1 2 Male Actors: Discussion Question-Asker Adam 3 Female Actors: Little Jackie Suzy Ancient One 2 or more Narrators: Guys or Girls Narrator : Remember sixth grader Jackie who met the Ancient One in the clearing in the woods? Narrator : We are now going to hear a story about when Little Jackie got her call to adventure. Narrator : See if you can figure out whether she accepted or refused her call to adventure. Narrator : This is Chapter 1. It s called Little Jackie and Suzy. Narrator : Little Jackie s sixth grade year had been going along pretty well, thanks to her meeting with the Ancient One. Narrator : She no longer felt like a victim. She chose to embrace the fact that she and the people around her were all extraordinary. Narrator : That good feeling had carried her along for about a month. But now, Jackie found herself feeling upset again. Narrator : You see, Jackie wanted to upgrade her friendships. Narrator : Oh, she still wanted to spend time with her special friends. But Jackie began to crave the society of some of the more popular kids. Narrator : In fact, there was one girl and one boy in particular who Jackie was hoping to get close to. They were brother and sister. Narrator : The girl, Suzy, was in sixth grade. Her brother, Adam, was in seventh grade. Narrator : Suzy and Adam were both cute, popular, and involved in sports. Suzy played basketball. Adam was on the football team.
2 Narrator : Jackie wasn t particularly good at either game, but she did enjoy watching. Narrator : One day, Suzy was standing at her locker. Jackie could tell she was bothered about something. Jackie asked: What s wrong, Suzy? My locker s jammed again. I ve got the lock off, but I can t get the locker itself open. I ve got to get my English book. If I don t get it, I ll get a demerit. But if I struggle with my locker too long, I ll be tardy and get a demerit slip. Either way, I can t win. Wait! I think I can help. Narrator : Jackie hit Suzy s locker in hopes that it might pop open. But that didn t work. Then she struggled with the handle. Narrator : That still didn t work. Jackie made a quick decision. She said: Look, I don t have Language Arts until after lunch. I could loan you my English book until then. Narrator : Suzy looked startled and pleased. She said: Really? That would be great! Okay! Thanks a lot, Janie.
3 Jackie. What? My name is Jackie, not Janie. Oh, I m sorry. Thanks, Jackie. Narrator : Suzy grabbed the book and hurried off to class. Jackie watched her go for a moment and then rushed off to her own class. Narrator : She felt kind of good about helping Suzy out, but also, she felt kind of bad. Narrator : Suzy hadn t even known her name. Would she remember it the next time they met? Narrator : Would Suzy get her English book back to her on time, or would she have to go searching for her to get her book back? Narrator : Thankfully, Suzy walked over to Jackie s lunch table and returned the book in plenty of time. Suzy said: Thanks a lot, Jackie. That was great of you to loan me your book. Narrator : Little Jackie smiled at Suzy and said: No problem, Suzy. Have you managed to get into your locker yet? Not yet. I ve tried and tried. Have you already had math today? Yeah. I had it when you had your Language Arts class. Do you need to borrow my math book? Yeah, thanks. That would be great. Narrator : At the end of the day, Suzy returned the math book with a big smile. Narrator : The next morning, Jackie saw Suzy standing at her locker again. Her older brother Adam was trying to help her get the locker unjammed. Narrator : Finally, he gave the locker a good strong bang with his fist. It came popping open. Jackie called out: Hi, Suzy. I see you got your locker open finally. Narrator : Suzy nodded in relief, smiled, and pointed to her big brother as she said: ADAM: Yeah! Thanks to my big brother. Uh, Adam, this is Jackie. She s the one who loaned me her books so I wouldn t get a demerit slip. Nice to meet you, Jackie. Well, I better get on to Homeroom. See you later. Narrator : Jackie waved as he walked away. Then, she looked at Suzy and said: Your brother is cute!
4 Narrator : Suzy nodded and said: Yeah, he s okay, for a brother. Thanks again for helping out. No problem. Narrator : And that was how it started. Jackie and Suzy began a bit of a friendship. Narrator : As the days went on, Suzy needed to borrow Jackie s books more than once as her locker kept getting jammed. Narrator : Then, she started asking to copy Jackie s homework as she had noticed a folded worksheet in Jackie s math book that had a big red A written across the top. Narrator : Occasionally, she would come around at lunch time to see if Jackie had any lunch money she could borrow to buy a snack. Narrator : Jackie didn t mind loaning out her books so much. Suzy copying her homework bothered her a bit, but she also felt flattered that Suzy was seeking out her help. Narrator : But loaning out the money was a bit harder. Her parents rarely had any extra money to give her as their finances were so tight. Narrator : But at the same time, Jackie wasn t any good at lying. She couldn t manage to say she had no money if she really did. Narrator : And Jackie really wasn t any good at saying no. So, Jackie would hand over the money as she really wanted Suzy to be her friend. Narrator : The thing was, even though Suzy would always return Jackie s text books, she never offered to let Jackie copy any of her work, nor did she ever repay the money that she had 'borrowed'. Narrator : This is Chapter 2. It s called Little Jackie gets Snubbed at the Dance. Narrator : There was a dance coming up that Friday. Right before Suzy asked to borrow a pencil and some paper, she asked: Hey, Jackie? Are you going to the dance this Friday? Yeah! I was thinking about it. Are you? Yeah! My brother and I are both going. We wouldn t miss it. Hey, do you have a pencil I can borrow? Oh, and some paper, too? Narrator : As Jackie handed over both, Suzy said: Thanks, Jackie. You re the greatest! Narrator : Then, Suzy ran off.
