Portfolio Introduction

For my project, I will be doing a Portfolio. I think it will be interesting to revise the stories that I have already written to make them better and more enjoyable to read!

A Good Fortune: A story based off of a Jewish fairy tale. A wise father once told his two sons where to find good fortune. Wealth wasn't just going to be handed to them. They had to work hard for it.


Mother Wolf: A story that shows how strong a mother's love can be. It doesn't matter who you are or if you are different. Mother wolf took care of this baby human and as he got older he was taken away. Mother wolf got really sad and decided to go look for him.

The Lion and the Rabbit: This is a fun short story about a lion who comes across a small rabbit that did not show obeisance towards the king. Will the rabbit get punished?

An Oriole's Adventure: Have you ever wondered what an oriole's life would be like? This story takes you through Timmy's life from coming out into this world and finding out new things.

The Magical Ointment: After a day of work, a nurse encounters a man and is willing to help him. His wife had a baby and the nurse is told to rub an ointment on the baby's eyelids. Will she be curious enough to ask what the ointment is for or will she apply it on herself?


All of the stories in my portfolio are quite different. I tried to switch things up a bit. My favorite story is Mother Wolf. I really like that story because it shows the depth of a mother's love. There are also a lot of emotions in that story as well that will keep you on your feet. 

Story: The magical ointment

(Ointment: Pixabay)

There was a nurse named Mary. She was thirty-nine years old and lived by herself in a small town house. She wasn’t married because she loved her job more than anything and always put it before anyone. There was a time when she was dating a guy but she never had time for him. She worked at a nearby hospital so she was always working and if she weren’t working she would be on call.

One day she was walking home from work and noticed a man running from door to door. He was knocking but it was late at night so people were sleeping. He was yelling, “Can someone help! My wife is pregnant and I think she is having the baby now!”

Mary finally got closer to him and heard what he was saying. She immediately ran to him and said, “I can help. I’m a nurse. Where is she?”

“Follow me this way. We just live down the street,” he replied.

They both ran quickly to the house. The house was small and nearly hidden behind a huge willow tree. When they got inside, they found the wife locked in the bathroom. “Honey, open the door. I found help and she’s a nurse,” he said to his wife.

She wasn’t responding, so they both knocked the door down. They found the wife lying next to the bathtub with the baby in her arms. It was a little boy. Mary quickly asked if she was okay. “Why didn't you go to the hospital?”

“We can’t go to the hospital,” the wife replied.

Mary was confused but she didn’t bother to ask why because she didn’t want them to feel uncomfortable. The wife handed Mary the baby and asked if she could take the ointment on the table and rub it on the baby’s eyelid. “Sure!” Mary replied. As she rubbed it on the baby’s eyelid, she noticed the baby opening his eyes. Since she was a nurse, she knew much about medicine but she had never seen this type of ointment before.

Mary’s curiosity led her to apply the ointment on to one of her eyelids. As she looked up, she noticed how things changed. The house did not seem small anymore. The furniture in the house was finer and the wife had on a dress made of silk. It was like she was in a totally different house. As she handed the baby back to the mother she did not say word.

The husband thanked Mary and explained that this was their first child so he did not know what to do and was scared. “I’m glad I can help!” replied Mary.

Mary finally went home. She didn’t think much about the ointment because as she went home everything looked the same again.

The very next day she went to the market. As she was browsing around, she noticed a man in disguise. He had a hood on and was slipping the vegetables into the big bag he was carrying. He looked very familiar and Mary finally realized that it was the man the day before that she had helped.

“Hi there, how’s the baby and mother doing?” Mary asked him.

He gave her a confused look and replied, “They’re doing just fine. Wait, you can see me? How?”

Mary laughed to herself as she was wondering why he would ask that. Soon enough she thought to herself, “the ointment.”

“When I was applying the ointment to the baby’s eyelid, I was curious and applied it to one of my eyelids,” Mary explained.

The ointment was some magical ointment that gave them the power to see things. To see things they weren’t supposed to see, but most importantly, to see people they weren’t supposed to see. It was like a totally different world.

The man was afraid that she would go and tell people about the things she had seen, so he wanted to make her blind. But she was the one who had helped him when he needed help, so he could not do this evil thing.

“We must undo this. Come back with me to my house,” the man said.

They both went back to his house and he made an herb remedy for her. “When this is cool, rinse your eye with it three times and this should undo what it has done.”

Mary listened to him and when she got home she did just what he said. She didn’t know if it had worked or not and had several questions to ask so she went back to the house. As she walked down the street, she could not find the house. She saw the big willow tree but there was no house behind it. Mary was so confused and it finally hit her that the remedy worked. The herbal remedy reversed what the ointment had done. Now she is not able to see the little family that she had helped because they are from a different world than her. It is probably for the best!

