There are a lot of stories on the theme of truth - probably because human beings have so much trouble with it!! I can't recall where I first found this story. If I remember, I'll add it to the show notes.

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STORY TRANSCRIPT

Here’s a story about truth…

There was once a man who was successful in many ways. He had a great family, his home was safe and secure, his work was rewarding, But still, he wasn’t happy. So after a considerable amount of thinking, he finally realised what it was that he needed to make him happy. “I want to know Truth,” he said to his family. At first, his wife tried to stop him, but he was determined. So he packed a bag. And he left.

But what started out as a journey of weeks soon turned into months and finally into years. The man searched up the hills and down in the valleys; he went into small villages, large towns and massive cities; he searched the forests and along the coasts; he crossed rivers and oceans; he explored the dark, grim wastes and lush, green meadows.

He spoke to kings and queens, gurus, leaders and masters. But still nothing rang true.

Then... after almost 30 years, just as he was about to give up, he came to a mountain. At the top of that mountain was a small cave. In that cave, he found truth.

She was a wizened old woman with just one single tooth left in her head. Her hair hung down onto her shoulders in lank, greasy strands. The skin on her face was the brown of old parchment and dry and stretched over brittle bones.

But when she spoke, her voice was low and lyrical and pure with wisdom that echoed down through the ages.

The man stayed with her. He studied with her. She taught him everything she knew. Then, after a year and a day, his time was up. He stood at the mouth of the cave ready to leave for home. “My Lady Truth,” he said, “you have taught me so much. Is there something I can do for you before I leave? Is there anything you wish?”

Truth put her craggy, head to one side and considered. Then she raised an ancient finger. “When you speak of me,” she said, “tell the world I am beautiful!”

THE END

For more, drop by www.TinaKonstant.com!

I can't remember where I first found this story! I have, however, tweaked it a bit for my own telling.

For more stories, a random blog, books and other stuff, you're welcome to drop by my website: www.TinaKonstant.com.

Listen here, or pick it up and subscribe on your favourite Podcast Player including:

• iTunes
• Spotify
• Stitcher
• RadioPublic
• Google Podcasts

STAY IN TOUCH!

If you want Waffle-Free Stories dropped at your digital doorstep, AND the (tweaked and updated) transcripts to episodes 7, 8, 9 and 10, then click here, fill in the "Join the conversation" form, and I'll send them right to you.

STORY TRANSCRIPT

Far up north there was a land wrapped in a perpetual winter - nothing but snow and ice. The people in that land struggled to find food and warmth because the sea was barren and the animals of the land hid in deep caves. As a result, the people were cold and hungry and in a family, one more child can often prove to be one child too many.

So it was with one such family - a mother, a father and three children. During a particularly cold stretch, the two parents got together and discussed which child they should get rid of. After much discussion, they decided that their oldest daughter, Ronan, the one who asked too many questions, who had too many opinions... that's the one who should go.

So the father went to the cliffs at the edge of the barren sea and made a deal with the skies.

The next day, Ronan’s parents sent her to the cliffs on the edge of the barren sea and told her to collect firewood. Ronan was surprised. There was no firewood to be found on the cliffs, but it would give her a break from the tedium of her household chores and her parent's bickering, so she went.

Now when she got there, she saw far out to sea, there was a boat. It was, even from a distance, a most remarkable boat. The sails were white, and it was lined with furs, and best of all, there was a smell of hot, fresh food. And on the boat was a man. He was tall and strong and looked like his skin had soaked in the sun. The man waved to Ronan. He asked her if she wanted to travel to a land where there was sun and warmth and food. Ronan didn’t think twice. She waved the man ashore, and she got on the boat.

But no sooner had the man left the shore than he raised his arms to the sky where they turned from limbs to mightily wings. Instead of resting on a bed of fur, she was clinging to sharp, hard talons. A powerful albatross swept to the sky carrying Ronan with him.

They flew to the cliffs on the far side of the land where he dropped her into a nest full of screaming chicks.

Ronan realised immediately what her parents had done. So from the nest, she began to cry and wail, begging her parents to bring her back.

After a whole year, the parents finally accepted that they couldn't manage without Ronan, so her father got in his boat and sailed across the long, barren ocean to the cliffs where he rescued Ronan from the Albatrosses nest.

But it didn’t take long for the Albatross to realise that Ronan was gone. He swept across the ocean until he found the small boat. He cursed Ronan’s father for breaking the deal: "You told me if I took her, she'd take care of my chicks!"

The Albatross was so angry he dived into the sea and swirled it into a fury causing waves ten feet high to crash over the small boat. In order to save himself, the father threw Ronan overboard hoping to appease the Albatross. But Ronan swam to the surface and clung to the boat. Her father took out his knife and stabbed her hands. Ronan fell into the ocean, and whether it was fury from the Albatross or magic from Ronan, each drop of blood that fell from her hand turned into seals. Ronan clung to the boat again, and again, her father stabbed her hands. Once more Ronan was forced to let go. This time, the blood from her hands turned to a myriad fish! Shoal after shoal joined the seal and battled the albatross beneath the waves. One more time, Ronan grabbed the edge of the boat but again, her father stabbed her hands. This time, from the drops of blood, mighty whales were born.

