first two men jobs working for him because they were so trust worthy. The third man was banished and told never to return the casino.
The End
Update a parable. The Talents.
A mob boss was looking for fresh blood to pad the upper branches of the family, but he needed people who knew how to handle themselves and take a good opportunity when they saw it, the family had enough no brain lackeys to call on and he needed something more.
He decided to test a new batch of associates he recently accepted into the family in proper. He called them into his office one by one and told them he had important business to do out of country, and was entrusting them with a large deal of money to see to themselves, and reminded them of their obligations to the family. The first associate was given 20k USD, the second 10k USD, and the third a measly 5k. He departed the next day and left them to their work, to return two months later.
The first man invested his money into stocks of utilities and medical corporations, things that would always be worthwhile and were totally legal. His efforts bore fruit, he double his starting amount of money with a little extra to make sure things kept going his way. Upon returning home the boss was pleased with his careful methods of acquisition, and he was promoted to a high ranking position in financing the family.
The second man, knowing he was at a large disadvantage to the first, decided to be riskier. He used his funding to establish organized crime rings, a good deal of the profits from these all made their way back to the family, and in time the second man also managed to double his starting amount, albeit after one too many close calls with the police and other gangs. The boss was still pleased at him putting his own neck on the line for the family, and provided for him a spot in the family's shadier departments.
The third man feared what would happen if he squandered the money, the boss was a very powerful man. He decided not to take chances, and hid the money in an old mattress in his attic where no one would find it. When the boss returned the man retrieved the money and gave it back to the boss, who scolded the man for not taking advantage of the most gracious opportunity he provided for him. He expelled the third man from the family, and told him to never show his face in their establishments again.
Jeff was a caring loving father who owned a bakery. Both of Jeff’s sons worked at the bakery with him, helping to keep the family business going. Jeff’s oldest son was Dino; he didn’t work as many hours because he was also in college, but every chance he was off school he was at the bakery hard at work. The younger son Craig, who was employed full time, barely showed up from work and was always out partying since he dropped out of college the first week. Whenever Craig decided not to show up for work Jeff had extra work to do and would wind up not coming home till very late and Dino was stuck leaving school early or missing homework because he came to his father’s rescue to help at the family store.
One day as Jeff was waiting for Craig to show up to work he realized as the time went by that Craig probably was a no show again. So Jeff took care of the day himself and stayed extra late at work falling behind in schedule. Almost a week had past and Craig had not shown up yet. Jeff went to the bank to see if there was any activity on his younger son’s credit cards to soon realize that Craig took out the loan his father was saving for Craig when he finished college. Jeff was very disappointed and realized that Craig wouldn’t be coming back. Dino wound up going to college part time only now and taking in a much bigger responsibility now that his younger brother wasn’t there at all to help. Dino had no free or fun time to himself and was always exhausted.
A couple months later Jeff was walking out his front door on his way to work when he saw his youngest son walking up the driveway at the crack of dawn. “Father I know I have betrayed you and our family business, but I will work extra hard and find my own place to sleep if you want. I am broke and miss you and my brother and just want to come back home.” Craig’s father looks at him and says, “Come home son, I have missed you so much, I will close the store just for this special occasion and tonight all the family shall come over and we will have a nice big dinner just for you.”
When Dino found out he was furious and didn’t understand how his father could hurt him like that. “I work every day hard for you, I miss school for you, I never steal from you and my brother who stole money and left us, you have a party for him just because he came home?” Dino’s father looked at him and simply said “Craig is my son just as you are. He was away and I missed him greatly and he came back to us instead of leaving for good.”
Nicole Tirado
Updating a Parable
The Bad Student
Mike was always getting away with everything that I couldn’t. I sat, hunched over my test, shooting bitter looks at him, while he managed to cheat on another test. He was grinning as he took the little slip of paper out from his pocket and skimmed over the tightly scrawled answers on it. I wanted to speak up to Ms Whitman, her back turned and oblivious that her “new star” was not actually improving at all. But, Mike was my best friend, one of the few people that decided to stick by my side. I simply could not do it.
