Once upon a time, in a community full of fun, there was a little girl named Eliza who had big dreams to travel out of her community and explore the rest of the world. One day, she was sitting under the shade of a huge oak tree. In her hand was a sketchbook and a pencil and she was drawing the oak tree that had been around for hundreds of years. It was sacred to her community and represented the struggles and challenges that their ancestors had to overcome to build their world. Just like her ancestors, the tree was old and had much experience and knowledge after living for so many years. It was a silent witness to all the wars that had been fought in this very place where Eliza now lay. It was Eliza’s favorite place on the hot afternoons, and today, she was thinking about the true meanings of the tree.

She thought about her great-great-great grandma, who had been alive when the tree was first planted as a tiny sapling. Her great-great-great grandma had grown up with the tree and observed its changes. Although her ancestors were now gone, they had still passed down their knowledge of the world. However, the tree had seen much and maybe even more. Unlike the sapling her great-great-great-grandma had seen, it was now strong, with powerful arms that held knowledge that nobody else knew. She smiled and wrote that down on her list.

Then, it hit her. She may not be wise and old like the tree, but she could still learn more by traveling through the world and earning that knowledge. So years later, when she grew up, she set off to travel the world. She learned and saw a lot in this time. She heard the sounds of birds cawing, rain pattering against windows, and different smells as well. The smell of a garbage can and the pleasant aroma of food. In every community, city, and country she visited, there was something new to learn, to smell, to taste. For example, in the far south, she found scaly creatures with short stubby legs and a long tail. They moved in the water, and the people living there, Australians, called them alligators.

Time flew by, and soon, Eliza was an old lady. She sailed back to her community to share her newly gained knowledge with the rest of her community. First though, she thought as she set foot on land, she would share it with a quiet yet mighty oak tree.