We always hope that the stories we share with you on The Apple Seed spark memories for you to share with the people that you love. Sometimes those memories are sparked by listening to personal stories, and other times by listening to tall tales and fairy tales. So sit back, relax, and get ready to have the memories wash over you as you listen to stories about kings, bears, and ukuleles. 

 

On today’s episode, enjoy the following:

"King Evan's Law” by Dolores Hydock from Silence: A Medieval Adventure in Story and Song (10:21)

Dolores Hydock is known for her tender and funny family stories. But today she'll take you - in full character - across the Atlantic Ocean and across centuries of time to the 13th Century. For many years this story was lost but came to light again in the early 1900s. It was discovered in a box labeled 'Unimportant Documents'. This is an excerpt from her one-woman play, and it's filled with intrigue and kings whose wisdom may be questionable, as well as a dragon. 

 

"The George Washington Method for Blues Uklele" by Willy Claflin from The George Washington Method for Blues Ukulele (10:24) 

Next up we're going to have some fun with Willy Claflin. He makes up this story in which George Washington is kind of a bumbling, comic character, whose wife, Martha, was really the brains of the outfit. The story takes its cue from a song from 1927. There's not much true in this story, except that George Washington did have a wife and her name was Martha. But what he lacks in historical accuracy he makes up for in laughs. 

 

"The Bear Child (Penobscot-Passamaquoddy-Iroquois)" by Dovie Thomason from Voices of the Animal People (23:39)

This next story has many versions. But stories like this one belong to many tellers, and we love this version by Dovie Thomason, too. It's about a boy who loses his family and goes to live with his wicked uncle. And when the uncle decides to get rid of the boy by taking him out to the forest and trapping him in a cave, well, that's where the story begins. You'll want to listen to hear how it ends.