Podcasts for children

New Podcast available: The Cairn Brownie!

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Thanks,
Abraham

The Cairn Brownie

A long time ago way up in the hills of Scotland near Upper Obney, there was a little boy named Robbie MacFarlay.  He was a well behaved young boy of ten years.  Robbie always obeyed his parents and looked after the cattle and took care to keep the sheep out of the garden. 

He was a good lad and did his chores as best he could, but he couldn't help feeling there was more to life than just looking after the stock.  Sometimes, he felt very lonely being up so far away from town and other lads and lassies.  As the time went on, he tried his best to tame his restlessness.

One day his mum asked him to take much of the wool that had been spun into town for trading.  He was instructed to get as much silver coin as he could but a trade for new tools would be a blessing for his father, a wood cutter.  The boy was so pleased and excited to go to town on his own that he could hardly wait.  It was a long walk to Perth, but that was where he could find the best price for wool.

On his way into Perth, he decided to rest and have his bannocks and cheese.  As Robbie rested and took his lunch, he noticed there were a great many stones lying about.  Seeing as how he had some time, he began to stack them into cairns.  Robbie felt it was great fun stacking the large stones into pillars as tall as he could reach.  After he'd built a few cairns, he set out on his way again. 

Another time he rested his bones, as the sack of wool would get quite heavy over the miles.  Again, he found himself building the cairns.  He did this three more times before reaching Perth.  While in Perth, he found merchants willing give silver coin as well as tools for a wood cutter.  Happily, he tied the coins to his waste purse and took the tools in his bag. 

When he returned home, his mother and father were delighted.  His father said, "Robbie!  I thought you were standing in the hills just dillying aboot and jammerin' away to the rabbits and mice.  Och!  Nay, you were doing all things good and right brining what yer dear family needs!"  And so, when Robbie was asked again by his mum to go to Perth to trade the wool for silver and tools, he jumped at the chance. 

While walking on to Perth, he admired his cairns.  Still standing proud and true.  He had never felt so proud.  This time he stopped at different spots, here and there, eating his bannocks and stacking stones.  Again, when he returned, his parents were delighted at the prices they were receiving for their fine highland wool.

On one particular trip as Robbie was coming in to Perth, he overheard a merchant's conversation to another saying, "Och!  Aye, there's definitely a brownie aboot!  All these cairns popping up all over the place...noo one right in the mind would be building cairns all over the hills for noo reason!  It's a brownie alright.  And that brownie's up to mischief!"  Robbie had heard about brownies.  Wee little men who were kin to the fairyfolk.  It was said they lived out in the hills and sometimes in houses.  He knew people were always careful not to upset a brownie for all the mischief they could bring on.  Still, he couldn't help chuckling to himself about the merchants thinking he was a brownie! It was such an interest to him that he decided to keep it a secret. 

As time went on, Robbie built more and more cairns and the people in the town of Perth began to talk more and more about the Cairn Brownie.  "What's he buildin' all them cairns fer?  They be wit oot rhyme or reason." one would say.  "Might be the brownie's got plans for building some stone huts but he can't make up his mind where to put 'em." said another.  All the while, Robbie would chuckle.  Although, one merchant, Allan Gow, asked Robbie on one particular trip if he'd ever seen the brownie building any of those cairns.  Robbie said he had never seen the brownie building a cairn.  And, that was true as Robbie had built every single one of those cairns himself.  However, fearing what some might say, he didn't offer to Allan that he had built them.  Robbie decided he mostly likely ought to stop building cairns.

On his was back from Perth, Robbie decided he just might take some down.  He started to dismantle one not so far from town when one of the merchants who was heading out to his farm saw what Robbie was doing.  "Robbie MacFarlay!  Doon't you lay one finger on that cairn!"  Allan Gow came running.  "What in the blazes are ye doing, Robbie?  Ye want to bring the brownie's mischief upon Perth!"  Robbie was stunned and was unsure what to say next when Allan said, "Robbie, you put that cairn just like you foond it as fast as you can.  I'll help ye."   After they had placed all the stones as they were, Allan said, "Robbie,  take some ye bannocks and cheese and leave them here fer brownie.  Last thing ye'd want is a right cross brownie thinking ye rather noo see his cairns.  Best to leave a token fer his belly.  Best to make a brownie happy wit bannocks, Robbie." 

