The Little Thank-You Tree

In a lively village square stands a small, thin tree with only a few pale leaves, and the villagers walk past it every day without a second glance. Seven-year-old Anna, curious and observant in her mustard-yellow dress and red canvas shoes, is the one who stops to look. Each morning she watches Mr. Tomas, the quiet gardener in olive-green overalls and a straw hat, tend the flowers and the tree without ever expecting thanks. When Anna finally thanks him for making the square pretty, a tiny bright green leaf appears, and she begins to wonder whether gratitude itself is what makes the tree grow.

Anna sets out to test her idea, thanking the flour-dusted baker for feeding the village, and a second leaf unfurls. The baker begins thanking her customers in turn, and with every thank-you the tree stretches taller and its leaves turn a deeper green. Anna and Mr. Tomas spread the habit through the square, though the proud mayor in his navy-blue coat dismisses the tree as a mere curiosity. This warm, simple tale by Yavuz DEMİRKIRAN follows a gentle experiment and the change it works on a whole community. Read it on Online Masal.