Angelini George - The Oak Inside the Acorn

To Steve and Becky Bryant,
with gratitude for your
countless acts of selfless service.

THE OAK INSIDE THE ACORN
Text and illustrations 2006 by Max Lucado.
Illustrations by George Angelini.
All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without the written permission of the publisher, with the exception of brief excerpts in reviews.
Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Thomas Nelson. Thomas Nelson a registered trademark of Thomas Nelson, Inc.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Lucado, Max.
The oak inside the acorn / by Max Lucado ; illustrations by George Angelini.
p. cm.
Summary: A tiny acorn fulfills its destiny by becoming the tree God made it to be, and then it watches the little girl who climbs its branches grow up as well.
ISBN 978-1-4003-0601-5 (hardback )
ISBN 978-1-4003-1004-3 (hardback non-jacket)
[1. GrowthFiction. 2. AcornsFiction. 3. OakFiction. 4. Christian lifeFiction.]
I. Angelini, George, 1951ill. II. Title.
PZ7.L9684Oa 2006
[E]dc22

2005033942

Printed in China
08 09 10 11 12 MT 11 10 9 8 7 6

Dear Parent,

God prewired your infant. He scripted your toddlers strengths. He set your teen on a trajectory. God gave you an eighteen-year research project. Ask yourself, your spouse, and your friends: What sets this child apart? Childhood tendencies forecast adult abilities. Read them. Discern them. Affirm them. Cheerlead them.

Youve been given a book with no titleread it! A CD with no coverlisten to it! An island with no ownerexplore it! Resist the urge to label before you study. Attend carefully to the unique childhood of your child.

Uncommon are the parents who attempt to learn these God-given abilitiesand blessed are their children.

Blessings,
Max Lucado

The acorn looked at the world around him. Green hills rolled their backs in the distance. Bright daisies bloomed below him. Above him, a family of puffy white clouds floated through the blue sky.

The world looks so big, the little acorn said to his mother. Im just glad to be right here with you.

His mother was a tall, beautiful oak tree. Im glad, too, my little acorn. Its good for you to be here with me now. But when your time comes to go into the world, youll be fine.

Ill be afraid.

Mother Oak hugged Little Acorn in her strong branches. Within you is a great oak, Little Acorn. Just be the tree God made you to be.

The thought of letting go and leaving the safety of his mothers branches was scary to Little Acorn. So he tried not to think about it. But deep down inside, he knew the time was coming. One by one, his brothers and sisters had been letting go and saying good-bye. They had been afraid, too. But their mother had assured them with the same words: Within you is a great oak. Just be the tree God made you to be.

Each time he heard this, Little Acorn would look at himself and say, An oak, in me? He was so small, it was hard for him to believe he could ever be a tree.

The time to let go came sooner than Little Acorn wanted. It started with a bump. He was resting one summer afternoon, thankful for the coolness in the shadow of the leaves, whenthudthe tree shook.

His mothers branches trembled, and Little Acorn began to swing back and forth. A farmers pickup had accidentally backed into the tree trunk.

Little Acorn had swung before, stirred by the wind, bumped by climbing kids. And each time hed always held on. But not this time. He tried. He pressed his thin stem into the branch as hard as he could. It didnt work. He was a heavier acorn than he used to be, and his stem began to pull away from the branch.

Uh-oh... Mom?

Its okay, Little Acorn, Mother Oak assured him. You cant hang on forever. Its timeyouve got to let go.

Down he fell, flipping over and over, softly slipping through the leaves until he bounced on something hard. He had landed in the back of the pickup truck. The truck vibrated and began to drive away.

Its okay, Little Acorn, his mom called out. Within you is a great oak. Just be the tree God made you to be.

Little Acorn barely heard the last few words. The truck was already moving down the road. Going somewhere. He just didnt know where.

As the truck bounced, so did the acorn. Ouch! he said. This is rough.

It gets better, he heard a voice say. Rolling over, Little Acorn looked up at a young tree.

Who are you? he asked.

Im a new little orange tree on my way to be planted.

What do orange trees do? asked the acorn. (By now the road and the ride were smoother.)

We grow oranges.

Oh, answered the acorn. He didnt know what an orange was and was just about to ask when the truck slowed to a stop.

Wow! exclaimed Orange Tree, who was tall enough to see out of the truck.

What is it? asked the acorn.

Trees. Orange trees. Everywhere. Its an orange grove.

Okay, Little Orange Tree, its time for you to be planted, the farmer said as he lowered the truck tailgate and climbed into the back of the truck.

The acorn rolled away just in time to avoid the farmers big boot. The farmer took the tree and was gone for a long time. Little Acorn stared at the sky as it began to darken. He missed his mother oak and her strong branches. This would be his first night away from her.

The tailgate banged and the farmer jumped in. A quick sweep, he said, and Im headed home. Little Acorn had never seen a broom. He barely saw this one before it sent him high in the air. He landed in soft dirt.

I wondered what happened to you. It was Orange Tree.

Little Acorn was happy to hear a familiar voice. Is this your new home?

It sure is, Orange Tree said. And it looks like its your home, too.

Little Acorn had one more question. Orange Tree, what do I do next?

Orange Trees voice was sleepy. Just settle in, little friend, and rest. God will make you grow.

And so Little Acorn did just that. He rested. That night. The next day. That week. The next month. There in the soft soil surrounded by orange trees, he sank deeper and deeper into the ground and slumbered. He slept a long, long time.