Kale was a normal young boy, full of spirit and adventure. In grade school, he loved going to school and interacting with his peers. His energetic personality made him loved by all of his classmates and teachers. From a young age, Kale's eyes gleamed every chance he got to hold a football. Athletics were something that appeared to come very natural to him. Kale had a great family life as well. He was constantly supported by his parents. His mother beamed in the stands every time he played in a football game and his dad jumped at any chance to play catch with his beloved son. Kale appeared to live the picture-perfect life. However, things took a turn as he entered high school.
Kale continued to excel in athletics. He was a star both in the classroom and on the field. He continued to grow bigger and stronger. But as he continued to grow, he started to feel different. He found himself growing much taller than the rest of his family, something that made him an all-star on the football field. Kale was extremely fast and naturally very athletic. He worked hard to develop his strengths, but he was born with a great deal of natural talent. No one else in his family had been very good at sports. Whenever Kale would ask his dad about his high school football career, his father would shy away from the topic.
Kale often found himself wondering what made him different. How did he acquire talent? He started to notice that he looked different than everyone in his family too. His hair and eyes were darker. His skin had a different tint. Was he being ridiculous? Did every teen go through this identity crisis? Going into his senior year, Kale was surrounded by stressors. He was worried about grades, college applications, and being scouted by coaches with the hopes of playing college football. He concluded that his suspicions were all stemming from his stress. He decided not to think about it any longer and went to bed.
That night, Kale had a dream. In this dream, he was a small child floating down a river in a basket. He was scared and did not know where he was. How did he get here? Who put him in the basket? Then, a man and woman came running toward him and scooped him out of the water. They were confused and concerned. He could tell that they weren’t the ones who put him in the basket. But with a loving heart, they took him home to feed and clothe him. When the people turned around, he realized that they were his parents.
He gasped and sat up in bed.
Kale knew that he had to talk to his parents. These thoughts weren’t letting him rest.
The very next day, Kale told his parents that he wanted to talk to them. Always eager to help their precious son, they immediately turned off the TV and sat down with him. Nervously, Kale stared at his feet and spilled every uncertainty that he had about his identity. When he looked up he almost expected to see his parents laughing…but instead he only saw tears.
Kale’s mother proceeded to tell him that he was, in fact, adopted. Kale’s parents had been unable to conceive a child when they finally turned to adoption. He learned that they didn’t know much about Kale’s birth parents other than that they were exceptional athletes and not prepared, emotionally or financially, to care for a child at the time of his birth. She explained that giving up a child was hard for the couple, but that they knew it was the right thing to do. The couple trusted them to take care of Kale and raise him to chase whatever dreams he had. With tears streaming down her face, she looked up to Kale and told him that she hoped they had met their wishes.
Kale rose to his feet. He couldn’t believe that his wild, irrational thoughts were true. He went to his room to think. He wasn’t sure how to feel. He had so many questions. With tears in his eyes, he lay down on his bed.
At that moment, visions of the baby in the basket filled his mind. He reflected on the man and woman who grabbed the baby from the water. They weren't expecting to find a baby that day in the water. They had no idea who that baby would grow up to be. Would he be kind? Athletic? Creative? There was no way for them to know. Even though the baby was not biologically theirs, they put their lives on hold to welcome them into their family. Kale's parents did the same thing. Adoption is a selfless act. A smile came to Kale's face as he realized the immense amount of love and courage that his parents had in their hearts. Reflecting upon that vivid dream, Kale realized that he was extremely fortunate. He couldn't be happier for the series of events that gave him the most loving parents in the world.
Kale continued to excel in athletics. He was a star both in the classroom and on the field. He continued to grow bigger and stronger. But as he continued to grow, he started to feel different. He found himself growing much taller than the rest of his family, something that made him an all-star on the football field. Kale was extremely fast and naturally very athletic. He worked hard to develop his strengths, but he was born with a great deal of natural talent. No one else in his family had been very good at sports. Whenever Kale would ask his dad about his high school football career, his father would shy away from the topic.
