There once was a young monkey named Sun Wu who woke
up surrounded by thick lush grass and he didn’t remember how he got there. The
last thing he remembered was popping out of a stone egg to a very bright light.
The light almost blinded him causing him to close his eyes. The next thing Sun
Wu knew he was waking up lying in the grass. Sun Wu wondered how much time had
past since he last remembered, maybe a week or two. Sun Wu wasn’t sure what
happened to him or how he got there. He looked around and didn’t see anyone or
anything except tall green trees and the bright blue sky.
As he wondered what happened to him, Sun Wu began
to walk towards the biggest tree in the jungle. He started to look around for
anyone or anything, but there wasn’t a sound for miles. Then all of a sudden
Sun Wu heard a loud “squawk!” A large beautiful red, blue, and green bird came
swooping down and perched himself right in front of Sun Wu.
“What are you doing here all alone? Where is your
mother or father?”, the bird asked.
Sun Wu stumbled back and told the bird he didn’t
know if he had a mother or father. He just woke up in the grass over there and
doesn’t remember what happened to him. The bird was concerned for Sun Wu.
“A small monkey cannot be in the jungle along with
no friends or parents. Come fly with me to my house so you can rest and eat and
we will try to figure out how you ended up in the jungle alone,” said the bird.
Sun Wu was apprehensive. He didn’t know this bird
at all, but then again he didn’t know anyone and he was very hungry.
So, Sun Wu hopped on the bird’s back and they began
to fly over
the jungle. Sun Wu was amazed at how beautiful it
was from up high. In the distance, Sun Wu could see something very bright and
shiny. They got closer and closer to the gold mystery when the bird finally
said, “O.K., now we are home.”
Sun Wu was amazed when he saw where the bird lived.
It was a huge glamorous mansion made of gold and white diamonds. There was
water flowing from the rooftops and the gold and diamonds were reflecting in
the water creating the most beautiful sight. They flew through the waterfall.
Sun Wu was amazed. He had never seen anything so beautiful before. Sun Wu
asked, “You live here?” The bird responded and said, “Yes, my wife and I live
here all alone. I am King Bird of this land and have no one to take over once I
die.”
Sun Wu couldn’t imagine living in a place this
beautiful. They flew through the gold doors and into the kitchen where the
bird’s wife was cooking dinner. The bird informed his wife that Sun Wu was lost
and unaware of how he ended up here and needed a place to eat and sleep. The
Bird’s wife was excited to have company around.
The next few days the bird and Sun Wu searched the
jungle for anyone who might know what happened to Sun Wu. They had no luck.
They couldn’t find anyone who knew Sun Wu. The bird turned to Sun Wu and told
him not to worry.
“You can stay with my wife and me in our castle. We
have plenty of room and get very lonely,” said the bird. Sun Wu was grateful
for the offer and accepted. The bird and his wife grew a very fond bond for Sun
Wu and after dinner one night told him one day he will take over the castle and
become King Sun Wu. The bird said to Sun
Wu, “We may never find out how you got here or where you came from but what
matters now is where you are going.”
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| Monkey King Sun Wu Kung on the waterfall. Source: Untextbook. |
Author’s Note: I based this story on The Monkey King Sun Wu Kung in the
Asian unit, but my story is very different than the original. In the original
story, King Sun Wu Kung is born in a miraculous way from a stone. He was born
with powers and trained to be a powerful warrior with amazing strength.
Eventually, Sun Wu becomes monkey king by crossing over rushing water on a
bridge. The other monkeys said if anyone was ever clever enough to do that they
would make him monkey king. While I really did enjoy the original story and
its many levels, I wanted to tell a simpler story using a few of the original
stories elements. The story is about a monkey who eventually will become a king
but he gets there in a very different way. I did this because when I saw the
picture that I used in my post I envisioned a very different type of monkey
with a very different story. I used the original story’s elements of a monkey,
stone egg, and a waterfall. Other than that, the story is completely different.
Maybe in the future I can add more on and explain that this story is what would
have happened if Sun Wu would have done something different.
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