Being a nurse, Mary was exposed to many different types of people but this time it was totally different. It is something she will never forget and this is why she loves her job.

(Willow tree:Pixabay)

Author’s note: After reading the story, “Fairy Ointment,” I was inspired to write this one. I really liked the story and the events that took place so I kept my story similar to it. I liked how the main character was a nurse. I think it fits very well with the story because I feel like nurses encounter so many different types of people on a daily basis. One thing I did change was the ending. In the story, after applying the ointment to her eyelid, the nurse was able to see the man when she was not supposed to. He then struck her in the eye and made her blind in that eye forever. In my story, he made an herbal remedy for her to undo what the ointment had done. He would have made her blind if she was just a random person but since she had helped him he couldn’t do such an evil thing. I also added the big willow tree and the house in the story. After the nurse used the herbal remedy, she wasn’t able to see the house behind the willow tree anymore. In this part, I want the readers to come up with their own thoughts about who the little family was. Some people may say they are spirits or ghosts.  

My overall goal was to show the different things nurses see and the different people they help. 

Bibliography: English Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs. Web source

Story: An oriole's adventure

(Bird nest with eggs: Pixabay)

Hi, my name is Timmy. Here I am, sitting in this dark oval-shaped room. It is so spacious, warm, and comfy. It’s usually really peaceful in here but sometimes it feels like there is so much more beyond this oval-shaped room. As the days go by, this room seems to be getting so much smaller. It’s not as comfortable either. I like to stretch and move around, although it is kind of hard to do since this space is getting so small.

One day as I was stretching, I accidentally hit the wall and it began to crack. I was surprised because I usually stretch and it would be fine, but today was different. I could see light peeking through the cracks. As I was curious to see what was out there, I began to move around until the oval-shaped room wasn’t a room anymore.

As I looked around me, there were two other baby orioles right next to me. I got really excited because I wasn’t the only one there. As minutes passed, another baby oriole popped out of its egg. In total, there were five of us. We all talked to each other although it may have just sounded like a bunch of chirps.

I suddenly felt really hungry.

“Is anyone else hungry? I am starving!” I asked my siblings.

They all replied, “Yes!”

 “Okay, let’s find out where Mom and Dad are!”

Since we couldn’t really move and our bodies were not fully developed we couldn’t go anywhere. We all decided to chirp and call out for our parents. Minutes later, I could see my mom flying towards us.

“Hello, my babies, I knew you would be here soon. Here are some beetles and grasshoppers. Eat these while I go and find more food,” said my mother.

As I finished the piece I had, I looked up and Dad was flying towards us. I was still hungry. It’s weird because when I was still in that oval-shaped room I was never hungry.  Dad brought us some delicious fruits. I think he said they were called oranges, but they are definitely my favorite. After he gave them to us, he left to go find more food.

(Oriole eating an orange: Pixabay)

As the days went by, I noticed how each one of us began to grow feathers. My brother, who was bigger than us, grew his flight feathers before any of us did. He was able to leave the nest and find his own food. I sat there with the rest of my siblings just waiting until it was our turn. I wanted to see what was out there. My parents said it was dangerous but I just wanted to explore.

For some odd reason, I was the last one to grow my flight feathers and to also molt into my beautiful orange color. My mother said it was because I was special.

The day finally arrived and my mother told me I was ready to fly. I was kind of nervous but being the last one I was definitely ready to try this new thing out. The nest that I have been sitting on for about two weeks was on the branch of a pecan tree. As I stepped off of the branch I began to fly.

I was so amazed by everything I saw. There were so many trees, flowers, and other animals! I have never felt so free in my life. I was finally able to meet up with my family. They were all collecting nectar from a bunch of flowers. I never had nectar before so I found a flower and took its nectar.

“Wow, I have been missing out!” I told my family. “This is even better than the oranges!”

After we all had some nectar, my parents told us to gather ourselves and they asked if we were ready to see the rest of the world. I screamed with excitement. I didn’t know what to expect when I got out of my oval-shaped room but I have never been more excited. There is so much to see in this world.

“Before we leave, let’s all thank the pecan tree for keeping us all safe. The pecan tree is our good friend and before you go out into the real world I want you all to nest in the pecan tree. They will keep your eggs safe just like how they kept you all safe,” said Mom.

I asked my mother, “How come?”

Mom replied, “Long ago, the pecan tree kept an oriole family safe from a big storm and in return the father oriole warned the pecan tree that there was a cold coming so they shouldn’t put out their buds just yet. Ever since then, we have been great friends with pecan trees.”

