Moshe thought and said, "What's a booth?"
G-d answered quickly, "The kind of booth I have in mind will be sort of like a tent with a top that is made of leafy green things instead of animal skins."
"I like your plan," said Moshe. "It will definitely smell better than a tent made of animal skins. What are they going to put in the booths to remember the land?"
G-d told Moshe. "I am going to have them bring fruit and gourds and pumpkins and cornstalks and apples and honey and maybe some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches into the booths."
"They are going to love the sandwiches," Moshe said, even though he had never tasted peanut butter and jelly. He figured it was some kind of fancy restaurant food.
G-d said, "That's not all, Moshe. I am going to ask them to bring into the booths on this holiday three green things and a yellow."
Moshe said, "What?''
And G-d said, "I have picked out three green things and one yellow thing that will remind the city people of the land and the things that grow on it."
"What's the yellow thing?" Moshe asked. G-d said, "It's a citron."
"What's a citron?"
G-d answered, “A citron is kind of like a wrinkled--up lemon with no juice."
Moshe laughed. "Why in the world would you pick such a goofy fruit?"
G-d answered, "Because the citron smells great when you scratch it, and that will teach people that you have to scratch the world before it smells good. It will teach them that they have to find the beauty of the world by going out and scratching around, not just by reading about it or watching it on television."
"What's television?" Moshe asked.
"I'll tell you later," G-d answered. "It comes after restaurants after computers.”
Moshe asked, "What are the green things you want people to bring into the booths along with the goofy juiceless lemon?"
G-d said, "I want them to bring a palm frond." "What's a frond?"
''A frond is a palm leaf," G-d answered.
"Then why don't they call it a leaf?"
"They don't call it a leaf because it's a frond!"
"Oh," Moshe said. "What's the palm frond supposed to teach them?"
"The palm frond," G-d said, "stands up straight and tall, and that will teach them to stand up tall and fight for the earth."
"What are the other two green things?"
"A branch from the myrtle tree and a branch from the weeping willow tree."
"What in the world are they for?" Moshe asked.
G-d said, "Each leaf from the myrtle tree is shaped like an eye, and this will teach them to keep a close eye out for anybody who is throwing junk into my clean air and water and land. The weeping willow branch is to teach them-"
"I know what!" Moshe said, interrupting. "The weeping willow will remind people to cry for all the animals we kill, or who lose their homes when we cut down the trees they live in, or who get sick from the junk we spill into the water, the air, and the land. If we don't care, we can't cry, and if we can't cry, we can't get angry enough to change things so chat the world you gave us stays clean. Is that what the weeping willow is supposed to teach us?"
"That's exactly it," G-d said softly. "Three greens and a yellow, for a world that came to you clean and needs all of you to help keep it clean."
"Now can you tell me about television?" Moshe asked G-d. "Later," G-d said. "Go read a book."
