Vocabulary List (10 words):

1. Apprentice: A person who is learning a job from a master.
2. Magnificent: Very beautiful and wonderful.
3. Dazzling: So bright it’s hard to look at.
4. Luminous: Glowing softly with light.
5. Impatient: Not able to wait calmly.
6. Spectacular: Amazing and wonderful to look at.
7. Sludge: Thick, wet, sticky goo or mud.
8. Disarray: A state of being messy and untidy.
9. Tremendous: Very large or great; huge.
10. Concoctions: Mixtures of different things.

The Potion of Patience

Pip was an apprentice. He was learning how to make potions from his master. One day, the master said, “Pip, today we will make a magnificent potion. It will be beautiful and shiny. But you must follow the rules.” Pip was very excited. He wanted to make the potion right away.

The master showed Pip the ingredients on the table. There were dazzling powders that sparkled like sunshine. There were luminous liquids that glowed softly in their jars. “We must be very careful,” the master said. “First, we add the blue powder. Second, we add the glowing water.”

The master gave Pip the list of steps. “You must add each ingredient one at a time,” he said. But Pip felt very impatient. He did not want to wait. He wanted to see a fast and spectacular result. He thought, “I can do this my own way!”

So, Pip did not follow the master’s rules. He poured everything into the pot at once. He expected a beautiful potion. Instead, he made a thick, grey sludge. It looked like sticky mud. Suddenly, the pot started to shake. It made a loud noise and then POP! The sludge exploded everywhere.

The workshop was in complete disarray. Grey goo dripped from the ceiling. There was a tremendous mess on the floor and on the walls. Pip was covered in sticky sludge. The master came in and saw the mess. He was not angry. He smiled kindly.

“I know you feel like you need to make the perfect potion, but you should remember to follow every rule exactly the way I told you to. That way, you won’t get covered in goo!”

The master helped Pip clean up. Then, they started over. This time, Pip followed every step. The final potion was a success! It was a beautiful swirl of colors. Pip learned that making good concoctions takes time and patience.