ARG!

           attempt...not sure where its going...     

           There was once a lonely boy who found a wheel. At first glance it was a simple wooden wheel. Under the boy’s gaze he discovered that it wasn’t made of solid wood! It was made of 12 points and different colored silk that tied the points together. The boy thought that the beautiful wheel would be fragile, but after the wheel saved the boy from falling out of a tree, he discovered its strength.  It saved him from plunging into the creek. He was amazed by the strength and flexibility of the wheel and played with it daily. Some kids found him one day playing with his wheel, and invited him to play.

            “Come play” they called. The lonely boy hung his hoop in the tree, and went to play with the other children. He learned the games that children play, and played with the patterns they teach. “These patterns looked familiar.” the boy thinks to himself. He easily masters the games of the children and is cheered. The lonely boy was no longer lonely.

Soon the games got too easy for the boy. He tried to teach his friends to see the patterns but they didn’t understand. He left the games to retrieve the hoop. It showed him the patterns; they should be able to see them too! Then it would be fun again!

He gathers the children together and proudly displays the hoop. They laugh and call him names. “Nothing can be learned from that.” they claimed, and then returned to their games. The boy can no longer enjoy the games, so he returns to the hill, tree and stream.

The lonely boy no longer plays and runs with the wheel but studies it. The points can be spun. If one point is rotated, the silk shifts and keeps the points and strings in alignment. The colored silk did not tie the points together, just connected them. The boy could not find a single knot in the whole hoop. It was amazing. Soon loneliness and the wheel were the only company for the boy.

The lonely boy hated being alone, but he couldn’t forget what the wheel had taught. The patterns had shaped his mind and he saw the world through its patterns. The others made fun for the reverence he showed the wheel. So he hid the wheel, and returned to the children.

He played with their breakable toys, and beat them at their games. He was popular at first; everyone wanted him to play with him. Soon they relied on him to explain the games, and make new ones. Although they often sought out his advice, very few followed it. His friends soon began to rely heavily on the boy. He was no longer lonely because of what he learned from the wheel.

Years pass, and the boy wonders. His friends repeated the same mistakes over and over. Couldn’t they see the patterns? They trampled through their lives, making the same mistakes over and over that could easily be avoided. When he started advising them on the pit falls of life, he was suddenly more popular than ever. They soon became advice seekers, and no longer friends. The boy grew lonely again…this time surrounded by people.