Kale often found himself wondering what made him different. How did he acquire talent? He started to notice that he looked different than everyone in his family too. His hair and eyes were darker. His skin had a different tint. Was he being ridiculous? Did every teen go through this identity crisis? Going into his senior year, Kale was surrounded by stressors. He was worried about grades, college applications, and being scouted by coaches with the hopes of playing college football. He concluded that his suspicions were all stemming from his stress. He decided not to think about it any longer and went to bed.
That night, Kale had a dream. In this dream, he was a small child floating down a river in a basket. He was scared and did not know where he was. How did he get here? Who put him in the basket? Then, a man and woman came running toward him and scooped him out of the water. They were confused and concerned. He could tell that they weren’t the ones who put him in the basket. But with a loving heart, they took him home to feed and clothe him. When the people turned around, he realized that they were his parents.
He gasped and sat up in bed.
Kale knew that he had to talk to his parents. These thoughts weren’t letting him rest.
The very next day, Kale told his parents that he wanted to talk to them. Always eager to help their precious son, they immediately turned off the TV and sat down with him. Nervously, Kale stared at his feet and spilled every uncertainty that he had about his identity. When he looked up he almost expected to see his parents laughing…but instead he only saw tears.
Kale’s mother proceeded to tell him that he was, in fact, adopted. Kale’s parents had been unable to conceive a child when they finally turned to adoption. He learned that they didn’t know much about Kale’s birth parents other than that they were exceptional athletes and not prepared, emotionally or financially, to care for a child at the time of his birth. She explained that giving up a child was hard for the couple, but that they knew it was the right thing to do. The couple trusted them to take care of Kale and raise him to chase whatever dreams he had. With tears streaming down her face, she looked up to Kale and told him that she hoped they had met their wishes.
Kale rose to his feet. He couldn’t believe that his wild, irrational thoughts were true. He went to his room to think. He wasn’t sure how to feel. He had so many questions. With tears in his eyes, he lay down on his bed.
At that moment, visions of the baby in the basket filled his mind. He reflected on the man and woman who grabbed the baby from the water. They weren't expecting to find a baby that day in the water. They had no idea who that baby would grow up to be. Would he be kind? Athletic? Creative? There was no way for them to know. Even though the baby was not biologically theirs, they put their lives on hold to welcome them into their family. Kale's parents did the same thing. Adoption is a selfless act. A smile came to Kale's face as he realized the immense amount of love and courage that his parents had in their hearts. Reflecting upon that vivid dream, Kale realized that he was extremely fortunate. He couldn't be happier for the series of events that gave him the most loving parents in the world.
(The dream that changed Kale's life. Source: Wikimedia Commons)
Author’s Note: For this story, I was inspired by Episode 18 of the Epified version of the Mahabharata. This episode is titled 'Karna's Quest' which is why I decided to title my story “Kale’s Quest." I tried to use Karna’s character and turn him into a more modern character: Kale. In the original episode, Karna learns secrets about his past. He is informed that when he was a baby, he was found floating down the river in a basket. This means that he has no idea who his real family is or why he has his strength. I thought it would be interesting to use these feelings of confusion and curiosity to create a story of a child learning that he was adopted. Where did I come from? Why am I the way that I am? These are questions that Karna had and questions than an adopted child faces as well. I had fun turning this epic into a story that could easily happen in real life. Adoption is a topic close to my heart and I enjoyed writing a story about the struggle that children sometimes must face. I decided to implement the river part of the original story as part of Kale’s dream to add a twist. I liked being able to blend the original story into my own thoughts to create something totally new.
Title: The Mahabharata: Karmic Revolution (Part C)
Title: The Mahabharata: Karmic Revolution (Part C)
Author: Epified TV (India)
As I was starting to read this, in the first few paragraphs I was thinking that Kale could be Karna and how funny that it would be to be so different from the family that raised you. By the end of the story, I realized I was correct with my guess! I'm very different from my family but we look very similar even though are personalities are very different. Great job, I really like this story turned into a modern day tale.