5 Narrator : Jackie finished at her locker and walked to class. Suzy hadn t said that Adam wanted to dance with her, but a girl could hope. Narrator : Maybe because Jackie had been so nice to loan Suzy all those things, Suzy could make that happen. Narrator : Jackie didn t have the nerve to ask, but maybe Suzy just would. Narrator : The problem was, at the dance, Suzy ignored Jackie the whole time. So did Adam. Narrator : At one point, Jackie went into the rest room when Suzy was in there with her friends. Jackie said: Hi, Suzy. Narrator : Suzy kind of stared for a moment, barely smiled, then bluntly and quickly said: Hi. Narrator : Next, Suzy quickly turned her back on Jackie to continue talking to her particular friends. Narrator : Little Jackie stood there for a moment feeling rather shocked. She then quickly walked into a stall so that Suzy and her friends wouldn t see how sad Jackie was feeling. Narrator : The rest of the dance went by in a haze. Jackie only got asked to dance a couple of times. Narrator : Mostly, she stood over with a group of her friends feeling sad and left out. DISCUSSION QUESTION-ASKER: Describe all the ways Jackie acted on her FIGHT Instinct and what ways she acted on her FLIGHT Instinct.
6 (Accept Reasonable Answers.) DISCUSSION QUESTION-ASKER: Describe all the ways Suzy acted on her FIGHT Instinct and what ways she acted on her FLIGHT Instinct. (Accept Reasonable Answers.) DISCUSSION QUESTION-ASKER: Describe all the ways Adam acted on his FIGHT Instinct and what ways he acted on his FLIGHT Instinct. (Accept Reasonable Answers.)
7 Narrator : This is Chapter 3. It s called Little Jackie learns to be Master of her Life. Narrator : The next day was Saturday. Little Jackie decided to go for a walk. She really needed to think. Jackie exclaimed to herself: Boy, do I feel used by Suzy! She borrowed stuff and never returned any of it except my text books. She was mean to me at the dance. And I bet she ll be just as nice as anything on Monday so that she can get some more stuff from me. What a user! And what a dupe I am! Narrator : Feeling sad and rather confused, Jackie walked along without really noticing where she was going. Narrator : Suddenly, she was standing at the outskirts of that wooded area. Her heart skipped a double beat. She thought: Maybe I can meet up with the Ancient One again. I sure could use some advice. Narrator : Jackie tried hard to retrace her steps to that clearing with the rocks and small boulders. Sure enough, she found it. Narrator : And thankfully, sitting on top of one of the largest of the rocks, was the Ancient One. The Ancient One smiled and exclaimed: ANCIENT ONE: Welcome back, Jackie. I heard your call. Narrator : Jackie ran up to give the Ancient One a hug. The old woman opened up her arms to Jackie and cuddled her for a bit. Jackie said: Ancient One, I am so glad to see you. I m feeling confused again. Narrator : Jackie then pulled back and told her all about it. Narrator : The Ancient One sat silently and then said: ANCIENT ONE: It sounds like you are feeling like a martyr. What do you mean? I wasn t making any great sacrifices. Well, not really. I was doing some things to help Suzy out. ANCIENT ONE: Jackie, what was your purpose in helping Suzy out? Well, the first day, when I loaned Suzy my English book and then my math book, it was no problem. I felt good about it. And she was friendly to me for the first time ever and even introduced me to her brother. ANCIENT ONE: So up to that point, you had no ulterior motive? What do you mean by ulterior motives? Narrator : The Ancient One smiled kindly and said:
ANCIENT ONE: I mean you weren t loaning her these things in order to get anything from her? You were simply being nice? Yeah! I think so. Narrator : Jackie thought and then said with more confidence: Yeah! I was just helping out. I didn t need the books at the moment. And as long as she gave them back, it felt okay. 8 ANCIENT ONE: What about the next few days? Well, Suzy started asking for more and more stuff. The books were still okay. But she started borrowing pencils that I never got back, paper that I never got back, and worst of all, money that she never paid back. Also, she often would ask to copy my homework. ANCIENT ONE: Jackie, why didn t you say no? Well, I was afraid to. ANCIENT ONE: What were you afraid of?