After hearing this story from Mom, we all went to thank the pecan tree. He said we were welcome to come back any time and if we ever did pass by remember to say hi.

Well, I have to catch up with my family now because they are flying so fast. I wouldn’t want to lose them. I’ll let you all know how my next adventure goes!

Author’s Note: I was inspired to write this story after reading “The Pecan Tree’s Best Friend.” The story was about a pecan tree and a little oriole family that lived on the tree. The pecan tree liked the oriole family because they would eat the insects that ate the leaves and made holes in the tree. One day, there was a storm coming and the father oriole did not know what to do because his baby orioles were not able to fly yet. He was scared that that his children would get blown away by this storm. The pecan tree told him and his family to hide in the hole under his branch and they will be safe. By doing so, the storm passed and they were safe. In return, the father oriole told the pecan tree that there was a cold coming so he shouldn’t put out his buds. After this, orioles and pecan trees became really good friends.

I chose to write this story about a baby oriole and his experience from being in this egg to coming out into this world. I thought it would be interesting to write this in his point of view. Birds always seem so free to me because they are able to fly and see the world.

Bibliography: When the Storm God Rides: Tejas and Other Indian Legends retold by Florence Stratton and illustrated by Berniece Burrough (1936) Web source

Story: The lion and the rabbit

(Lion king: Pixabay)

In a world where only animals exist, there lived a lion. He was the king of all the animals. He was the mightiest of them all. “I am the greatest. I am smart. I am superior. Everyone shall obey me,” the lion thought. “I expect everyone to bow to me and worship me. For I am the king.”

The lion had this thought because he was in fact the mightiest of them all. He kept them safe from dangerous evil hyenas. The hyenas knew he was strong so they kept away from him and his kingdom.

Every morning the lion would go out and let out a loud roar. It was a reminder to let the animals know he was the king. The animals were expected to bow down to him and ask if they could serve him in any way. He expected all of them to do that every single morning.

One morning as he was doing his usual routine, he noticed a small rabbit lying down and not giving him attention. “Who is this foolish rabbit?” he thought. “I must punish this rabbit since he thinks he is more superior than me.”

“Who are you? Why are you not paying obeisance to the king? You must be punished,” the lion said to the rabbit.

(Rabbit: Pixabay)

The rabbit responded, “I have already made my obeisance to the king, and that is not you.”

The lion was furious. “How dare this little rabbit disrespect me like that? He is safe from hyenas because of me,” he thought. “Who is this king that you are talking about?” the lion asked the rabbit.

“On my way here I stumbled upon a large lion. He told me that he was the king and everyone shall obey him because he is much stronger than you. He said you are weak and he can definitely destroy you,” the rabbit said to the lion.

Hearing this from the rabbit made the lion more angry. “Who would ever dare to say this? I am the only lion in this kingdom. Where would this lion have come from?” the lion thought. He was confused and wanted to meet this other lion. He had to show them who the real king was.

“Bring me to this lion. I want to show him that I am stronger. I am the king and no one will take my place,” the lion told the rabbit.

The rabbit agreed to take the lion and lead him into the forest. The lion was eager to find this other lion that claimed to be king. They walked to a stream and the lion felt impatient and could not wait any longer. He felt a rush in his body and was ready to attack any second. “I am so angry that I will attack the second I see him,” he thought.

All of a sudden the lion heard the rabbit screaming and pointing into the stream. “He is hiding in there.” The lion looked where the rabbit was pointing and there he saw a massive lion. “Wow, this lion looks just like me,” he thought. He still had that rush and instantly thought to attack this lion. He did not stop to think it was a stream, and as he jumped to attack, he fell in the water.

The rabbit laughed and walked away. “How can you be so foolish if you are king?” he thought.

Author’s note: This story is based on the original “How the Rabbit Killed the Lion.” In the original story the rabbit fooled the lion. The rabbit was scared that the lion might kill him so he thought lying was the only way he could get out of this mess. He told the lion that a devil that lived in a stream told him that she was stronger than the lion. At the end, the rabbit took the lion to a stream and lied to him that his reflection was the devil. He then attacked and drowned in the water.

I kept my story similar to this storyline. I thought it would be interesting to write this in the lion’s point of view. I wanted to express how and why the lion felt so superior.  I changed the devil character to be another lion because I wanted to create another conflict. He quickly forgot why he was angry in the first place and focused on the fact that there was another lion trying to take his place. I also wanted to keep this story short and sweet. By doing so, it shows how quickly one can be fooled and how anger can lead to situations like these. It also shows how deceiving the rabbit is.

Bibliography: Tibetan folk Tales by A.L. Shelton. Link to How the Rabbit Killed the Lion