Once upon a time, in a faraway, very far away fruit land called Fruitlandia, there lived a sweet little Avocado. Everyone simply called him Avo.
Mum Avocadia and Dad Avocado loved him dearly and spoilt him so much that, quite likely, there was no spoilt fruitling in all of Fruitlandia to rival Avo.
The parents tried to indulge his every wish, just so their little son would be happy and never upset.
The avocado family had a lovely tradition. Every day they went for a walk together in the enchanted fruit garden, for it was warm there at any time of year.
The magic of this garden was that when the fruitlings were happy, the sun shone, the grass turned green and the little birds sang wonderful songs.
But when the fruitlings were upset, sulky, rude or sad, the sun vanished, clouds gathered, a strong wind got up and rain and thunder began.
One day, while strolling through the garden, Avo spotted a huge strawberry ice cream with chocolate sprinkles being sold nearby. He longed to eat it and began begging his parents to buy the treat.
At first Mum and Dad refused, as Avo could get a sore throat after so much cold food. Avocadito started sulking, and the parents gave in and bought him the huge ice cream.
Having eaten the ice cream, Avo fell ill almost at once. The whole family had to hurry home.
Meanwhile, in the garden the sun disappeared, and the little birds stopped their cheerful singing, sensing the parents' worry for their little son.
For a long time the parents treated Avo with all sorts of syrups, bitter infusions and compresses. At last he recovered, and the family was able to return to their beloved fruit garden.
Avo played tag and hide-and-seek and pulled funny faces. Dad took photos of him. Then Mum treated her little son to a tasty sandwich. Everyone was happy.
Then Avo spotted his friend Banana Bob. In his hands he held an enormous banana-shaped balloon. Avo was terribly upset that his friend had a balloon and he didn't.
He went up to his parents and demanded that they buy him a balloon in the shape of an avocado. And it had to be even bigger than Banana Bob's.
At first the parents refused to buy the huge balloon. Avo didn't just whine, he bawled, and very loudly. Mum and Dad had no choice but to give in to their spoilt son once again and buy the balloon.
Once again the fruit garden darkened, the leaves on the trees withered, and a wind rose so strong that Avo and his balloon almost blew away. Luckily, the parents managed to grab him.
Avo was very frightened and upset, but once back home he soon forgot the incident and went back to his old ways.
Days passed. Avo wanted more and more presents and ever more expensive entertainment. The parents had to work hard to satisfy their son's demands. They were exhausted and got back from work late. Sometimes they didn't even have the strength to read Avo a bedtime story. As for going for walks and playing together in the beloved fruit garden, that was out of the question.
One Sunday morning the avocado family did set off for the enchanted fruit garden. But it was sad there.
The parents were pensive and silent. Only Avo was having fun. A thought flashed through his head that the garden was chillier than usual, and the sun barely peeped out from behind the clouds. But he quickly forgot about it.
The garden, however, knew and felt everything. It was like this because Avo's parents realised how wrongly they were raising their little son, that they had spoilt him far too much, but did not know what to do now.
Wandering along lost in thought, they saw a notice: «A brand-new, latest-model aeroplane has just arrived at the toy shop! Hurry and buy yours! Limited stock!!! »
Avo's eyes lit up, and he wanted that aeroplane so badly that he could hardly bear it. He began begging his parents to buy it. Mum and Dad tried to explain to Avocadito that the aeroplane was too expensive and would use up their entire wages. But Avo refused to listen.
He flung himself on the ground, shouting and kicking his legs. Passers-by stared at him in astonishment. The parents were deeply ashamed of their son.
And what of the fruit garden? It turned very gloomy there. Clouds gathered, the wind began tearing leaves from the trees, thunder rumbled and such a downpour struck that the avocado family was soaked through.
All week Avo cried and begged for the aeroplane, and he even refused to eat.
Darling, if we buy the little aeroplane, we will have to work even harder, and we simply won't have time to play together, the parents said.
But Avo didn't care.
What kind of parents are you, if you can't buy your only son an aeroplane! I don't even want to go out with you, I need an AE-RO-PLANE! he shouted in reply.
The parents could bear it no longer and gave in to their son once more, spending every last penny on the toy. Now they had to work even harder.
Avo kept getting new toys, but he hardly ever saw his parents now. The family stopped spending time together, playing, going for walks, or simply having fun.
It seemed Avo had everything he could wish for. But now he lacked the most important thing of all: his parents' attention. There was no one to fly the aeroplane with or walk with in the enchanted forest, no one to tell the funny story that had happened to him during the day, and nobody kissed or hugged him.
One day Avo went to the enchanted garden alone, but it was very sad there.
The garden seemed to stand still, waiting for something very unusual that was due to happen very soon.
Avo wandered around the places where he had been happy, and remembered. Here he had been on a picnic with his parents, and here he had flown a kite with Dad, here Mum had sat on the bench singing him a little song, hugging him tight, and behind that tree he had hidden, and they couldn't find him for ages.
As Avo thought about this, a smile crossed his face, and then he wept bitterly. He cried until his tears ran dry and his eyes hurt. It seemed that along with the tears, all the badness was flowing out of Avo, and something wonderful was beginning to grow.
Having cried himself out, Avo finally realised what he had done. With his own hands he had destroyed all those wonderful moments, trading the most precious thing, his parents, for useless toys and entertainment.
How deeply he had hurt them, how ungrateful and spoilt a child he had been, one who only demanded and gave nothing in return.
Avo firmly resolved that he must ask his parents for forgiveness, and he ran home. He was so agitated that he didn't notice the garden.
But the garden began to come alive. Sunbeams danced everywhere, flowers bloomed that had never grown there before, and the birds began to sing in a new way.
Avocadito couldn't settle, paced from corner to corner and gazed out of the window, waiting for his parents. When Mum and Dad returned, he ran to meet them and hugged them tightly. Dad Avocado and Mum Avocadia were very surprised by their son's behaviour.
Darling, what's the matter? Has something happened? Does anything hurt? Mum asked.
Mum, Dad, I am so sorry for what I've done to you! Avo said through his tears. Because of me you work day and night. Today I realised I don't need toys. What I need is you, your love and your attention. Please forgive me, and don't work so much any more.
Darling, we love you very much, we only wish you well, and of course we bear you no grudge. It is very good that you have understood for yourself how important family is, not things, the parents replied.
Everyone hugged and cried.
From today on everything will be as it was! No, it will be even better! exclaimed Dad Avocado.
Shall we get ready and go for a walk in our beloved enchanted fruit garden? suggested Mum.
When the avocadoes arrived at the garden, everything there was even better than before. Although it was winter in the world, in the enchanted garden it was summer. The sun shone brightly, a rainbow arched across the sky, the garden was fragrant with flowers never seen before, and the birds sang the loveliest songs. Everyone smiled and was welcoming when they met the avocado family.
Avo and his parents were simply happy, because they had one another. Avo gave himself his word that he would never upset his parents again.
