Once upon a time, in a far away country, there was a big, big school. This is a story about a young boy who attended this school.
One day, as he was walking down the hall, he stopped, started ... for there coming toward him was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. Now this girl was so beautiful and lovely that every boy in the school wanted to date her. She could pick whomever she wanted to date. Boys were asking her out all the time, and if a boy asked her to go out that she didn't want to go with she would say "Yes, if you will bring me a red rose."
Now it was just a fact in this city that there were no red roses to be found. White roses grew all over the place. There were beautiful fields of white roses, but not red ones.
One day this young man could not stand it any longer, so he gathered all his courage and said "Today is the day. Today I'm going to do it. Today I'm going to ask her for a date." So he went to school and looked for the beautiful young girl. The muscles in his stomach got tighter and tighter and tighter. He was just about to give up finding her, when he looked up and there she was ... the most beautiful, most lovely, most terrific girl he had ever seen. He put it all together and asked "Will you please go out with me?" She said "Yes, if you will bring me a red rose." Wow! Talk about disappointment. He was so disappointed and discouraged that he went right home. He did not want to see any friends or talk to anyone.
Like many of us do when we want something really bad, we talk to ourselves out loud. This young boy was no different so that evening as he went out into his backyard he said "I wish, I wish I had a red rose. Oh how I wish I had a red rose. I'd give anything to have a red rose." Well, he had made friends with a tiny little hummingbird and as the boy was wishing out loud, the beautiful little hummingbird was thinking how can I help him get his red rose. That night, the little hummingbird wanted so very bad to help he went over to the white rose bushes and asked a white rose "Is there any way we can grow a red rose? " The white rose said "Yes, there is one way ... by the sacrifice of the blood of a friend." "Is there no other way" asked the little hummingbird. The white rose replied "There is no other way." The little hummingbird flew up in a tree to think this over. Knowing how very much his dear friend wanted this red rose, and knowing that there was no other way, he decided he would make the great sacrifice and give his life so that his friend could have his red rose. He saw a thorn high above a white rose and he bravely stuck out his little chest and drove straight for the thorn. As it pierced his chest and his life dripped away his little body fell to the ground and the drops of blood dripped on the white rose so that it became a beautiful red rose.
The next morning as the y oung boy awoke and looked out the window, right in the middle of the huge white rose patch was one beautiful red rose. He couldn't believe his eyes. He jumpped up, dressed hurriedly and ran out and picked the lovely red rose ... not even noticing the lifeless and withered body laying at the fott of the rose bush.
He was so excited about the red rose that he ran toward school to find the beautiful young girl who had asked for the impossible red rose. As he was running he passed an area where his schoolmates were playing football and they hollarded to him "Come over and play with us." The young boy hesitated and looked as his red rose and throwing it to the ground said "Ah, I really didn't want it anyway."
Now this really isn't a fairly tale. This is really about our Elder Brother who, because he loved us, gave his life for us. He died for each of us ... and if we don't live righteously and keep his commandments, then his supreme sacrifice will be like throwing it down and saying "I really didn't want it anyway."