Today, I am going to retell an old story. Please sit comfortably and I will begin.

Once upon a time, a little monkey left his home on Big Mountain and descended into the valley. He came to a cornfield. There were so many large ears of corn all around him that he became hungry. He picked an armful and walked away. Not long after, he came to a peach tree, laden with big, red juicy peaches. He threw down the corn and picked two peaches. They were so big that he had to hold one in each hand.

As he walked along with the peaches, he caught sight of a watermelon field. Seeing how much bigger the watermelons were than the peaches, he threw down the peaches and ran into the field.

Suddenly, he saw a small rabbit hopping away. He turned from the watermelons and chased after the rabbit into the forest. After a long time of chasing the rabbit, the monkey gave up. Now he was lost deep in the forest and had nothing.

The little monkey sat at the foot of a big tree feeling sad and frightened. Then, to his surprise, a monk sat down beside him. The monk was big and had funny pink-coloured skin, but did not seem dangerous. The monkey told his new friend that he was lost. The monk said, 'Don't worry. Let's meditate together. When your mind has calmed down you will think of a solution to your problem.' So the monk and the monkey meditated together. After some time the little monkey opened his eyes and smiled. he climbed the big tree and, looking down, he could see far below him the path that led all the way back to his home.

- Ajahn Jayasāro