Robbie did as he was told and bid Allan good day.  He pondered this on his way home.  He decided it was best to let the cairns be.  They belonged to the brownie now.  Robbie still made his trips and over time, the people of Perth became less and less concerned with the cairns.  But, to this day, they still make sure the cairns are still standing outside of Perth.  Anytime one of the cairns falls, someone restacks the stones and makes sure there's a bit of bannocks and cheese because it's best to make a brownie happy wit bannocks.

The Red Bean

There was once a little boy who lived on a hillside in a small house with his mother.  The hills were most always green except in the winter and there were few trees.  Far off in the distance, the boy could see trees and in the other direction, he could see the river and the town where they often traveled to market.

Once, before they moved to the house on the hill, they lived in the woods and the boy remembered the wonderful time he spent climbing in and running around the trees.  When he would climb, he would try to go as high as he could.  Up and up to the tip top he would climb until the branches would begin to bend.  Sometimes he would sit in the trees just to feel the wind blow.  Rocking back and forth with the trees made him so comfortable. 

It was the walk to the market that made them move to the house on the hill.  They would have to walk for 2 days to reach the market.  Now, in the house on the hill, they only had to walk half of a day.  The boy remembered those times in the woods fondly and hoped that someday he could return. 

One day the boy's mother told him he was now old enough to go to the market on his own.  His mother helped him load some bundles into their cart and sent him off.  This was his first time walking all the way to the market on his own and he was a bit nervous.  His mother told him to stick to the road and to be wary of anyone who might offer assistance or advice that he didn't know. 

As the boy walked down the road, he noticed the small shrubs and studied the branches.  He imagined being so small that the shrub would look like a giant tree.  He imagined climbing up and up to the tip top.  The wind would blow and he could see the leaves and branches of the shrubs tremble.  The boy dreamed and dreamed of the trees.  He kept dreaming so that he did not realize that he was no longer on the road.  He also found he wasn't sure exactly where the road was but was confident that if he just walked back in the direction he had come from, he would be able to reclaim the road.  He walked back, looking at the wheel tracks his cart had made to be sure of his way. 

He heard a bit of babbling and realized there was a stream nearby.  He stopped to refresh himself and wondered about how much time had passed.  While he was drinking, he looked up and saw and old man nearby sitting quietly.  "That cart looks better suited for the road." the old man said.  Remembering what his mother had said about being wary of those he did not know, he replied, "Hello, Sir. Yes, it is better suited for the road.  I am on my way back to the road now."  The old man said, "Where are you headed?"  "I'm going to the market to deliver some goods for my mother.  I'll be on my way now.  Good day to you, Sir" the boy replied.  "Wait just a minute there.  If you don't mind, may I walk with you?  I'm quite old and tired, but I must also get to the market."  said the old man.  Not sure what to say, the boy decided the man was indeed quite old and looked as if he may need some assistance.  So the boy agreed and they both walked on.

The boy could see the old man had trouble walking and so offered him a ride in the cart.  The old man was very grateful.  While the cart was heavier, the boy was happy to help the old man.  It was only a short time to the market and the old man thanked the boy and wished him well.  The boy delivered his mother's goods to the merchant and was about to leave the market when a man came up to him and said, "Excuse me, but are the boy who helped the old man into town?"  "Yes, Sir." answered the boy.  "Then I must thank you.  The old man was my uncle.  I knew he was coming but I was beginning to worry about him.  I'm so glad he's here and I'm very thankful to you.  Before you go, I must give you something."  The man reached into his pocket and pulled out a small sack.  He pulled out a small red bean.  He smiled and said, "This may not look like much, but it is very great.  Many would want it if they knew what it was.  I'd like to give it to you."  He handed it to the boy.  "Thank you, Sir.  What is it exactly?  Why is it so great?" the boy asked.  "Just take it to fertile soil and make a wish.  Be good to your parents and sleep a good night's sleep.  In the morning, you will find this small red bean will have made your wish come true." 

