One book, one pen

So I'm on this email list called "Art for SED" (the SED standing for social and economic development). Recently a woman sent out an email about a storytelling conference she had been to that was absolutely amazing and inspiring. They had storytellers from all over the world and there were performances and workshops and just generally good opportunities to network and generate ideas and have a glorious time. In her email, the woman painted the scene of a woman from Africa who told a traditional story. Here is the story as she told it (only slightly edited by me):

"let me paint the picture
here she is up in front of us all in her beautiful African fabrics and
jewelery
she wove a story about a village in Africa
and in this village every child at birth was give one pen and one book
(she repeated these words over and over with every dance and song)
and they were not to use them until they reached 21
and when they got close to this age the wisest person in the village
would look at all the handsome men
and by their unique qualities choose the right book for them
BUT THERE WAS THIS YOUNG MAN, NAMED CHOOK, WHO IT IS BELIEVED COULD NOT
WAIT AND HE USED HIS PEN AS EARLY AS FIVE
HE WROTE ALL OVER THE WALLS
AND AND EVEN IN THE DIRT

(mean while she is dancing and singing and has the entire audience
totally captured right into the very centre of the story
and no one has any idea, at this point, what the story was REALLY
about)

then she goes on to tell us that as he got older he would write in
everyone's book that he could get his hands on
he became known as Chook, he who could not leave any hen untouched.

so he went on like this in the village until he had written into every
book

he had heard that in the commercial city you could get many books
so off he went
when he got there sure enough he could even hire books of all sorts
all colours and when he had written in them he could
go back, return the book, and get another and another
so this is what he did
until his pen just stopped one day
so he went to a book shop
the man in the book shop showed him how to put his pen between his to
hands and rub backwards and forwards and the pen started to work again

so he was so happy he went straight back to writing in the hired books
(all of this remember with dance and humour and play and song remember
'one book one pen' being repeated over and over)

he had written in all the books by now and he searched high and low
until he found this one book that was filled
every page he turned in this book had been written on
but this did not deter him, Chook, he who could not leave any hen
untouched.

so Chook, he who could not leave any hen untouched, wrote all over
the cover
of this filled book

BUT soon his pen began to drip red ink after only ever being a blue pen
he was very worried
went back to the book shop where the book shop owner told him he would have
to go back to his village
he could not stay in the commercial city any longer

he went home an abridged version
and no one wanted him there as they didn't want him writing in their
books again
eventually the grand mother came out and told him to come into her home
and he was brought back to health by her love and he didn't write in
any more books and went around his village teaching all the children

YES YOU GOT IT
'one book one pen'

all you men keep the lids on your pens and all you ladies keep your
books shut
and if you have to make copies use carbon paper."