One sound of the bell develops wisdom.
Two sounds of the bell creates good karma.
Three sounds of the bell brings forth good fortune.
---------------------------
The bell was located in the garden to the left. He had come early today, so it wouldnÆt be as crowded as usual.
His mom gave him twenty pennies. ThatÆs more than enough - heÆd hit the bell this time!
But of course, that didnÆt happen.
Five pennies fell short. Two went into the fountain. Ten went too far, and one nicked the statue of the man on the tiger.
àHe wasnÆt going to make the tiger eat him, right?
No, no, he wouldnÆt do that û he was a good guy.
With the boyÆs fears assuaged, he glared at the bell again. Why was it so small!?
It was time to cheat û he grabbed both his pennies and threw them û at the same time.
It would work, it had to work! Two is more then one!
His eyes followed the two coins, as they shot into the air, as they flew, as they were sent plummeting down, as theyà
Missed the bell.
And he was out of pennies.
He was done for now û but he would get that bell to ring one day!
---------------------------
Years later, with fifty pennies.
He hasnÆt been to the temple in a long time. But even so, nothing has changed.
The statues of the Bodhisattvas were still clean, magnificent. The temple still served lunch for free. The courtyard was still teeming with people.
The bell was still impossible to hit.
His aim was much better then before, but it wasnÆt enough. The penny would slip to the side, or fall to the ground right before it connect.
There was a small circle of his pennies surrounding the bell. They mocked him.
But there was one penny left. He could do this.
Just calm down, and think.
Okay, the angle is bad. Better to throw it straight.
ThereÆs a wind blowing from the left. Have to take that into account.
He wasnÆt a little kid anymore. ThereÆs no need to lob the throw.
DonÆt worry about missing again. If it hits, it hits. If it misses, try again later.
Soàthrow.
He closed his eyes. Itàfelt like something he should do. He shouldnÆt stress out over something so small, right?
And he heard the bell ring.
---------------------------
A year later û and he forgot to bring pennies.
There were bills for donations in his wallet, but no coins. Well, no, there was a singular penny, but he wouldnÆt be able to hit the bell with just one coin.
Besides, he didnÆt come here for the bell û he came to honor the dead.
So the bell faded from his mind as he lit incense for the dead, as he donated money to the temple, as he gratefully ate the lunch the volunteers put out.
But then he overheard a converation.
ôMommy, do you have any more coins? I only need one more to get good luck!ö
ôIÆm sorry dear, but we ran out.ö
The kid seemed annoyed and frustrated. The mother was apologetic. The child sighed, and began to walk back to the entrance.
ôSorry kid, but all I have is a penny.ö
After all, he didnÆt need it today. It was just a penny to him û but it was another chance to her.
ôUm, really? Mommy, can I?ö
The woman looked at her kid, turned her eyes to him. She smiled and shrugged.
ôI donÆt see why not.ö
The child shrieked in pleasure, grabbing the coin in his hand and ran back to the garden, sizing up her next shot.
He smiled, turned, and walked away.
And he heard the bell ring.
----------------------------
Living as a monk wasàpeaceful.
There were nothing to stress about û free from the worries and deadlines of modern life, he could spend his time meditating and thinking.
He could see why people would spend their lives living like this.
But it wasnÆt for him. Despite the stress, he enjoyed working, loved spending his time having fun with others.
He had needed the week away from life to think. He was calmer, now.
So he ate lunch, lit incense in the shrines, thanked the monks for teaching and helping him, turned in his robes û
and began the walk back to the entrance.
He paused at the garden with the bell. He stood there, his eyes focusing on the bell, his mind wandering, meditating on topic after topic.
He smiled, after a while, and turned to leave û
But there was a penny lying on the ground.
Without thinking, he bent down and picked the coin up. It was made this year, it was still shining.
àWhy not?
Without worry, without desire, he threw the coin.
And he heard the bell ring.
Two sounds of the bell creates good karma.