The boy thanked the man and decided to return to his house on the hill.  He quickened his pace so he could get home in time for supper.  He put the bean in his pocket and wondered if what the man had said was true. 

When he returned home, it was near dark.  His mother wanted to know what took him so long.  He was an honest boy and told his mother about losing the road and meeting the old man.  His mother told him helping the old man was a good thing and patted his head.  He then told his mother about the man who had given him the red bean and what he had said about a wish.  His mother laughed and told the boy that the man meant well, but that there was no such thing as this.  The boy felt a bit sad but decided to try it anyway.  His mother saw him leaving the house after he had cleaned the plates and said, "So what will you wish for."  "A fine tree to climb in, mother.", said the boy.  His mother smiled and said, "Well, just make sure you plant it far enough from the house in case it falls over." 

He planted his red bean and wished, "I wish for the greatest tree to climb that there ever was.  I wish it to be the tallest tree there ever was and I wish for it to be so strong that it will never fall over."  He went inside and slept a good night's sleep.  In the morning when he woke up, it still seemed to be dark outside.  However, it felt like the normal time he woke in the morning.  As he sat up, he noticed one part of the house had sun light.  He opened his shutters and there before him stood the tallest tree he had ever seen.  It had branches all over the trunk.  It's branches were long and strong.  It seemed to go all the way up to the sky.  The boy could not believe it and ran through the house calling, "Mother, mother!  Look at the huge tree outside!"  His mother got up and they both ran outside.  Neither could believe what they saw.  The boy ran to the tree and began to climb. 

His mother called, "Be careful!"  She still did not know if she was dreaming.  She had to pinch herself.  As the boy climbed up and up to the tip top, he called, "The red bean made my wish come true!  Oh, mother, we have the best climbing tree there ever was!"  He climbed as high as he could and the when the wind blew, the tree swayed back and forth and the boy was happy.

A little boy named Nero

A long time ago, there was a little boy named Nero who lived just on the outside of a big city.  His father and mother worked very hard to just to feed the family.  Everyday, the boy's father went into the big city to work and only came back when it was dark and time for bed.  They boy's mother often carried wood for fires to the homes of others. Nero was too young to carry firewood and, so, he stayed at home.

Nero was alone quite often in the family's little house.  Often he would look out the windows and peer off into the distance for something interesting to look at.  One day, when his father was away working in the city and his mother had just left carrying firewood for one of the neighbors a few miles away, Nero was sitting in the window looking down the road.  He noticed an old man pulling a heavy cart.  Every time he hit a bump, something would fall off his cart.  The man was so old he had trouble bending down to pickup what had fallen.  Nero watched the man, and caring for his age, quickly went outside to help him.

The old man had just hit another bump and was just about to bend down to pick up a bag of apples that had fallen from the cart when Nero reached him. "Please Sir, let me help you."  Nero picked up the bag of apples and placed them on the cart.  The old man smiled with an old and wrinkled face.  Nero looked up at him and wondered how old he was.  He looked to be the oldest person Nero had ever seen.

The man patted Nero's shoulder and picked up his cart and began pulling it along the road, towards the city.  "Are you going into the city, Sir?" Nero asked.  "My father works in the city."  The old man nodded his head and plodded along.  The old man was doing all he could to keep the rickety cart from loosing more of his wares when the road became very rocky.  As he moved the cart to miss one rock, he hit another and this time all the bags on the top fell off.  Nero quickly ran over to help the man put his bags back on his cart.

"You are a very helpful boy."  The old man said, finally. "I'm tired and I don't expect I'll get my cart much farther down this rock-ridden road by myself."  "I can help you!" Nero interrupted.  "I mean, excuse me Sir.  I can help you if you like.  I can walk with you to the city walls and pick up whatever falls off."  The old man smiled and sat down by the side of the road.

The old man said, "I just might take you up on it, child.  But first, sit down with me for moment so that I may rest my weary bones."  Nero ran to his well and filled a bucket of water and brought it over.  The old man smiled again and drank the water.  He said, "How old do you think I am?  I haven't always been so old.  I was once young like you."  Nero asked, "Are you 100?"  "No, I'm much older.  Much, much older than 100 years old.  I've been around for a very long time, but I've never forgotten that I was once very young." The old man said.  "My name is Giovanni and I used to be a performer."

