Mr. Lucky Straw

ONCE upon a time, long ago, there was a young man named Shobei who lived in farm village in Japan.
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One day on his way home from working in the fields he tripped on a stone and tumbled over and over on the ground. When he stopped tumbling he discovered that he had caught a piece of straw up in his hand. “Well, well,” he said, “a piece of straw is a worthless thing, but it seems I was meant to pick this one up, so I won’t throw it away.”
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As he went walking along, holding the straw in his hand, a dragonfly came flying in circles Continue reading