Hello, this is AJ, welcome to the mini-story for “Search for Meaning.”
Let’s start.
* * * * * There was a boy named Chris and Chris hated vegetables.
He only liked to eat steak.
Did Chris vegetables or did he hate vegetables?
Well, Chris hated vegetables.
He never ate vegetables.
What did Chris eat?
Steak.
Chris only ate steak.
Did he eat vegetables or did he eat steak?
He ate steak.
He only ate steak.
Now, of course, Chris’ mother was not happy.
Every day she admonished him to eat vegetables.
She said “Chris, eat your vegetables.
You must eat your vegetables.”
What did his mother do?
She admonished Chris.
Who did she admonish?
She admonished Chris.
Who admonished Chris?
His mother.
His mother admonished him.
How did she admonish him?
Well, she said “Eat your vegetables.
You must eat your vegetables.”
She admonished him every day to eat his vegetables.
What did she admonish him to do?
To eat vegetables.
She admonished him to eat his vegetables.
Did she admonish him to eat more steak?
No, no, no, no, she didn’t admonish him to eat more steak.
She admonished him to eat vegetables.
Did Chris eat vegetables every day?
No, no, no, he never ate vegetables.
He never ate vegetables.
He only ate steak every day.
Steak for breakfast, steak for lunch, steak for dinner, steak for snacks, Chris only ate
steak.
He never ever, ever ate vegetables.
And so every day his mother admonished him.
She admonished him strongly, she said, “Eat your vegetables!
You must eat your vegetables!”
But Chris never did.
Now an unintended consequence of his eating choices was that Chris became fat very quickly.
Did Chris want to become fat?
No, no, no, he didn’t.
It was an unintended consequence, an unintended result.
He did not want to become fat, but he did become fat.
Why did Chris become fat?
Well, because he only ate steak every day, breakfast, lunch, dinner, steak, steak, steak.
An unintended consequence of this was that he became fat.
Was it an intended consequence or an unintended consequence?
Well, it was unintended.
He didn’t want it, he wasn’t planning to become fat, but it still happened.
It was an unintended consequence.
What was an unintended consequence of his eating?
Well, fatness, becoming fat.
Becoming fat was an unintended consequence of eating steak every day.
What kind of consequence as it?
Unintended.
It was an unintended consequence.
So he ate steak every day and an unintended consequence of this was that he quickly became
very fat.
Chris was a fat little boy.
Of course his mom was worried.
She was very worried about Chris.
He kept getting fatter and fatter and fatter.
He became hugely obese, 725 pounds.
How much did Chris weigh?
He weighed 725 pounds.
How old was Chris?
Well, Chris was five years old.
Chris was five years old and he weighted 725 pounds.
He was terribly, hugely obese.
His mom was very worried, so she pursued a new strategy.
What did she do?
She pursued a new strategy.
She followed, she tried, a new strategy.
What did she pursue?
She pursued a new strategy.
Why did she pursue a new strategy?
Well, because Chris was getting fatter and fatter and she was worried.
Who pursued a new strategy with Chris?
Well, his mother.
His mother pursued a new strategy.
What did she do?
Well, she said “Chris, they kill poor little nice cows to make steak and you love animals,
so you should follow your conscience.
What did she want Chris to follow?
His conscience.
His feelings about right and wrong; good and bad.
His ideas about right and wrong, good and bad.
She wanted him to follow his conscience, follow his good ideas, his good feelings, his good
values, his good morals, his conscience.
Did she want him to follow his conscience or his craving for steak?
Well, she wanted him to follow his conscience.
She did not want him to follow his craving for steak she wanted him to follow his conscience.
What did she want him to follow?
His conscience.
She said “They kill little small nice cows to make steak and you love animals, so follow
your conscience.”
Whose conscience did she want him to follow?
Well, his conscience, his own conscience.
She wanted him to follow his own conscience, his own feelings of right and wrong, good
and bad.
Did she want him to eat more steak?
No, she wanted him to stop eating steak.
Why did she want him to stop eating steak?
Well, because he was obese.
He weighted 725 pounds and he was only five years old.
So she tried a new strategy, she said “Follow your conscience.
You love animals.
You don’t want them to die.
Follow your conscience.”
Well what ensured, next, was that Chris stopped eating steak.
What happened next?
He stopped eating steak.
What ensured next?
He stopped eating steak.
Did he stop eating vegetables?
No, no, no, no, that didn’t ensue.
That didn’t happen.
What ensued was that he stopped eating steak.
What ensued?
Well, he stopped eating steak.
Next, what happened next, what ensured, was that Chris stopped eating steak.
So what ensured was that Chris stopped eating vegetables, right?
No, no, no, that didn’t ensue.
He didn’t stop eating vegetables.
What ensued was that he stopped eating steak.
Chris stopped eating steak.
In fact, he learned to love vegetables and over time he became thinner and thinner and
healthier and healthier.
And one day when he was seven years old he was super healthy, super thin and he looked
great.
His mom was very, very happy.
* * * * * Okay, that is the end of the mini-story for “Search for Meaning.”
As always, listen to this story with a big smile, with your shoulders back, with your
eyes up, your chin up, nice deep breaths and be moving your body while you listen.
If you’re alone pause and shout the answers to every question.
Be strong when you answer.
You want to build strong emotions every time you speak English.
You want to speak English with power, with confidence, so practice it now.
Practice power and confidence every time you answer a mini-story question.
All right, I will see you next time, bye-bye.