Nero was very curious and so asked, "What kind of a performer?" The old man replied, "I used to swing on a trapeze and fly through the air.  Why, I could flip from one trapeze to another.  It kept me quite strong, you know.  I could easily carry this cart into town to sell my apples without a second thought."  "Nero, have you ever seen the circus?"  "No." Nero said.  "I've never really ever been away from my house.  My father works in the city every day from sun up to sun down.  My mother is always gathering firewood and carrying it on her back for the others that live down the road."

The old man thought about this and felt the boy ought to have a life that was more interesting.  He needed to know the joys of life.  So the old man got up and began to rummage through his cart.  He dug down deep to the bottom and pulled out a book.  It was an illustrated book about the circus.  He sat down and handed the book to Nero.  It was very old.  Some of the pages were quite tattered.  Still, it had pictures of people doing all kinds of tricks.  Every page was filled with strange and wonderful things that Nero had never ever dreamed of. 

The old man began, "Time is a funny thing, Nero.  Right now, you've got a lot of it.  I'm not sure what you do to keep yourself busy there in your home.  I imagine that soon, you'll be carrying firewood just like your mother.  Not long after, I suspect you may work in the city from sun up to sun down.  Before all of that, take this book.  Look at these pictures.  They old, but they're drawn very well.  Try to do what they do in these pages.  It tells you how to do handstands and flips.  It tells you how to become strong, much stronger than you'll ever get carrying fire wood.  Take this book.  I'll come by here every now and again to see how you're doing.  Now, if you'll help me push this cart to the city..."

Nero thanked the old man and helped him push the cart all the way to the city's edge.  He thanked the old man and quite excited, ran all the way home to get a look at the book. 

As soon as he was home, he opened the book.  There were pictures of people doing handstands on top of chairs stacked 10 chairs high.  There were pictures of people swinging on the trapeze and flipping from one to the other.  Nero looked and looked and looked.  It was nighttime before he knew it.  The days seemed to pass more quickly.  Every day after his mother and father left, he practiced what he saw in the book.  Weeks passed.  His mother noticed her son was beginning to look quite different, much stronger. 

One day, as she was coming home a bit early and was beginning to think of him helping her carry firewood, she spied something that startled her.   In the tree behind their house, there was her son swinging from a trapeze and flipping onto the ground.  She gasped!  As she was frozen stiff at the sight of her son flying through the air, she gasped yet again when she saw him begin to do handsprings and a high back flip.  Frozen, she could not take her eyes of what he did next.  As he went into a handstand and began to talk all round the house, perfectly straight. 

"Nero!" she yelled.  More startled that his mother, Nero tumbled right over.  As his mother was in the middle of questioning him as why he would choose to risk himself in such a way, the boy saw the old man, Giovanni, coming down the road with his cart.  Nero's mother was again quite startled when Nero left her in mid sentence and went running down the road yelling, "Giovanni, Giovanni!  I've been practicing!"

Well, as soon as Giovanni and Nero's mother were introduced, Giovanni was invited in and given some water and bread, which was proper treatment for an old traveler at the time.  He explained he had given Nero the book and as they went outside to watch him perform his flips and tricks, Giovanni smiled and clapped.  "You've really been practicing!  You know, there's a circus inside the city.  You have become quite good just from looking at the book, you could become even better with the instruction of a proper instructor.  You never know, they just might let you in.  And a life of performance can lead you to a life full of joy and comfort.  You'll be stronger, livelier, and healthier than you would be otherwise.  Come to the center of the city where the Circus Theater is tomorrow.  I will meet you there."

Nero's father came home later that evening and heard the whole story.  He was also quite surprised.  Later the next day, the whole family would take Nero to the circus school with Giovanni meeting them there.  Nero could hardly sleep he was so excited.

