Pre fce, profe Nadia (Adults)

1. Pre-fce, profe Nadia
The strange case of Timothy “Woodleg”
This is the story of a boy who because famous because of his peculiar
ability. His name was Timothy “Woodleg” and his story will surely move
you.
Once upon a time, in some place, many years ago, a unique boy was
born. He had a brown toe. His parents thought it wasn´t anything
important, but later the toe started to harden up. They realized that it
was made of wood, so they tried to cut it, but it was impossible.
After a while, other parts of his body started becoming wooden while he
was growing up. The wood expanded from his toe to all his right leg
impeding him to walk properly. At first Timothy was scared because that
was turning into something serious, but soon he learned to live with that and learn how to walk and run just
like any other kid. His parents spent every day and every night looking for someone who would explain what
was going on with their son, but nobody could help them. Until one day, when Timothy´s parents were about
to give up, a mysterious man told them that he was one who was going to make a change on people feelings
and thoughts. Since then, Timothy started to have some weird experiences.
One day, at the age of 17, he was coming back from school when he saw a neighbor who was trying to cut a
tree. He felt some pain in his chest and decided to ask the man why he was doing that. The man told him that
he needed space to build a barbeque machine and made him feel worse. When he arrived home, his right leg
was hurting. Timothy didn´t mind and went to the kitchen to say hi to his mom but then he saw water running
and his mother wasn´t there, she was talking on the phone in the living-room. He was horrified. He shouted to
his mother and asked her what she was doing with the water and she answered she was washing the dishes
and that was why she had forgotten to close the tap. Then, Timothy began to feel sick and he saw that his leg
was turning browner and tougher and his right arm was also brown and tough. He called his parents for them
to see what was happening to him and in that moment he realized that when someone damaged the planet, a
part of his body became a piece of wood. Timothy´s family decided to tell the community about it and
although it was hard for people to believe in it, in time he became famous and respected. His actual last name
was Goodbeg, but as soon as everyone found out, they started calling him “Woodleg”, and he liked it. There
was a lot to learn about the environment so all the community started a campaign to stop harming nature.
A lot of things changed, people became aware of the importance ecology and Timothy was able to live a full
life, in spite of his unusual condition. He didn´t feel more pain in his wooden pieces, however, his body never
stopped becoming wooden. The change in the community helped him have a pleasant life without pain, but
there was still a lot to do worldwide, so it was very difficult to stop the “wooden up” process.
Unexpectedly, after a couple of years, when he was running at the park with some friends, he had to stop
because he felt something strange in his feet. More than half of his body was already wood. He looked at the
floor and saw roots coming out of his feet. Suddenly, he realized it was time. He was standing right in the
centre of the park and staring at his friends sadly but calmly, he raised his arms and little by little became a
tree.
Some people at the park were shocked because of what had happened and the story appeared in the news
that afternoon. Some months later, the government made him a monument next to the tree that still stands
there to honor him and his natural love for ecology. His story will always be an inspiration and will never be
forgotten.