After school, he was leaning against a wall on the North side of the building, his eyes on the ground, his lanky black hair hanging like a curtain around his face. He was, by definition, a bad boy. The girls would shoot him curious looks in the hallways while they acted blind against those that were actually putting thought into our future. There was something that attracted people to him, like a moth to a light, he had a light inside of him that was shining and attracting everyone around. But why did he deserve it? He didn’t deserve most of the praise he got!
That night, I waited patiently for him to come over. He was from a fortunate family, that much was true. He’d come over with the newest game system, or the newest game, and we’d play until it was time for me to go to bed. But the clock began to tick the seconds, no, hours away, as the phone lay silent, never ringing. I was beginning to tire, but I was never worried. No, Mike could get out of any situation couldn’t he? So I retired earlier than usual, angry thoughts buzzed in my head until finally, I drifted to sleep.
Mike wasn’t in school the next day.
I still wasn’t worried, but by the third day, I was growing anxious. I called his parents, in which they told me some shocking news. Mike had been arrested. I was shocked, though I shouldn’t have been. I should have known that he wasn’t invisible to the law, and that his dark life would eventually catch up to him. But I was shocked, nonetheless.
He stood in prison for about a month. By this time, I remained convinced he would fail the year and I would finally be free of his burden, of “helping” him with his homework while he played the playstation.
But, as Mike’s luck would have it, he had to meet with the school counselor, a woman who was renowned for being one of the most caring and warm person in the entire school. Indeed, she was forgiving, she believed everyone had the potential to exceed, all they needed was a push. And she saw the potential in Mike, and she guided him a long, all the while, showing him better things to do with his time.
The teachers were forgiving too, they didn’t persecute him but instead, welcomed him back with open arms. They saw potential in every student.
So now, as I sit here next to Mike, waiting to go up on stage to get our diplomas, I now have a respect for him. He was redeemed and forgiven.
Parable I chose: The Talents
Updated characters:
-Manager (also the father of the workers)
-Worker 1
-Worker 2
-Worker 3
It was a simple day at the restaurant. People come and go. They talk, eat, and leave. The manager had his 3 best workers with him at the restaurant. Worker 1 has been there for over 5 years. He’s put his own money into the place. Worker 2 has been there for 2 years. He has put very little money into the place. Worker 3 however, has not put money into the restaurant, and has been there for little over a year. He’s also caused the most trouble, causing police to charge the restaurant with fraud.
One day, the manager decided to ask the workers for help again. He needs more money to put into a special project. “Here’s the deal,” said the manager, “If you put money into the place, you will receive a raise.” How this pleased the workers. “Take a day or two to decide on the decision.” said the manager again. The workers had to make a decision, and they knew they couldn’t let the boss down.
In the next two days, there was trouble again. Worker 3 almost caused an entire sickness of the restaurant. “Listen son,” said the manager, “if you cause one more major mistake, I’m gonna have to let you go.” This upset the worker. He was sick of the way he treated him. He helped him in the past. So to get him back, he stole the money the other worker’s put towards the restaurant, and put it in his bank account.
The next day, the manager called in the workers. “So, did you decide to put money towards the place?” he asked. They nodded. “Well, let’s see how much you guy’s put towards.” said the manager. As he went towards the envelope, the third worker stopped him. “Sir, I’m sorry.” he said. The manager gave him a confusing look. “I stole it, and put it in my account.” he confessed. He told him everything else; why he did it, and when how he was going to spend it. He said he was going to “use it for the special project”. This upset the manager. “You still lie!? I gave you a chance to do some right, and you betray your brothers and me!?” he yelled. The worker nodded. “Son, I’m proud you told me the truth, but, you still stole from your brothers, and you lied to me! YOU’RE FIRED!” the manager shouted. The third worker nodded, accepting the fact that he did do wrong. He apologized, and left. Later, he received a call from his dad, and he said, “Good job for telling the truth, my son.”
THE END.