As morning came, Nero was so excited.  He was the first one awake and rushed to make breakfast.  Not used to such energy in the house and having breakfast prepared for them, Nero's parents sat in bewilderment.  After breakfast, they made their way to the city.  Nero had never been and was quite excited to see all the people.  He'd never seen so many at once.  There were people of all different colors, sizes and age.  Animals were everywhere they passed.  There were so many things of wonder, buildings taller than the tallest trees with fine details.  Soon, they came to the center and there was a large stone building with a large door.  Above it was the sign,

Circus

School

.  Nero's father knocked on the door. 

The door opened and the smallest man that anyone had ever seen (about 2 feet tall) opened the door.  Nero's father, having never been to the circus, had never had the chance to see a dwarf.  He was speechless for a moment.  Finally, he said, "My son Nero has been learning the tricks of the circus.  He's become quite good.  We would like to see if he may get better by studying here."  The dwarf looked over at Nero, who couldn't take his eyes off of the dwarf.  "We're not taking any new students." said the dwarf.  "But we've traveled from far outside the city." Nero's father explained.  "Sorry." said the dwarf.

Sadly, Nero's mother and father began to turn away.  "Come on, Nero. It's time to go home."  Just then, Nero jumped on to his father's shoulders and balanced himself.  Nero's father was quite startled as no one had ever jumped on to his shoulders.  Nero left from the shoulders and grabbed on to a beam just above the door to the circus school.  He swung up on to another beam that was rounded and swung around and around in circles and flipped off on the roof of a nearby shop.  Then, he steadied himself and flipped to the ground.  He rolled into a handstand and began to walk all around. As, Nero did a handspring to get back to his feet, Giovanni arrived. 

The dwarf said, "Giovanni!  You have perfect timing.  I know you said we weren't taking anymore students, but have you just seen this boy fly about as good as a monkey?  He is truly very good.  Surely, we should consider taking him as a student."  Giovanni, smiled.  He said, "Yes, perhaps on a trial basis."  And with that, he winked to Nero and his parents.  Nero was overjoyed.  His parents were a bit confused.  They got no time to discuss as Nero was invited in.  It was a wonderful place.  There were so many interesting things.  There were ropes hanging from everywhere.  There were people doing all manner of balancing and there were even some bending over backwards with their feet to their heads!

And so it was decided that Nero would train to become a great performer. Nero was very excited.  Nero's parents were very happy for his opportunity.  And all three were very thankful to the old man whom Nero had met upon the road.

The Flying Rock

Greetings,

I've added another story about the Old Woman of the Forest and her mischievous Little Fairy.  She gets into the Old Woman's forest magic book and tries some out for herself.  There's quite a bit of trouble when she tries adding wings to things that shouldn't fly!  Here's the podcast:  TheFlyingRock.mp3

Thanks for listening!

-Abraham

The Wishing Chicken

Two stories in one evening on the blog.  That's a first for me.  I want to get more of my stories up here, but I use up 3 of my stories every night getting my children to bed!  Anyway, here's a podcast titled "The Wishing Chicken". 

Enjoy!

Taron the Elf

Hey!  New story!

I've posted a new story about a little elf who has plans to trick a woodcutter.  Check it out.  Comments are encouraged about the story, audio, etc.  Here it is:  Taron the Elf

Enjoy!

The Little Fairy

Here's a new story with the old woman of the forest.  I call it "The Little Fairy".  Enjoy.  Podcast coming soon.

"The Little Fairy"
From the Tales of the Old Woman of the Forest
by
Abraham Williams

Tweedle Dee, Tweedle Dum, Tweedle Dime, settle down children, it's story time!

A long time ago, deep in the woods, there lived an old woman. She had long, long white hair and dark, dark blue eyes. She lived by herself in a little cottage. She kept a garden and looked after the woods, generally speaking.   

All the animals loved the old woman. She always brought them food and kind words. Each day, many of the animals would come and sit by her door as the sun set.   

The old woman had little companionship except for the animals. Her house was always in good order with only herself to look after. Each day she spent tending her garden and harvesting its bounty.   

