But lets not dwell, onto September. Spring has sprung. Lawnmowers are a buzzing, (the smell of fresh cut lawn is addictive don't you think?) jasmine and lavender are blossoming and I am off to a Steiner Education conference this weekend, woohoo.
Oh how I love everything Steiner, but not only that, the conference is in Byron Bay!! What a great way to spend a weekend, crafting and story telling all day then up to Brissy Saturday night for Riverfire!
So in honor of my inspiring weekend I have once again tried my hand at the Healing Story.
For those of you who don't know, last year I attended a week long Steiner conference and was lucky enough to win a spot in the Healing Stories workshop. A Healing Story is a story written with a particular issue in mind (such as grief, anger, stubbornness, selfishness etc.), for children and adults alike. The week was the sweetest, most beautiful week of creative companionship I have ever witnessed and the Healing Stories workshop was amazing. However, as hard as I tried, I failed to nail the art of the Healing Story.
I posted about the Healing Story way back then, but I did not share my dismay at my failure, and I most certainly have not shared the several dozen failed attempts since. However, just yesterday, whilst perusing the latest Star Weavings magazine and inspired by my upcoming weekend I was struck with an idea. Like any good writer, I dropped everything (including the copy of Chinese Whisperings The Red Book that I was absorbed in) and dashed inside to grab a note book (yes, I still use pen and paper for the first draft/idea, there's something about the process of channelling thoughts from my brain, down my arm and out through a pen onto the paper that is cathartic). After the paper draft was transferred to computer I found myself with the first ever Healing Story that I was happy enough with that I am brave enough to share it. So please, if you don't like it, shut up! In this instance, feedback is not welcome-- OK maybe in a few days, just don't kill my buzz straight away. Here it is
The Golden Gift
By Tanya Bell*
A long, long time ago, there lived a Kind King and a Queen and the Kingdom they ruled was happy and prosperous. The farmers in the kingdom harvested abundant crops of grain, the fishermen in the kingdom caught an abundance of fish and the families in the village shared their abundance with everyone.
One day, after a particularly hot summer, the Kind King and Queen received a visit from the farmers.
‘Oh dear Kind King, oh dear Kind Queen, our dams are dry and our crops are low. We do not have enough to share, whatever shall we do?’
The Kind King and Queen smiled at the farmers, ‘Oh dear farmers, our rivers are rich with fish, do not worry, our fishermen will share their bounty.’
The farmers thanked the Kind King and Queen and those that were able went out on the rivers to help the fishermen. The Kind King and Queen and retired to their thrones satisfied that happiness was restored.
Some weeks passed and after a particularly dry winter, the Kind King and Queen received a visit from the fishermen.
‘Oh dear Kind King, oh dear Kind Queen, the farmers came to us for help, but our rivers are dry and our fish are low. We do not have enough to share, whatever shall we do?’
The Kind King and Queen smiled at the fishermen, ‘Oh dear fishermen, our village shops are full, do not worry, our families will share their bounty.’
The fishermen thanked the Kind King and Queen and those that were able went out into the village to help the families. The Kind King and Queen and retired to their thrones satisfied that happiness was restored.
Some months passed, and after another particularly hot summer and an even dryer winter, the Kind King and Queen received a visit from the families’.
‘Oh dear Kind King, oh dear Kind Queen, the farmers and fishermen came to us for help, but the crops are low, the fish are low and our shops are low. We do not have enough to share, whatever shall we do?’
The Kind King and Queen smiled at the Families’, ‘Oh dear friends, our Palace is rich, do not worry, we shall share the bounty.’
The families’ thanked the Kind King and Queen and those that were able visited the Palace daily. The Kind King and Queen retired to their thrones satisfied that happiness was restored.
As time passed, word of the Kind King and Queen’s generosity spread and soon the farmers visited the Palace daily, as did the fishermen, as did the families’.
Each day the Kind King greeted his subjects graciously and each day the Queen noticed something peculiar. In the first week laughter was forgotten. In the second week, smiles were forgotten. In the third week manners were forgotten. At the end of the first month, the Queen noticed that Kindness had been forgotten.
