Tale Continued

One day when the sun shone cheerily and puffy white clouds floated aimlessly, Rowena was sitting in rapt attention as Excelsior finished his tale of his pilgrimage to Jerusalem.

“Just as we thought we would perish, a mighty lion appeared. His hid shone like melted gold and thunder was his roar. As quick as lightning, he sprang upon the bandits and chased them all away without ever turning to molest my fellow pilgrims and me.”

“Do you think Saint George really sent the lion?” the young child asked.

“I truly believe so, child,” he answered. “What kind of story would like me to tell you now?”

Rowena’s face scrunched in deep childish thought and then quickly brightened with an idea. “A treasure hunt,” she said gleefully. The old knight smiled at the girl’s excitement.

“A treasure hunt, you say? I think I have just the one.” Rowena settled herself for the story. “This is a story my grandmother told me when I was not much older than you. Well, before I begin, let me tell you that there is a special treasure that appears every seven years and has a rather special map that leads to it. This map will only show pieces of the map and will only expand once you’ve reached the edge of the revealed region. Now that you know this, I will begin my story.

“Many years ago a knight named Oliver came from small country town long forgotten by men. He longed to go upon some great quest but all was peaceful in his village and all the area around it. Resolved not to become idle and self-consumed, Oliver worked in his family’s carpentry shop as if he’d never been knighted. Not many days later, an old man came to the town. His clothes were thing and dirty and he carried a large walking stick carved with many intricate designs. As he walked, he limped greatly and leaned heavily on his stick. Around his waist, he wore a rope belt from which hung an assortment of talismans for, you see, he was . . .” The storyteller stopped for a dramatic pause and then ended, “a gypsy.” A little gasp followed the revelation. “Yes, a gypsy and when they saw him all the villagers rushed to their homes and locked their doors.

Beginning a Tale

In the time of knights and jousts and quests, there lived a young girl named Rowena. She was the daughter of Geoffrey the blacksmith and Clarissa the seamstress. Both Geoffrey and Clarissa were hard workers and raised their children to fear the Lord and obey His commands. Rowena was the youngest of eight children and was never in short supply of playmates. If none of her siblings could play, she'd find some of her friends from among the local children. At other times, she'd help her mother and older sisters with the sewing by fetching various things that were asked for. When she was allowed, Rowena would watch Geoffrey and his sons at work in the family smithy. But one of her favorite places to be, outside her own home, was at the home of a retired knight who had since become the village bard. His name was Excelsior. Daily, he would sit outside the entrance to his house with his lute upon his knee and entertained the children of the village with the tales of fairies and dragons and secret treasure. Rowena would spend hours listening to the old man's stories. She was his most dedicated listener.

Shakespeare and Reader's Theatre

This past year, I've been wonderfully exposed to the glories of some of Shakespeare's most famous plays. I'm very sad that it's taken me this long to finally read any Shakespeare but 'tis all in the past now. My Shakespeare class in now in rehearsal for "Much Ado About Nothing" in the reader's theatre style of acting. It is quite different from any other kind of acting I've ever done as it is more about what you say and how you say it than it is about what you're doing while you're saying it. If you want to be sinister, you can't walk in a circle 'round your victim menacingly or whisper terrible things into their ear. Rather you must make you voice express all the malicious intents that are stored in your evil heart. At first, I didn't think it would be all that hard but as we started going at it, I realized that I don't necessarily put all of what I mean, as a character, into what I say. After only two sessions, I've learned how strong the spoken word is and the magic that can be done with them.