One day, there was a rabbit that came by. He was a little rabbit and he was limping. "Oh, my poor leg," the rabbit cried. The old woman came close to the little rabbit. "Dear Rabbit, what has happened to you?" she asked. "I was caught in patch of thorns, but I tore myself free," said the little rabbit. The old woman picked up the small white rabbit, looked at his badly scratched leg, and took him inside. There she cleaned and wrapped his wound and fed him warm carrot soup. She and the little rabbit spoke thru the evening about the forest and the surrounding world. "My name is Edgar," the little rabbit said. "I've lived in these woods all my life." The old woman said, "My name is Mathilda, but I'm known as the Old Woman of the Forest to most that pass here."   

The old woman offered Edgar a place to sleep for the night by the warm fire. There Edgar slept very well and opened his eyes in the morning to find even more hot food before him. "Thank you Old Woman of the Forest. You have treated me most kind. I've been quite lucky to stay here with you while I heal. Why, I could have been a hungry dog's meal!" Edgar said. For your kindness, I must tell Nathaniel, King of the Rabbits and all underground burrows less than 10 pebbles high, and you should be rewarded. "I'll have no reward at all. Your company was enjoyment enough," the old woman replied. The rabbit pleaded to call her name to the King of Rabbits and spoke of the other forest animals who gave her high praise as well.   

Upon the next day, Edgar's paw was much better. He hopped slowly at first, and then gained speed. In no time at all, he could race as fast as before. "I will not be a hungry dog's supper thanks to the Old Woman of the Forest!" he said. And, with that, he was off.   

The old woman continued passing her days tending the garden until one day, a very large brown rabbit with grey around his eyes and mouth approached. He was followed by 2 brown field mice. "Old Woman of the Forest, I do call upon you to bestow upon you a gift from Nathaniel, King of the Rabbits!" he said. He reached into his bag and pulled out a large book. It was full of neatly handwritten pages. On the cover, it was written "Forest Magic". The old woman tried to refuse this special gift, but the rabbit replied, "It would be an insult to the King of Rabbits! This book is given to you because you have a kind heart. With this book, you do formally become the keeper of the forest. As you hold this book, each day that passes will be guaranteed a kind heart."   

The old woman carefully took the book and thanked the old brown rabbit. "Thank Nathaniel, King of the Rabbits and all burrows less than 10 pebbles high, for his most gracious gift. I will give it the utmost care." And with that, the old brown rabbit and the 2 brown field mice left the old woman.   

The Old Woman of the forest went into her cottage and opened the book. There were all manner of recipes for all manner of things. There were recipes for Bullfrogs with wings, Dulacorns (which are unicorns with two horns), and giant birds which are agreeable enough to ride! The old woman thought she ought to start small as this was her first use of forest magic. Then she found a recipe for a fairy! She thought it might be nice to share her cottage and time with a fairy. The recipe called for a small wooden box and a hand-woven cloth to cover the top, Mosquito or moth wings, mud, a bit of saliva from a kind hearted old woman and a few words. That was it! 

Quickly she found some pieces of wood and fashioned a small box. Then, she set to finger weaving with yarn until she had made a piece large enough to cover the box. This was easily done as the box was no bigger than two fists. The old woman searched high and low for wings until she found a moth on a window ledge that had passed. Gently she took the wings and placed them in the box with some mud she scraped from the pond's edge. She remembered the saliva. The recipe said she needed a teaspoon. As best as she could figure, that was about 2 spits. So, she spat twice into the box, covered the box with the cloth and spoke the words from the recipe.                     

"In this box I do expect to see,
by the sun's early dawn,
a fairy winking at me.
She should be sweet,
she should be fair,
and more than not,
she should fly through the air.
I wish I may as I wish I might,
turn this mix into a fairy tonight!"   

With that, she placed the box on her shelf and went to bed. Although the thought of a new fairy friend made the old woman quite excited and she had a hard time sleeping. Up and up again she would go, checking under the cloth to see what might be happening. "A watched pot never boils," she would say. Finally, just before dawn, the old woman could not keep her eyes from closing and soon drifted off to sleep. Not long after...   

A small voice was calling, "Hello. Hello. Please let me out." The old woman began to stir and the voice called again. "Please, please lift this cover. Oh, is there anyone there?" The old woman sat up straight and couldn't believe her ears. She raced to the box, stumbling over her bed slippers. She lifted back the lid and there was the fairy! 

