Proverbial Fairy Tales: Wolf! Wolf! Hungry Again

Once upon a time there was a big bad wolf who liked to eat. Big bad ate this and big bad ate that. Once big bad ate a lad who cried “Wolf! Wolf!” even when big bad was minding its own business.

Eventually, like always, big bad got hungry again and wondered what might be on the menu besides the garbage he’s been eating on the ground.

It’s surprising, but true, that ordinary town folk do smarten up given enough time and motivation and this time when big bad returned they decided to give it a taste of its own medicine by trapping it and – gulpeating it in spite of protests organized by Save The Wolf Foundation.

When the town folk did as they planned to do and big bad got his just deserts, they all lived happily ever after except for the protestors who would have been unhappy no matter what happened, but that’s another tale I probably won’t bother to tell, although I just might.

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Denise offers “ground” to be used in this week’s Six Sentence Stories.

In case anyone is wondering, as I was, there is no actual Save The Wolf Foundation. I searched for one and AI told me to stop wasting my time: The search results do not contain specific information about an organization named “Save The Wolf Foundation”.

Proverbial Fairy Tales: Wolf! Wolf!

Once upon a time there was a lad who noticed how highly the town folk honored those who warned the town of the big bad wolf. Wanting some of that honor for himself, he cried, “Wolf! Wolf!”, even though there was no wolf to be seen.

He did get the desired attention and admiration and so the next day and the next and the next, he did it again and again and again. After the tenth day of this even gullible folk could read the mark on the lad’s forehead saying, Don’t believe anything this kid has to say.

One day the real big bad wolf reappeared and the lad cried, “Wolf! Wolf!” None of the town folk came to chase the wolf away, figuring it was imaginary, and everyone, except for the lad who became the main course of the wolf’s dinner, lived happily ever after – that is, until the wolf got hungry again, but that’s another tale.

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Denise offers the prompt word “mark” to be used in this week’s Six Sentence Stories.

Six Sentence Story: Write Down Every Miracle

With the sounds of battle coming from the enemy’s gates the sergeant told Philippe, “Write down every miracle.”

Philippe told him that he couldn’t think of a single one.

The sergeant responded, “Then open your eyes.”

Philippe told him that his eyes were open, but there were no miracles to be seen.

The sergeant knew Philippe wasn’t ready to be launched like a rock against the gates of hell, but with the battle raging the sergeant had time only for a brief deliverance or mini exorcism – words of command given to the demonic mountain to move – before he turned to the next soldier.

But that was all Philippe needed for the grays to wash clean with brand new bright light.

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Denise offers the prompt word “brand” to be used in this week’s Six Sentence Stories.

After writing this story a different interpretation of Matthew 16:18 became more compelling for me.

Photo included for Cale Caron. Blessings!

Proverbial Fairy Tale: Happy Lad

Once upon a time, much like today, there lived a lad who was happy.

He was happy the next year and the next and he was even happy the year after that. One almost wondered if he would ever have a sad year, but even when it seemed like he should be having a sad year, he was happy.

People asked him why he was so happy wondering if they could be happy as well, but worried that there might be a catch or some odd requirement that would disqualify them.

He told them that a happy heart is a wonderful remedy but a broken spirit dries the bones which puzzled many figuring he really didn’t tell them anything useful, but some, even some of the puzzled ones, decided to just live happily ever after since what harm could it do? By doing so they might even witlessly check off all the requirements, if there were any, and live happily ever after.

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Denise offers the prompt word “check” to be used in this week’s Six Sentence Stories.

Proverbial Fairy Tale: A Critter’s Just Deserts

Once upon a time there lived a critter, a fish out of water, whom no one could figure out. We all knew he had problems, but he didn’t think there was anything wrong with himself, at least, nothing worth the bother of fixing.

Although he reassured us that he was fine – “just following a different drummer”, he lamely explained – how could we convince him otherwise without a proper diagnosis? So, we diagnosed him ourselves yelling: YOU’RE NUTS!

That should have solved the problem, but all it did was isolate the critter further while we went off to our regular therapy sessions and he let his problems go from bad to worse. Even after all of us went to our just deserts none of us could figure out why he kept living happily ever after.