By now, Ronan was exhausted, and she sank deep, deep to the bottom of the ocean.

As the sea calmed, the father stared at the water teaming with food and he rowed back to his home where he told his wife what had happened. The parents realised that to catch this might bounty, they’d need the help of the village, they went to the elders with a wild story that didn’t include what they’d done to Ronan.

But the village elders were wise and knew these parents. They took the last remaining siblings into their care and banished the parents to the edge of the village to fend for themselves.

From the bottom of the ocean, Ronan heard everything. She called her animals to her and told them to fetch her parents. The whales, the fish and the seals created a mighty swell that flooded the parents’ home, washing them into the ocean where they were dragged to the ocean floor. There, Ronan pinned them both to the earth with mighty rocks forcing to watch what they saw as food, but never able to eat it.

But because of the kindness the elders showed her siblings, Ronan made a deal with the village. Once a year, Ronan would give safe passage for a medicine man to swim to the bottom of the ocean to tend Ronan’s damaged hands. In exchange, she’d give the village all the fish they needed to keep them fed through the long, cold winter months.

THE END

This is one of the first stories I told at GAS (Grampian Association of Storytellers). There are many versions of this tale. Most of them centre around an American Indian tribe. Whether it's an original American Indian story, I don't know. If you do... let me know!

Listen here, or pick it up and subscribe on your favourite Podcast Player including:

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If you want Waffle-Free Stories dropped at your digital doorstep, AND the (tweaked and updated) transcripts to episodes 7, 8, 9 and 10, then click here, fill in the "Join the conversation" form, and I'll send them right to you.

STORY TRANSCRIPT

Really not that long ago, there was a tribe up north who tried to live according to the old ways. 

One day, in early September, the chief was asked by his elders if winter that year was going to be cold or mild. 

The chief thought a moment but realised that since he'd started wearing thick socks and boots, using central heating, and driving a 4x4, he'd stopped paying attention to the signs. He realised he couldn't, like his ancestors before him, predict the seasons by how the animals behaved or how the berries grew on the trees. 

So he told his elders to give him a day to "study the land", and he would get back to them. 

As soon as they left, the chief picked up his phone and called his medicine man, but he too had lost touch with the signs from the natural world. 

Neither of them had an idea about how to predict the coming winter. So the chief decided to take a modern approach, and he rang the National Weather Service.

"Is the coming winter going to cold or mild," he asked. 

'Yep," the weatherman said. "It's going to be a cold winter.' 

The chief went back to his elders and said that he had spent time on the mountain, he'd watched the bears forage and the squirrels bury nuts. He's studied the trees and tasted the berries. He'd listened to the wind and yes, it was going to be a cold winter, so go gather your firewood. 

A month later, the elders came back to the chief and asked whether it was going to be a cold winter or a very cold winter. Again, the chief told the elders to give him a day to consult with the land. Again, the chief called the Weather Service and asked for an update. "Is it going to be a cold or a very cold winter?" he asked. 

'Yes," the weatherman said. "Very cold."

So the chief went back to his elders and said he'd spent the night with the reindeer and watched as the last birds flew south. He slept on the hard ground and heard the earth speak. And yes, it was going to be a very cold winter. So go and collect all the firewood you need. And so the people did.

A month later, just as the first snows were beginning to fall, the elders came to the chief once again. "Is it going to be a very cold winter or a freezing, icy cold winter!?"

Once more, the chief asked for a day to consult with Mother Nature... but as soon as they left, he called the Weather Service once more and asked if it was going to be a cold or freezing cold winter.

"Yes," the weatherman said. "It is going to be one of the coldest winters ever." 

By now, the chief was feeling guilty about lying to his people. He felt embarrassed that he could no longer read the trees and the berries or the birds and the bears. "How can you be so sure?" the chief asked. 

The weatherman replied: "Because there's a tribe up north collecting wood like crazy!!" 

THE END

This is an old story found in lots of places. I first found it on a site with funny Christmas stories.

For more stories, a blog, books and nonsense, visit www.TinaKonstant.com

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I found this crazy story on The Fairy Tales of the World.

For more stories, books, and a fairly random blog, drop along to my website: www.TinaKonstant.com

Listen here, or pick it up and subscribe on your favourite Podcast Player including:

• iTunes
• Spotify
• Stitcher
• RadioPublic
• Google Podcasts

STAY IN TOUCH!

If you want Waffle-Free Stories dropped at your digital doorstep, AND the (tweaked and updated) transcripts to episodes 7, 8, 9 and 10, then click here, fill in the "Join the conversation" form, and I'll send them right to you.