The Kind Queen decided she must speak to the Kind King.
‘Oh dear Kind King, our Palace is rich but our subjects do not share. I fear Kindness has been forgotten. Whatever shall we do?’
The Kind King smiled at the Kind Queen, ‘Oh dear Kind Queen, our neighbours are Gentle, do not worry. They shall know what to do.’
The Kind Queen thanked the Kind King and retired to her throne and the very next morning the Kind King set off to visit with the neighbouring Gentle Kingdom.
The Kind King took several weeks to travel to the Gentle Kingdom as it was a very far away. Back home the Kind Queen watched in dismay as the farmers become impatient and pushed the fishermen out of the way. The fishermen became very cross and they shoved the families to the back of the line. The families got very upset and started shouting and crying. The Kind King was taking so very long to return; soon even the Kind Queen began to feel very cross.
At long last the Kind King arrived at the Gentle Kingdom but to his dismay, he found that they too had been going through a hot summer and dry winter. The Gentle Kingdom had nothing left to share. However, as the Kind King passed through the Gentle village he was greeted graciously by every person he passed and with each person the Kind King noticed something peculiar. Laughter filled the streets, smiles shone on the subjects faces and their manners sounded ever so sweet.
The Kind King decided he must speak with the Gentle King, ‘Oh dear Gentle King, our Palace is rich but our subjects do not share and I fear Kindness has been forgotten. Whatever shall we do?’
The Gentle King smiled at the Kind King, ‘Oh dear Kind King, do not worry. Kindness is never far away.’
The Gentle King handed the Kind King a pair of beautiful golden balls, ‘Take this Golden gift and hold them in your hands. Listen to the sound of sweet bells ringing; listen to the kindness within your heart and feel the kindness warm your hands. Share this gift with your Kingdom and soon happiness will be restored.’
The Kind King thanked the Gentle King and set off on the long journey home, all the while holding the Golden gift in his hands. He listened to the sound of sweet bells ringing; he listened to the kindness in his heart; he felt the kindness warm his hands but still he did not know what to do!
At long last the Kind King arrived home and to his dismay he found an angry mob gathered in the Palace courtyard. The farmers pushed at the fishermen, the fishermen shoved at the families and the families shouted and cried in protest.
The Kind King decided he must speak with the Kind Queen, ‘Oh dear Kind Queen, our Gentle neighbours could not offer us abundance; instead the Gentle King offered only wisdom. Whatever shall we do?’
The Kind King handed the Kind Queen the Golden gift. The Kind Queen took the two beautiful golden balls and she listened to the sound of sweet bells ringing. She listened to the kindness in her heart; she felt the kindness warm her hands and she knew just what to do!
The Kind Queen smiled at the Kind King, ‘Oh dear Kind King, our farmers are good, our fishermen are good and our families are good. We shall share our Golden gift and happiness will be restored.’
The Kind King thanked the Kind Queen and retired to the courtyard.
Quietly the Kind King walked amongst his subjects and passed the golden gift into a farmer’s hands. The farmer stopped pushing for a moment and held the two beautiful golden balls. He listened to the sound of sweet bells ringing; he listened to the kindness in his heart; he felt the kindness warm his hands. The farmer smiled at the Kind King and turned to share the Golden gift with a fisherman standing nearby. As the Golden gift passed from hand to hand, the music of the sweet bells caused the subjects to pause and smile. The farmers stopped pushing, the fishermen stopped shoving and the families stopped shouting and crying.
At long last the Kind Kingdom remembered Kindness. The Golden gift worked its magic from hand to heart, restoring happiness all around the courtyard just as the Gentle King had promised.
With happiness restored the Kind King and Queen retired to their thrones and to this day, the Golden gift is still being passed from hand to hand, spreading kindness all over the world. If you’re very lucky, you might find the Golden gift passed along into your hands one day.
Copyright T.Bell 2010
*Inspiration for this story came from 'The Kindness Ball' an article by Barbara Klocekin Star Weaving #44, a newsletter of the Australian Association for Rudolf Steiner Early Childhood Education, avenuesforchange@gmail.com
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