Consumed in worries, Mort never once thought about selling his luscious, pesticide‑free fruit for some extra money.

 

Neighborhood markets would have happily bought it.

 

Mort could have given some of his abundant fruit to neighbors too.

 

Or at least not “yelled” at the children who picked pieces dangling over the fence.

 

But “worrying” kept Mort from thinking about such positive possibilities.

 

Except for the few pieces he ate or the birds nibbled, all the fruit rotted!

Then, one night, not aware that he was actually dreaming, Mort ran into his backyard gasping,

“What happened?

My fruit trees are dead!

My fruit is gone!”