"Well Hello little Fairy, please do come out!" the old woman said. With that, the little fairy hopped out of the box and on to the table. "You must be starved,” said the old woman, "Let me get you some tea." She put a kettle on and asked, "From where did you come little fairy?" "I don't suppose I know." said the fairy. "All I know is I'm here and thank you so much for opening that cover!" The fairy had other words. "Just so you know, as a fairy, there are certain things that I must do."    

"First, I must be able to fly out of the house at night when the moon rises. So a window must be open at all times. Just a crack, mind you.  Also, I'll need the company of other fairies because a fairy dancing by herself in the moonlight just isn't as fun as dancing with three or four others."   

"Certainly." said the old woman. "Secondly," said the fairy. "I must be put to good use. A fairy with idle hands is quite restless and can get mischievous. The most interesting work for a fairy to do is to almost be seen by someone making their way thru the woods. Please do ask me to do such things so that I may love to work!"   

The old woman wasn't quite sure what she'd gotten herself into. "Here's your tea little fairy. And, I do have a job for you. After you finish your tea, please find me some lady bugs for my garden. They keep the aphids away, you know."   

When the fairy finished her tea, she fluttered out into the new world. The old woman happily cleaned the teapot and took a seat in her chair to rest her mind and bones. It wasn't long before the fairy returned with two ladybugs. 

"Put me down!" said one. "Unhand me this minute!" the other said. "I brought you the lady bugs just as you asked old woman of the forest. Aren't they just perfect?" the fairy asked. One of the lady bugs managed to wriggle free of the fairy's grasp and flew about the house. "Help!" the lady bug cried as the fairy gave chase. All over the house they flew. The old woman came to aid. "Fairy, Fairy do please let the poor thing be!" the old woman hollered. The little fairy smiled and stopped chasing the harried insect and the lady bug came to rest on a nearby ledge. "If you wanted me to come to your garden Fairy, you could have just asked! Here I was minding my own business and you come flying along and grab me by my leg. I was in the middle of something you know! Honestly, fairies can be so inconsiderate!"    

The ladybug was quite irritated. "I'm sorry," the old woman said. "I had no idea my request for ladybugs would have caused such a disruption! I have some aphids in my garden and I had asked the fairy to bring me some ladybugs such as you to help rid my garden of them." "Aphids!?" the ladybugs asked. "Where are they? I mean where's your garden? Can we go there now?" "Follow me!" and the fairy led both bugs into the garden. They quickly set to searching the plants for the tasty aphids. "If you had said Aphids, we would have come gladly!" The ladybugs said in unison. 

"Alls well that ends well," the fairy said. The old woman shook her head. "Little fairy, I think we'll do well together you and I. Perhaps next time we can draw ladybugs here with stories of tasty treats instead of pulling them by their legs!" "I'm tired," the fairy said, and with a wink, headed into her box. With the fairy gone, the old woman relished the quiet. She had never had such a ruckus in her home. She knew the fairy would be asking for work soon, so quickly she put her mind to rest. The old woman of the forest thought it better not to wonder what the next fairy task would bring.

How I learned to tell stories

I'm not sure I remember when I started telling stories.  At first, my children started asking me about what happened to me when I was little.  I suspected they were looking for stories of how I handled things or what might possibly be coming next for them.  They couldn't get enough of my childhood and I couldn't remember enough.  Most people who came near got the childhood story request as well.

I always enjoyed my father-in-law's stories.  He could tell some wild ones about a 12-foot half-man-half-chicken beast who looked terrible, but was really quite gentle.  He lived under creek bridges and was responsible for much of what's taken place in modern history.  These were seriously creative and very outlandish.  I certainly enjoyed them.  No matter where he was, he could just go on about this chicken man beast.

I've always known about the importance of story telling with children.  I held myself back for a while, but as my children's behaviors began to ask for what the limits were or how to integrate into a new activity, the stories just started coming.

