Jasmine and Charlie were in the same tutor group, but not really friends. Jasmine’s parents couldn’t afford the ticket and said she’d have to pay for the trip herself. Jasmine was part of the popular group and so asked her friends if they could lend her the money. But they all wanted to keep hold of their cash, as there would be lots of food, drink and other things to buy there. Even Beth, her best friend, refused to give her anything. Jasmine was pretty annoyed with her friends, but hid it well. Charlie had overheard what was going on and had just enough money from washing his aunt’s car at the weekend for a second ticket. He saw Jasmine on the way to class and offered to lend her the money.
She thanked him and ran off to tell her friends that she was going after all.
When the day came, the coach pulled up and everyone piled on. Everyone knew that the back of the bus would be where Jasmine and her group would sit. Sure enough, Jasmine took the seat right in the middle and her friends piled in around her. Charlie was one of the last to get on and there weren’t many seats left. He went to sit down somewhere near the front; he didn’t mind - he’d probably just play a few games on his phone and chat to whoever was around him. Jasmine saw him looking for a seat and shouted for him to come to the back and sit with them. Then she turned to Beth and said: “You’re in the wrong seat. This is Charlie’s seat.” Beth stood up and didn’t know what to do. Charlie came to the back and sat down next to Jasmine. Beth slowly walked down the bus and ended up having to sit next to a teacher.
Discussion questions
Ask the young people these questions. Try to let the discussion flow as much as possible, without interjecting too many of your own ideas.
- Which character might represent God in this story and who do you identify with?
- What do you do to try and impress people?
- Society seems to be made up of different groups; some are considered ‘cooler’ than others. What do you need to do, wear or have to be part of the ‘cool’ group?
- What does it mean to be humble? Who was humble in this story?
- Why does God see being humble as a good thing?
This parable is a retelling of Luke 14:7-14.
For this tale and more like it, go to talesretold.org.