ReplyDeleteYou did a great job transitioning this story to today's world! I didn't even realize what story this was until you got to the portion about his dream! Your writing style is very catching and I enjoyed reading your rendition. I really connected with Kale's character and found myself thinking how crazy it would be to find yourself not fitting into the family you were raised in. You did a wonderful job!
ReplyDeleteI really loved the modernization that was done in this story. I like your writing style a lot and find it very easy to follow along with. I found it easy to connect with Kale and try to relate with him. I could not imagine not fitting in with the family that you grow up in because of how I fit into mine so well. Overall you did a great job and I enjoyed the read!
ReplyDeleteHaha, I love the name Kale! I've actually had a long-standing debate with one of my friends over whether or not Kale is an acceptable name for a child. Anyway, I love your modern take on Karna and how he realized he was adopted! I completely agree with your ending; Karna/Kale was so lucky to have such loving parents! Great story!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great choice of stories to retell--I don't think I've read or seen any stories dedicated solely to Karna yet. It makes sense that, even though he's raised in a good family (a palace, right?) and displays remarkable talent as a kshatriya, he would still have some fundamental uncertainty about who he is. I think going deeper into Karna's journey (or Kale's Quest!) as you do here makes the big battle at the end of the Mahabharata even more difficult to stomach. Thanks for writing this!
ReplyDeleteThis story was very touching and well written. I love that it had a happy ending and that Kale was a well mature written character. I love how you thought out all his actions perfectly, and made the scenario unpredictable. The story could have gone either way after he talked to his parents. I feel that the Author’s note was well justified and explained the relativity of the story perfectly. I love the Epified videos and am glad that you were able to make their story one of your own. There were just one grammatical errors that I found in the story. In the first paragraph you wrote “stands every time he playing in”. It could be “stands every time he played in”. The picture chosen I feel really fits well with the story. I actually think that if the picture were to be placed before the story was read it would make the story that more interesting to read. This is since the caption gives some detail, but doesn’t ruin the story for you.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed this story, I thought it was very heartwarming. I really liked how loving Kale's mother and father were, and I really liked how, even though his life had changed drastically, he didn't lose the love and support of his family.In the beginning you mentioned how it seemed as if he had the perfect life, but, indeed, looks can be deceiving. It is always nice to e reminded that the grass isn't always greener, and that one shouldn't make assumptions about the someone's "perfect life". I enjoyed how, instead of feeling anger towards his parents for keeping his adoption a secret, he thought of how selfless his parents were. Also, I liked how, in the beginning, he blamed his growing suspicions on stress from school, which I feel is something that we all do sometimes. You did a wonderful job with this story, it was written very well! Thanks for a good read!
ReplyDeleteYou did a really great job, and at the end of the story I was wondering if adoption was something that was a unique interest of yours or if you were close to it. Adoption is also something fairly close to me as well, and so I really appreciated the way with which you had Kale come to understand his parents. I also thought it was pretty interesting that he was struggling with all of these ideas about being different, and then it came to him in a dream. I noticed no errors in your writing, but I really appreciated the modern twist that you put on this!
ReplyDeleteHello Bentleigh! I thought your story was very good! I love that you had a lot of comfort in the story. I wasn’t really sure what story you were modeling it off of until the end of your authors note so it made a lot more sense after I got through until the end. Your story brought some variables where you could have flipped the story completely which I thought was really cool. For instance, when Kale had his dream and talked to him parents they could have just lied to him and that could have pushed his emotions one way to change the outcome. Kale could have also completely rejected his parents after they told him he was adopted to give the story a bad twist. I do like how you ended on basically a growing experience for Kale that he was able to sit down and really think about what he was given from his parents. Great Job!
ReplyDelete