Three sounds of the bell brings forth good fortune.
---------------------------
The bell was located in the garden to the left. He had come early today, so it wouldnÆt be as crowded as usual.
His mom gave him twenty pennies. ThatÆs more than enough - heÆd hit the bell this time!
But of course, that didnÆt happen.
Five pennies fell short. Two went into the fountain. Ten went too far, and one nicked the statue of the man on the tiger.
àHe wasnÆt going to make the tiger eat him, right?
No, no, he wouldnÆt do that û he was a good guy.
With the boyÆs fears assuaged, he glared at the bell again. Why was it so small!?
It was time to cheat û he grabbed both his pennies and threw them û at the same time.
It would work, it had to work! Two is more then one!
His eyes followed the two coins, as they shot into the air, as they flew, as they were sent plummeting down, as theyà
Missed the bell.
And he was out of pennies.
He was done for now û but he would get that bell to ring one day!
---------------------------
Years later, with fifty pennies.
He hasnÆt been to the temple in a long time. But even so, nothing has changed.
The statues of the Bodhisattvas were still clean, magnificent. The temple still served lunch for free. The courtyard was still teeming with people.
The bell was still impossible to hit.
His aim was much better then before, but it wasnÆt enough. The penny would slip to the side, or fall to the ground right before it connect.
There was a small circle of his pennies surrounding the bell. They mocked him.
But there was one penny left. He could do this.
Just calm down, and think.
Okay, the angle is bad. Better to throw it straight.
ThereÆs a wind blowing from the left. Have to take that into account.
He wasnÆt a little kid anymore. ThereÆs no need to lob the throw.
DonÆt worry about missing again. If it hits, it hits. If it misses, try again later.
Soàthrow.
He closed his eyes. Itàfelt like something he should do. He shouldnÆt stress out over something so small, right?
And he heard the bell ring.
---------------------------
A year later û and he forgot to bring pennies.
There were bills for donations in his wallet, but no coins. Well, no, there was a singular penny, but he wouldnÆt be able to hit the bell with just one coin.
Besides, he didnÆt come here for the bell û he came to honor the dead.
So the bell faded from his mind as he lit incense for the dead, as he donated money to the temple, as he gratefully ate the lunch the volunteers put out.
But then he overheard a converation.
ôMommy, do you have any more coins? I only need one more to get good luck!ö
ôIÆm sorry dear, but we ran out.ö
The kid seemed annoyed and frustrated. The mother was apologetic. The child sighed, and began to walk back to the entrance.
ôSorry kid, but all I have is a penny.ö
After all, he didnÆt need it today. It was just a penny to him û but it was another chance to her.
ôUm, really? Mommy, can I?ö
The woman looked at her kid, turned her eyes to him. She smiled and shrugged.
ôI donÆt see why not.ö
The child shrieked in pleasure, grabbing the coin in his hand and ran back to the garden, sizing up her next shot.
He smiled, turned, and walked away.
And he heard the bell ring.
----------------------------
Living as a monk wasàpeaceful.
There were nothing to stress about û free from the worries and deadlines of modern life, he could spend his time meditating and thinking.
He could see why people would spend their lives living like this.
But it wasnÆt for him. Despite the stress, he enjoyed working, loved spending his time having fun with others.
He had needed the week away from life to think. He was calmer, now.
So he ate lunch, lit incense in the shrines, thanked the monks for teaching and helping him, turned in his robes û
and began the walk back to the entrance.
He paused at the garden with the bell. He stood there, his eyes focusing on the bell, his mind wandering, meditating on topic after topic.
He smiled, after a while, and turned to leave û
But there was a penny lying on the ground.
Without thinking, he bent down and picked the coin up. It was made this year, it was still shining.
àWhy not?
Without worry, without desire, he threw the coin.
And he heard the bell ring.
, but otherwise the flow was good, the sparse dialogue worked well, and you had a nice plot to tell your story around.