STORY TRANSCRIPT

A long, long time ago, much longer ago than anybody can possibly remember, there was a time when there were ten suns in the sky. You can imagine what this was like. Mountain tops were scorched, valleys were barren, rivers were dry. People and animals were forced to find shelter in caves. It was no way to live.

Now for the most part, the gods didn’t notice mankind’s plight. Why would they? They lived high above the suns and didn’t mind a bit of warmth at their feet.

But some of the gods did pay attention, and they put their heads together to come up with a solution. But as you can imagine, they weren’t a practical bunch and none of their ideas were particularly useful. So they put the problem to the people of the earth and told them that there would be a reward for the person who came up with a solution for the 10 suns.

So down on earth, the wise men and women got together, and they talked and debated and theorised. But much like the gods, they weren't a particularly practical lot and none of their ideas led to anything. Next, the generals with their great armies took on the challenge. And they waged war against the suns, but the suns just drifted along the sky and paid no attention to them at all.

Now while all this was going on, a giant of a man was doing some thinking of his own. He knew it would take something quite remarkable to defeat the suns. And after some time, he came up with an idea that he thought might work. What he needed was the very best bamboo he could find. So he scoured the country and gathered the longest and strongest stems. And when he had enough, he took it all back to his workshop and he made the biggest crossbow ever known.

At first, people just watched him. But the more focused and determined the big man was, the more the people agreed that this might actually work. So when the bow was ready and the big man needed help, there were a thousand men and women ready to help him carry the crossbow and its arrows to the top of the mountain.

From there, the big man turned an arrow to the first sun. People stood still, they held their breaths. He drew the arrow back. He took aim. He fired. The arrow flew straight and true and it pierced the sun through the heart! It shattered into a million pieces across the sky.

The big man then moved the crossbow to the next mountain. And again he aimed the arrow. He fired. And the arrow pierced the heart of the second sun, scattering it across the skies.

And so on to the next and next until nine suns had been obliterated and only one sun remained.

As you can imagine, everything changed. It didn’t take long before the mountains tops cooled, the rivers began to flow and people knew that soon the valleys and the forests would bloom.

And true to their word, the gods presented the big man with his reward.

It was a potion prepared by the gods themselves. It was the potion of long life. The gods drew the big man close and told him that it was essential that he followed the instructions carefully.

Once a year, he was to take ONE drop only. Each drop would add 10 years to his life. But he must under no circumstances take more than one drop. If he did then strange, unpredictable and irreversible things will happen. The big man gave the gods his word, then went back down to earth to tell his wife everything that had happened.

You-ee, the big man’s wife, was intrigued. She listened carefully to the instructions and swore to keep the promise her husband made to the gods. So the big man took two drops from the bottle. He gave his wife one, and he had the other. Energy soured through their bodies. You-ee had never felt anything like it. She felt magnificent.

That night, You-ee couldn’t get the potion out of her head. If one tiny drop felt so good. What might two drops or a sip feel like? She was a realist. She knew the gods sometimes kept the good things to themselves. She knew the gods didn’t always tell the truth. But she also knew that there was no way she’d get another drop if her husband was home.

So the next morning, You-ee called her husband to the kitchen. She told him that in honour of his great achievement, she was going to make a special dish. But the ingredients were difficult to source. She gave him a list and asked him to go fetch what she needed.

Now, the big man, being the kind of guy that he is, took the list, got on his horse and off he went.

But no sooner was had the dust settled at the edge of the village that You-ee ran to the cupboard where the potion was kept. She took it out, opened the bottle, and took a sip.

It was incredible. The heat and vibrant energy that coursed through her was beyond her wildest imagination. So she took another sip. This was too much! She felt like she could dance for days and weeks. She felt lighter than air! And sure enough. She looked down. She was a foot off the ground! She took another sip!!!!

She couldn’t help herself, she aimed for a window and floated out. She waved down to her neighbours. They stared up in awe! She floated above the roofs, the trees…. She floated up to the birds… she floated….. Oh… She called down to her neighbours… throw me a rope!!!! They scurried and searched but none of them had a rope long enough!!!!!

You-ee floated up through the clouds until she reached the part of the sky filled with chunks of the shattered suns. She grabbed every piece she could catch. She put them into her socks and her seams, her pockets and her sleeves. She grabbed every single piece of the broken suns and created such a ball of rock around her that she forced the last remaining sun to the other side of the sky!

It was only then that she stopped floating up.

So she called to the gods. She begged them to let her down. She promised she wouldn’t break the rules again.

But the gods look down and said no… they liked what they saw. Suddenly, there was light and dark. There was day and night. For the first time ever people had a clear time to rest and a clear time to play and work. So the gods said no. You will stay where you are. But they did make one concession.

Once a year the gods allowed You-ee’s husband to climb up to his wife and take her the ingredients she asked for. Once a year, she’d make the exotic dish she promised.

And because, as you know, You-ee means “Moon”, the gods called the delicacy, Mooncakes.

And to this day, when the moon shines brightest in the sky, people will make moon cakes in honour of You-ee and the time she accidentally gave mankind night and day.

THE END

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