I did an update of "The Prodigal Son"
Once a man left his two sons in charge of his recording studio while he took a two week cruise. The father had always favored the younger son, Josh. He knew it was wrong, but he just connected with Josh better. When he left he expected that Josh would be responsible and take care of the studio. He didn’t really have any high or low expectations for the older son, Chris. Chris had never disappointed him, but he also had never been emotionally connected to Chris the way he was Josh.
The father left on a Tuesday and called everyday at precisely 9:15 pm just to check in on the boys. Chris always answered the phone, which made his father suspicious. In reality the reason that Chris was always in the studio was because he was trying to clean up the mess from his brother who slept and watched tv all day, and partied at night. Chris worked endless hours to make up the time that Josh had wasted by not doing what he should have been.
When the father returned from his vacation he was disappointed. Not in Josh, because he didn’t believe that Josh had done this, he believed that Chris was the irresponsible one. Even after hours of trying to convince his father, Chris was still hopeless. His father didn’t believe him. After a few years life went back to normal and Chris forgot about the incident.
When the father suddenly died of a heart attack and the will was read, Josh inherited the studio, a place Chris loved more than his own life. Chris was furious, and didn’t speak to his brother anymore. He despised him for taking the one thing he truly cared about, especially since he knew he wouldn’t take care of it.
"An Unexpected Decision"
by: Kayla S. Milner
Father: Judge
Younger Son: Felon on trial
Older Son: Victim of the felony
In the small city of Warren, Ohio lives only 20,000 people. The city was going through rough times, the city's key source of jobs was working in a very productive factory called: ONEStop. This factory mass produced steel-related items.
But due to the world economy and world trade, it was cheaper to make steel-related items in other countries. So, the factory closed down and it put 2,575 people out of work. The city fell into a depression.
One day, a 16-yr. old teenager by the name of Antonio Rodderick was on his way to school when he overheard a conversation. It was between his mom and dad, they were discussing how they were going to pay their overdue mortage payments. $600 worth of overdue mortage payments. Antonio was worried about what would happen to his family, what would happen if they lost their house, and where would they go? Everyone else in their family was suffering since the factory closed down.
The thought bothered him all throughout school, to where he couldn't take it anymore. He decided to take matters into his own hands, and do what he had to do. Even though the thought was simply absurd, he figured that desperate times called for desperate measures. It was now or ever.
He'd been fighting with his morality and conscious for weeks. But overhearing the conversation confirmed it. On his way home from school he always passed the "Millionaires Circle", a semi-rich people neighborhood. There was one house that he had been casing for weeks.
The house was three levels, had a gorgeous 3/4 in. green yard with a iron gate blocking the front. The house was made of a rare red brick, and everyday a silver Jaguar left from 6am - 7pm. He had no idea who the owner was, but everytime he passed the house he saw a vase in on a side table in the front window. He figured he could take the vase and sell it to an unexpecting pawn shop, the vase had to be worth enough for the mortage.
Antonio went his usual route home, but he took a detour. He walked right through the backyard, he walked through the 6 ft. pine border. The backyard was an average 3x6, so it only took minutes to reach the back door.
After he picked the lock, he got down on all fours and slowly crawled to the front window. Thankfully, the curtains were closed, but he wasn't going to take any chances. Once he had the vase in his hands, the front door opened wide. There stood a 5'6'' slightly graying middle-aged man in a black suit with a striped tie. Antonio was in big trouble.
On the day of the trial, Antonio was sweating bullets. He was being represented by a lawyer provided by the city, his parents couldn't afford an independent one. His parents waited patiently and supportively in the guest pews. It turns out that the man he was attempting to 'steal' from was Mr. Robert Lourdis, the meanest and most successful lawyer in the city of Warren. He was representing himself, obviously.
When it came down to the judge, he sentenced Antonio to 200 hours of community service instead of the required 3 months in the city jail. Antonio was relieved, but Mr. Lourdis was not. When he approached the judge, the judge told him: Mr. Lourdis, during these bleak times; people enact crimes out of desperation. Not because they
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