He had been told — as the whispering voices of the world claimed — that, if fortune smiled upon him, he might discover this light. But it would only reveal itself if he followed the bright sparks far away, beyond the distant horizon. And so he did, chasing them tirelessly. Yet the sparks had a will of their own: they slipped away just as he reached for them, luring him into far-off places and vanishing as if they had never existed, leaving him lost and uncertain, time and time again.

One day, weary and disheartened, he resolved to walk in the opposite direction. Perhaps, he thought, fortune might find him there.
He walked and walked, his body aching, his heart growing colder with each step. In desperation, he waved his hands at the empty air, as if to fight the invisible world itself. And then, something extraordinary happened: his hand struck a solid object, unlike anything he had ever touched. Curious, he felt around, tracing the strange shape, when suddenly it stirred, spun, and rose upward, as if awakened from a slumber that had lasted a thousand ages.
It was a tree — the oldest the world had ever known. Upon seeing him, it began to glow with majestic light, stretching ever higher toward the stars. Its branches lowered gracefully toward the earth, and instead of leaves, they bore the brightest sparks of light imaginable. The little man longed to grasp them. Yet, remembering the countless times such light had eluded him, he reached out carefully, hoping only for a few sparks — and they pulled away, as they always had.

Just as he was about to chase them, a deep, resonant voice echoed from the thick trunk:
“Wait — wait. You will achieve nothing this way.”

Startled, he fell to the ground. A kind, gentle face appeared on the bark of the tree — the spirit within.
“Do not fear,” it said, its voice calm and warm. “I will not harm you. But listen carefully: what you see on my branches does not belong to you, and it will never be yours, no matter how desperately you desire it. Each being has their own light. Yet you humans search for it outside, unaware that it exists only within. Another’s light is but a fleeting illusion, while your own is eternal. Look into your own heart, even in despair, and you will see its beauty — its brightness, its truth. Now, try.”

At those words, the tree extended a long, glowing branch and gently touched his heart.
Moved beyond words, the little man dared not resist. He let go of the chase for what was not his, closed his eyes, and dove deep into his own center. Slowly, a spark kindled within him, growing until it burst into a light of indescribable beauty, a radiance so powerful it seemed a current of electric energy coursed through his entire being. The light spiraled upward from his chest, forming a glowing path that stretched into the distance, illuminating and transforming all around him.

Grateful to the tree for its guidance, the little man set off once more on his journey, stepping into a world brimming with wonders, ready to receive them as they came.