Here’s the story God inspired me with for the Thanksgiving Project I am doing with the kids. Well the first draft of it. I hope you all enjoy it and know that I ask thankful for you! God more so.

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Two farmers lived next to each other and in front of a forest filled with animals. They had nice houses and huge fields.

One farmer grew potatoes in his field. Russet red ones, heavy yellow ones, and sweet orange ones. Some of his potatoes were big and plump. Some were small and round. Others were medium and funny. But they were all good potatoes that everyone praised as the jewels of the earth.

The other farmer grew corn. Bright yellow corn, waxy white corn, and even hard dark corn. All of his corn grew on tall, thick, leafy green stalks. His corn was so good that people claimed that it was the gold of the land.

The farmers were proud of their plants and how they grew. With their plants selling so much, each farmer had all the money and supplies they needed. They were friendly with everyone and the best of friends. Every day they shared at least one meal together, praising each other’s work.

Until one day the potato farmer woke up to find a small part of his field with holes in the ground where his potatoes should be. Who would steal potatoes? 

The corn farmer came out to take care of his field and looked over to see his friend sad. “What happened, friend? Bad batch?” The corn farmer asked the potato farmer.

“No, friend.” the potato farmer sighed. “My potatoes are gone!”

“Well maybe mice stole them.” The corn farmer said. “They are simple roots.” 

“Simple roots?” The potato farmer gasped. Then he glared at the corn farmer and said, “They are worth more than your weak plants.” 

“My corn is strong gold, not weak plants!” The corn farmer gasped.

“My potatoes are pretty jewels, not simple roots!” The potato farmer yelled back. In anger, they turned away from each other and went back to their fields. They didn’t share a meal that day.

The next day, the corn farmer woke up to find some of his stalks were empty. He stomped over to the potato farmer’s house and banged on the door until it opened. 

“You stole my corn!” The corn farmer shouted. 

“No.” The potato farmer huffed.

“Yes, you did!” The corn farmer went on. “You didn’t like that I have strong gold that is better than your simple roots that only a mouse wants.”

“Maybe the mouse stole your weak plants.” The potato farmer teased. 

“My corn is strong gold, not weak plants!” The corn farmer yelled.

“My potatoes are pretty jewels, not simple roots!” The potato farmer sneered back. They turned away angrier than before and didn’t share a meal that day.

This kept going on for days. One of the farmers would wake up, see that some of their field was messed up and then blame the other farmer for it. But both farmers said that they didn’t mess with the other’s field. Still, at they end they would both say:

“My corn is strong gold, not weak plants!” 

“My potatoes are pretty jewels, not simple roots!” 

Back and forth they went. The angrier and angrier, they became. The more meals they ate alone. Their anger started to affect not only their kindness to each other but to other people as well. They were making people choose to buy the “strong golden corn” or the “pretty jewel potatoes”, not both. A person had to choose which one to buy or not buy corn or potatoes at all.

The farmers were so busy fighting and trying to find out who was better, that they never figured out who or what was messing with their fields. They just blamed each other while both of them kept losing land.

But when both farmers lost more than half of their land they decided to do something. They both got dogs. Both showed their dog off to the other.

“Farmer.” The potato farmer said, rolling his eyes.

“Farmer.” The corn farmer said back, his nose in the air.

“Your dog looks as weak as your weak plants.” The potato farmer told the corn farmer.

“Your dog looks as simple as your simple roots.” The corn farmer threw back. They glared at each other before yelling at the same time.

“My corn is strong gold, not weak plants!” 

“My potatoes are pretty jewels, not simple roots!”

They both stomped inside angry and sure that they would finally find out who was right.

That night, both of the farmers’ dogs began to bark. The farmers jumped out of their bed, ready to see the other caught in the wrong. Instead, they saw their dogs chasing a flock of wild turkeys through both fields, breaking and messing up more plants. 

The dogs caught a turkey and stopped chasing the other turkeys to fight over it. As the dogs fought each other for the turkey, the other turkeys stole potatoes and corn as they ran away. That was when the farmers went to their dogs to break up the fight.

All that was left on the fields were small patches of corn and potato plants, the two farmers, their wounded dogs, and a turkey. The farmers looked around, before looking at each other. The potato farmer swallowed.

“I’m sorry. Your dog was strong enough to get a turkey. It is as strong as your corn.” He admitted. The corn farmer nodded.

“And I’m sorry that all of your pretty potatoes were stolen by turkeys.” The corn farmer smiled at the potato farmer.

“Well, not all of them.” The potato farmer smiled back. “Want to have this turkey with some corn and potatoes, friend?”

“I would like that a lot, friend.” They went inside together with their dogs. Both were thankful that in a land full of broken gold and jewels, through their own fighting, somehow their treasure of friendship still made it.

“An offended friend is harder to win back than a fortified city. Arguments separate friends like a gate locked with bars. Wise words satisfy like a good meal; the right words bring satisfaction.”

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭18‬:‭19‬ ‭-20 NLT