The first epic was when my girls started hounding me for barbie dolls.  There was no way in Helo that I was going to let those infernal creations into our house.  I started into a story about a big ugly green troll who made plastic dolls (which had less than honorable properties) and brought them into a town in order to sway the children from the good words of their parents and the good ol' trusted toymaker who used natural materials.  In the end (of the first chapter), the troll was found to be up to no good and the old toymaker convinced the towns people to give the troll a chance to put his toy making skills to good.  He ended up carving wooden horses for the children.  This proceeded on to larger horses that the children could ride on, and thus, the rocking horse.  The troll found he felt much better doing good for the children of the town than being less than honorable.  This story ended up going on for about 20 chapters. 

Now, it's easy to tell stories.  Often when there's an ideal to aspire to or a behavior to correct or a activity to begin, I can whip up a story and the girls hang on every word.

Old Woman of the Forest

Old Woman of the Forest
by
Abraham Williams

A long time ago, deep in the land of Kandahar, there lived an old woman. No one knew how old she was, but some say she was as old as the moon. Everyone had always known of her since they could remember.

She had long long long white hair and dark dark dark blue eyes.

In the mornings, she walked through the deep and lively woods.  She made sure all was in order
- The trees were green and strong.
- The rabbits were fed and happy.
- The birds were singing songs for the day.

After her walks, she would always go to the well to fetch her water for the day... and to make her wishes. Everyday she did this and every day she wised "For all the good of the world".

The children of Kandahar all knew of the Old woman of the forest and every Sunday, the children would walk into the woods and bring food to the Old woman. They not only came to bring nourishment, they came to listen to her stories. She told them how the mountains came to be when the earth made mighty heaves upwards. She told them how the trees loose their leaves but always grow them back. She also told them about the well. The children would go to the well with her and listen to her wishes. They made a few modest wishes of their own. The old woman always said, "You must always wish for others before yourself. Never yourself first. And, always say Thank You because your wish will come true."

The children loved their time with the old woman.

Then, one day the when the children came to visit. The old woman lie ill in her bed. She could not get up and make sure all was in order. She could not ensure
- The trees were green and strong.
- The rabbits were fed and happy.
- The birds were singing songs for the day.

And, most of all, she could not go to the well.  All of the children went home, except for one.  Her name was Julianna.

"What ails you old woman of the forest?", Julianna asked. The old woman said, "I am old. Old as the moon. It's time for me to rest my weary bones. You must go and make sure that all is in order. " "But I don't know what to do.", Julianna said. The old woman said, "Walk through the
deep and lively woods.  Make sure all is in order.
- The trees are green and strong.
- The rabbits are fed and happy.
- The birds are singing songs for the day."

"Then you must go to the well. Please fetch my water for the day, and make your wishes. And Remember, You must always wish for others before yourself. Never yourself first. And, always say Thank You because your wish will come true."

Julianna went walking deep into the lively woods.
- The trees were indeed strong.
- The rabbits were indeed fed and happy.
- And the birds were indeed singing songs for the day.

Julianna went to the well. She fetched the water and she wished "For all the good of the world", just as she had seen the old woman of the forest do. Then, she made another wish. "I wish for the old woman to be healthy again." Julianna wished into the well. Then she brought the bucket back to the old woman. Once to the house, she found the old woman standing in the doorway, smiling. "Young Julianna.", the old woman said. "You have wished for another and you have wished for me to be healed. You are a very kind one indeed. "

"Because you have healed an old woman out of the kindness of your own dear heart, I have a gift for you. Please come with me. " The old woman of the forest led Julianna down a path to a small stream. "Do you see this stream?", said the old woman.

"This stream is what feeds the well. The well is what feeds us. Do you know what feeds the stream, Julianna?", The old woman asked. "The rain from the sky fills it and the ground holds it so that we may drink." The old woman reached into the stream and pulled out a small stone. "Take this stone with you. It is a wishing stone. When you find you are lost or in need, think of this stream and make a wish. And, remember to say Thank you, because your wish will come true."

Julianna thanked the old woman and walked back to her home.

Each Sunday, the children would walk into the woods and bring food to the Old woman. They not only came to bring nourishment, they came to listen to her stories. And this is the way it was, because Julianna wished it so.

Here's the podcast.