Bibi was busy in her herb garden, while Saba was putting the freshly cut roses in the old vase.  Mia was enjoying the mid-morning sun and having a snooze. 

It was almost time for the little visitors to arrive.  Every day was a new adventure as they were taken on a different journey through Bibi’s stories.   By the time Saba finished arranging the roses, the children had arrived and sat on their usual place, all waiting for Bibi. 

**The Old Farmer’s Son**

Once upon a time there lived an old farmer who had two sons.   The older son loved to sit in the shade under the trees, day after day, watch the birds and the farm animals, while his younger brother helped on their piece of land. 

Every time the farmer asked his older son to help out he would bring an excuse and avoided to help.

The younger son was always at his father’s side and gave him a hand whenever possible. 

One day the old farmer decided to retire and pass his farm on to his sons.  In his heart he was not happy to give anything to his older son, because he had never offered a helping hand.  The younger son asked his father to let each of them take charge of half the farm and cultivate the land for his own food. 

He was hoping this might help the older brother become more responsible, as he had no choice but to work, if he wanted food on his table. 

The old farmer agreed and so each son took charge of half the land.  They each built their own little cottage and started to live on their own.

The first few months everything went well, as the plants on the old son’s land was still full of crop and fruits. 

As the months went by, the trees started to get drier and drier.  The plants looked really unhappy. 

On the other side of the fence, the plants looked green, fresh and happy.  There was so much fruit on the trees and so much milk from the cows that the younger son would sell them in the market and get lots of money. 

One of these days, the older brother woke up to the biggest surprise of his life.  His piece of land seemed to have gone upside down!   The roots of the trees were on the surface and the branches were hidden under the soil!   It was as if he was living under the ground with nothing to eat or drink.  He could no longer hear the birds singing. 

He was getting hungrier and hungrier by the day and he decided to ask his younger brother to give him some food.  He went over the fence and knocked at the door.  The old father opened the door and welcomed him in. 

The aroma of the freshly baked bread and the stew was swirling in the cottage.  He could no longer stand it and asked for food.  The younger son put the food on the table and invited his father and brother to eat. 

The older son was so pleased to be able to eat fresh food after such a long time. 

He served a big portion on his plate.  His hands were shaking while he was digging the hot fresh bread into the stew.  His father and brother were watching him with widened eyes as he raised his hand to put the bread in his mouth. 

As soon as he had a mouthful of the food, he shouted with agony.  It was as if the food had turned into hard rock and he nearly chipped his tooth!   He started running towards the door and spat the mouthful out on the ground, outside the cottage.   

He then ran to his own land and, from then on, worked hard to bring the plants back to life again.   He learned that to harvest the food of life he has to cultivate and feed his plants.