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Denise offers the prompt word “fish” to be used in this week’s Six Sentence Stories.

Proverbial Fairy Tale: Lad And Lass

Once upon a time there was a lad who proudly declared that he took only one biology class (of which all he remembered was dissecting some frog), no chemistry classes and no physics classes (worth mentioning). He did take enough mathematics and programming classes to confidently declare that he could read all of that other garbage should he ever want to waste his time doing so.

About the same time there was a lass who had her eyes on the lad. It is unclear whether she pursued him or whether she convinced him to pursue her or whether there was any difference between those two options. Regardless, she got him.

Since biology works no matter how many classes you’ve taken nor how many frogs you’ve dissected nor how many boyfriends you’ve convinced to pursue you, they made a vow to live happily ever after.

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Denise offers the prompt word “vow” to be used in this week’s Six Sentence Stories.

Proverbial Fairy Tale: Dumping Dark Matter on the Commodity Exchange

Once upon a time there was a lad who read bestsellers like The Fool’s Guide to the Multiverse, The Evolution of Unbelievably Common Ancestors and How To Buy and Sell Dark Matter.

Our lad had many friends. He taught them everything he learned from his extensive reading. They said, “Wow!” In turn they taught all of it to everyone they knew.

The lad and his friends lived happily ever after until they dumped a tad too much dark matter on the commodity exchange generating an enhanced gravitational force that collapsed the exchange into an unstable stellar object which exploded leaving a nasty black hole all of which is detailed in the lad’s new bestseller How NOT To Dump Dark Matter on a Commodity Exchange.

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Denise offers the prompt word “force” to be used in this week’s Six Sentence Stories.

Proverbial Fairy Tale: Yadda Yadda Yadda

Once upon a time I listened to the yadda, yadda, yadda of a spell echo round the cylindrical walls of a black cauldron filled with a smelly, syrupy soup concocted to fix whatever it was the witch doctor stirring the pot said was wrong with me. Doc ladled some of the syrup into a cup and gave it to me forcing me to wrap my fingers around the cup’s ornate handle featuring a smiling serpent with a wicked forked tongue sticking out.

Now, what would you have done? Would you politely drink whatever was in the cup or would you dump it all out?

I often just drink it, but this time I poured it out when doc wasn’t looking. An ugly monster rose from the dirt floor and grew to immense proportions before its head exploded – and I was glad it didn’t do that in my stomach – leaving me happily ever after to tell the tale.

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Denise offers the prompt word “echo” to be used in this week’s Six Sentence Stories.

Six Sentence Story: Gloria

The shepherds knew an angel who
had told them of His birth.
They went to see the mystery
of peace, goodwill on earth.

Today as well we yearn to tell,
like them, this tale of love,
with accent true with joy that’s new
from ancient songs above.

Go on and see beyond the tree
how righteousness reigns there.
He will not leave though devils grieve.
He’s with us everywhere.

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Denise offers the prompt word “accent” to be used in this week’s Six Sentence Stories.

I am grateful to P. A. Oltrogge whose book of poems, tales, carols and Bible verses, Christmas on the Porch, reminded me that it is the Christmas season and a narrative poem may be the best story.

The Piano Guys
Sunrise over the Sea of Galilee

Six Sentence Story: The Sixty-Third Of The Seventy Weeks

Daniel wrote, Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.1

Although at first he didn’t understand, he knew he was promised understanding and that this was an answer to his supplication. But how did the virgin with child that Isaiah prophesied fit into all of this and why that name Immanuel?

The channel of events in the vision ended ominously with: and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.2

Understanding comes through obedience and as Daniel wrote in obedience his understanding matured until he realized the virgin’s role between the going forth of the commandment to rebuild the walls and this desolation along with the central importance of the sixty-third of those seventy weeks when the covenant would be confirmed.

As gratitude overwhelmed him with peace Daniel could see that the ink was dry enough for him to roll up the scroll.

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Denise offers the prompt word “channel” to be used in this week’s Six Sentence Stories.

This completes the Daniel tales.

  1. Daniel 9:24, KJV ↩︎
  2. Daniel 9:27b KJV ↩︎