Araguata
Araguata, narrates Sicamor’s background, the conditions of the town where he is from, and his profound determination to fight the evil who was oppressing his home town. Recognizing he needed help to free Araguata and restore her to its former glory, Sicamor is determined to leave his oppressed town, but he will not do it without his parents’ blessing. Why?
oricao
Oricao is a story of hard work and cooperation. No obstacle or challenge is too big when determination and motivation are together; they bring about a force that drives you to overcome it well and on time. Sicamor became this force that lift it up the people of Oricao just at the right time!
jacinto and lara
This story highlights the humbleness and hospitality of people in contrast with complacency and idleness.
Sicamor learned about the harmful effects of complacency and idleness in the midst of abundant resources, and acted to break down the vice that kept Jacinto and his family trapped in poverty. Would this end justify his actions?
elias
In this story, Sicamor is remorseful of his actions and tormented with guilt, until he met Elias, who opened his eyes against the torments of evil beings, who prowl the world seeking the ruin of souls.
melch and mani
This story highlights the love and care Sicamor can feel for others. He is always ready to help anyone, even total strangers, and by different ways. He is now feeling confident and bold enough to start giving advice, specially to prevent losing something precious.
PARIMA
Parima highlights the need to avoid taking decisions in a rush, especially if one is angry. The risk of losing oneself and the fruits of a life work at the hands of pride and impatience is sure. Sicamor learns that pride can make people blind, leaving not space for forgiveness and reconciliation.
THE LANDSLIDE
This story highlights the need to be ready to help and act immediately without wasting time. Sicamor finds himself in a situation where wasting time could have cost him his life and the lives of others. He learns about the constant help of his guardian angel, his permanent good companion.
THE TRIAL
This story teaches not to stay quiet when wrongdoings and injustice are happening. Sicamor becomes angry and stands up to do what is right to protect those who are being hurt.
ANGEL HILL
This story highlights repentance as an essential condition to change what we are doing wrong, and to genuinely ask for forgiveness. Sicamor committed an act of imprudence that would put him in a dangerous situation.
SECOND CHANCES
This story is about forgiveness and keeping the rule of law. A second chance may only come after forgiveness and commitment to follow the established rules while vengeance will just make things worse.
Sicamor was moved to intercede on behalf the youngsters who were robbing the travellers nearby Angel Hill until fear and violence stroke causing irreversible damages.
LAYLA
This story highlights the value of family togetherness and true friendship. To be away from family comes always at a high price.
Sicamor was moved, beyond appearances and prejudices, to help a friend to go back to her family and change her self-destructive lifestyle.
THE MURKY FOREST
This story shows that even though the world seems to turn against us, there is one way that will calm us down, that will make us see the light, and that will give us assurance that any fear will just disappear.
Sicamor fell into panic yet remembered God and prayed.
THE ROAD TO HAPPINESS
This story highlights the tricky path to be happy.
Sicamor took the obvious path to happiness and discovered the illusions of happiness that can entrapped any person. Thanks to Elias, Sicamor gained the understanding of these traps and how to moved forward. God is the source of all happiness. If you are happy, know that your happiness comes from God.
MYLA
This story is about love, caring for others and friendships. While helping his friend Amanda save Arietta, Sicamor was surprised by love when he met the love of his life.
A KINGDOM IN TROUBLE
This story brings Sicamor closer to the kingdom’s capital, the destiny in his mind. Mischief and wickedness caused by resentment, jealousy and envy threatens the stability of the kingdom.
ALTAGRACIA
This story shows how anticipation and alertness are essential to be victorious. At the capital, Sicamor became a proactive and courageous soldier to battle all kind of wickedness, some as low as betrayal.
LONG LIVE THE KING
Sicamor finally meets King Bartolo. He learns the qualities that a king needs to have, such as having respect for others, exercising prudence, being proactive, humble, and obliging, responsible and courageous. A king must also know how to manage his emotions and stay focused to reign with mercy and justice.
King Bartolo and his council members chose His successor, what a surprise!
about the author
jose i. arocha
I grew up climbing trees and mountains. Those are common things that youngsters used to do 40 years ago. Mountains are full of forests… and the forests are full of trees; there is so much variety that we discover how wonderful they are. In Caracas, the city where I was born, we used to climb El Avila, a magnificent mountain that crowns the city, decorating it with its colours and vegetation, sometimes all the way to its highest point of more than 2,700 meters above the sea level. From there and then, no wonder, my love for mountains and forests grew up exponentially .
In that order, when my wife Sonely told me she was a sycamore, the tree that Zacchaeus climbed to see Jesus pass by, a tree that perhaps nobody never imagined what the true meaning of its existence would be and much less its huge repercussion in history, I felt it was a good name for what I wanted to do: one more instrument for the youth to be better persons and to be closer to God, just as the Zacchaeus’s sycamore tree. This is how the name Sicamor came up.