The Mango Under the Tree

Kemi and Tayo were two brothers who inherited one mango tree behind their house. Every dry season the tree would drop sweet, ripe mangoes. But only if you shook the branches.

Kemi was sharp. Every morning he’d grab a stick, shake the tree, collect the mangoes, sell some, eat some, and store the seeds. Within one year he had money to buy a second tree.

Tayo was different. He’d wake up, see mangoes already on the ground, pick those few, eat, and go back to sleep. “Why stress? Mangoes will always fall,” he’d say. When Kemi told him to shake the branches for more, Tayo would yawn: “I’ll do it tomorrow. The tree is not running anywhere.”

Tomorrow became next week. Next week became next season.

One year, harmattan winds were weak. Almost no mangoes fell on their own. Kemi’s trees still gave plenty because he shook them. Tayo’s ground stayed empty. He went from house to house begging for mangoes he refused to work for.

That night Tayo finally understood: *Laziness isn’t doing nothing. It’s waiting for life to do the work for you.* And life doesn’t shake trees for people who won’t lift a stick.

From then on, Tayo became the first to wake up and shake. Not because he loved stress, but because he learned that opportunity falls, but abundance must be shaken down.

*Moral: Laziness is believing “later” will be easier than “now”. It never is.*