Colonel Wilbur and his wife Mary were flying over the tropics in their private plane. But suddenly the engine caught fire. It was impossible to extinguish the fire, so they were forced to land in the forest.

“What are we going to do?” said Mary. “Can you fix the plane?”

Wilbur said, “That’s impossible. I am not a technician, and the plane is out of gasoline. We’ll have to find help.”

Wilbur and Mary walked through the forest. It was difficult to find a path through the trees. Mary even tore her dress on sharp thorns. Suddenly, they saw some huts and lots of miniature people, cooking and making weapons with flint.

“I’ll ask them for help,” said Wilbur.

“No! Don’t go! They are deformed!” said Mary. “They’ll harass us! They may have a contagious virus that will make us sick! We won’t know how to cure it. We’ll surely end up as corpses!”

Wilbur tried to persuade Mary to go to the forest people, but she refused to integrate with them. She had the assumption that the small people were dangerous. “Let’s keep walking. We’re sure to find someone sooner or later.”

For three days, the couple searched, but they found no one who could help them in their crisis. It was uncomfortable, and they were hungry without any source of nutrition. Plus, the forest was filled with dangerous beasts. Finally, Mary agreed to return to the forest people.

When Wilbur and Mary arrived at the village, the forest people immediately welcomed them. They gave them bread made from barely to eat and a place to sleep. The next day, the forest people led Wilbur and Mary through the trees, and they promptly arrived at a small town. From there, they took a bus to the city where they found an embassy.

Mary was sorry that she had not trusted the forest people sooner. She learned the value of not discriminating against people who are different.