9 Well, I was afraid she wouldn t be my friend anymore. Plus, I was hoping she would tell her brother that I was really nice, and he might start to like me. Narrator : The Ancient One smiled and said: ANCIENT ONE: Jackie that s what I mean by having ulterior motives. You were being nice in hopes of sort of 'buying' Suzy s friendship and in the hopes her older brother would like you. Do you see what I mean? Yeah! I get it. Yeah, that s exactly what I did. But is that so wrong? ANCIENT ONE: No, it s not wrong as long as you are feeling totally good about the decisions you are making. If you can do these nice things and it doesn t matter to you whether or not they do nice things back, then you are being the master of your own life. But if you do these nice things in hopes of somebody doing nice things back, then you are choosing to feel like a martyr when he or she doesn t live up to your expectations. DISCUSSION QUESTION-ASKER: What did the Ancient One mean when she questioned Jackie about having 'ulterior motives'? (Choose classmates to answer this question.) Well, I don t feel good about doing those nice things anymore. Last night, at the school dance, Suzy totally ignored me. Plus, she snubbed me in front of her friends when I tried to talk to her in the bathroom. And of course, Adam never looked in my direction even once. And I bet anything that Suzy will be all 'sweetzie, sweetzie' to me on Monday or the next time she needs to 'borrow' something or wants to copy my homework. Plus, I ll bet she ll have a darn good excuse to make if I bring up what happened last night. Narrator : Jackie looked like she could easily break into tears. Narrator : The Ancient One smiled with compassion. Gently, she said: ANCIENT ONE: It sounds like you are not only choosing to feel like a martyr, you are also choosing to buy into being a victim again.
10 Narrator : Jackie sat up straight. She exclaimed: No, I don t want to be a victim or a martyr. What do I do, please? Narrator : The Ancient One countered her question with a question. She asked: ANCIENT ONE: How do you think you can not feel like a victim? Narrator : Jackie did not have to think too long. She said: Well, I need to remember that I am extraordinary. The friends who like me are extraordinary. My family is extraordinary. And I guess, even Suzy and her brother are extraordinary. I feel better now, in a way. But I still don t think I get how NOT to feel like a martyr. ANCIENT ONE: When someone asks you for a favor, you should only say yes if you will feel totally good about granting it no matter what their future reactions and actions will be toward you. But if you suspect that you will feel like you made an unappreciated sacrifice that got you nothing in return, you should have the courage to kindly but firmly say no. Otherwise, you will just feel like a martyr and allow yourself to feel upset and used. Okay, I get what you re saying, Ancient One. But... ANCIENT ONE: But what? Well, it s not easy saying no. ANCIENT ONE: What are you afraid of? I m afraid they won t be my friend anymore if I say no. ANCIENT ONE: Jackie, are they truly your friend if they will only like you if you give them things? Well, no, I guess not. ANCIENT ONE: Jackie, if someone will only be your friend if you loan or give that person things, he or she is obviously not appreciating what an extraordinary person you are. You need to hold on to that knowledge that you are truly extraordinary. Then, remember that you should only grant people the favors they ask if you truly have a give-and-take friendship. Narrator : Seeing Jackie s puzzled look, the Ancient One explained: ANCIENT ONE: If you know that your friend will help you out sometimes, and you can help him or her out sometimes, that is what I mean by a give-and-take
11 ANCIENT ONE: friendship. To say yes to a friend like that will probably feel good. You are not being a martyr then. You are simply being a good friend. But if you say no to someone who does not see what an extraordinary person you are, there is no great loss on your part. You are simply making certain that you will not feel like a martyr. Instead, you are choosing to keep control of your life by being a master of your own life. ANCIENT ONE: Exactly! So let me see if I understand. To be a master of my own life, I should only say yes to true friends and say no to all the others. If I say yes to someone who I know is simply trying to use me, then I am choosing to feel like a martyr when his or her future actions make me feel upset in some way. Is that it? Narrator : Jackie thought and then said: So what do I do with Suzy when she next asks me to borrow stuff? ANCIENT ONE: What do you think? Well, I don t mind too much loaning her my book if her locker gets jammed. But I don t feel happy loaning her anything else. So I guess I ll say no to loaning out paper or pencils or money or to letting her copy my homework. It might feel a bit awkward at first, but I know I can handle it. Besides, she ll probably stop asking after I say no a time or two. I wonder if I should mention her actions Friday night? ANCIENT ONE: Would it make you feel better or worse to do that? I think it would be too icky. I think I ll just concentrate on not being a victim or a martyr and pay attention to the future rather than worry about the past. ANCIENT ONE: Excellent, Jackie. You have the right idea. Narrator : Then the Ancient One got up, hugged Jackie good-bye, and said: ANCIENT ONE: We will be seeing each other again, Extraordinary Jackie. Narrator : Little Jackie smiled and waved. She too got up and headed toward home. She had the idea now. Narrator : She was determined to be neither victim nor martyr. Instead, Jackie planned to stay focused on being Extraordinary and the Master of her Own Life.