The Magic Wand Written by Audrey (4A5 2002)

In the world of magic, there once lived a boy named Winty. Winty was a kind and hardworking boy. He helped his mother to collect wood for the fireplace. One afternoon, when he was looking for dry wood, he caught sight of a wand. He picked it up and waved it around. To his surprise, a withered tree nearby started to grow new leaves and flowers began to bloom on its branches. Winty was very astonished. He ran home quickly and told his mother about his experience. His mother tried waving the wand but nothing happened. They could not understand why. While they were still puzzling over what had happened, a wizard appeared. The wizard told Winty that he was the only who could work the wand. It was a reward for him for being helpful. The wizard taught him how to use the wand to wish for many other things. From then, Winty became lazy. He would not help his mother anymore. He also became very selfish and greedy. He wished for a lot of money although he did not need it. Although he was rich, he would not give a single cent to the beggars. One morning, Winty woke up and found that his magic wand did not work no matter how hard he waved it. Once again, the wizard appeared. He told Winty that he had withdrawn the magic power of his wand. Winty regretted what he had done. He promised that he would turn over a new leaf, but it was too late. The wizard disappeared together with his wand. Thereafter, Winty was back to his normal self.