Jul 8, 2010

Pookie, Can You Come Out and Play?

Can I?!!!
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Oh, can I ever.
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I periodically get a sweet little call from Eva asking me if I want to do something with her and her mommy. Within minutes, up they drive and we're off on an adventure.
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It's always exciting to see what Eva has packed in her bag of goodies.
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"Here, Pookie," she says, "you can have Pinnochio and the baby" (which she tosses harshly on the seat beside me, like scraps to a dog) and she continues. . .
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". . . I get the prince and princess."
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I grab my toys and begin.
In a cool, dark forest, an ugly and very lonely woodsman stumbles across an abandoned baby under a spiny thicket.
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"Yikes," says the Woodsman, what do I do with a delicate little baby?! My hands are so big and calloused, I've never had anybody to love before, I don't know what to do."
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So the woodsman climbs up the giant mountain where he's heard there lives a beautiful, generous princess with a heart as big as the full moon.
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"Princess," says he, "I have found a precious baby alone in the forest and I need some help taking care of her, can you help me?"
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"Oh, I can help you, all right," she snarls, "I can help you fall to your death you ugly woodsman!"
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And with those harsh words, she pushes him off the cliff!
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While the woodsman lies unconscious at the bottom of the ravine, the princess announces to the prince that she has been given a most beautiful baby for them to raise as their own. This is met with a lavish feast because the whole village knows the princess didn't have any children of her own.
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Meanwhile, in the ravine, an open-hearted doctor rides in on his prized stallion. He finds the stunned woodsman and lovingly doctors him back to life.
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After years of therapy and rehab, the good dr. and the lonely woodsman climb back up the mountain to rescue the neglected baby while the prince and princess are in the middle of yet another reckless night of dancing and feasting.
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The woodsman grabs the baby, cuddles her close to his chest, and runs off into a dark and smelly cave to hide from the jealous rage of the princess.
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Meanwhile, many days later, the princess has at last discovered the baby missing and she begins looking for her.
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She looks everywhere, miles and miles around her lofty throne, but can't find the sweet child anywhere. The princess has worked herself into a rage. . .
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. . . when finally she finds the babe. She reaches into the dark cave and yanks the baby out by her tiny arms. . ..
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... jumps on her horse and races back to the palace, leaving the ugly woodsman behind, alone again, empty and sad.
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The princess keeps a tight watch on her baby for the rest of her life. . .
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. . . while the ugly woodsman and kind hearted doctor are thrown into an empty prison to spend the rest of their days with nothing and no one to entertain them.
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. . . and the princess lives happily ever after in a land of abundance and feasting . . .
. . .until . . . suddenly . . .
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. . . she is found by the evil step-mother!
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... and forced to go back home and get back to work in the little cabin in the woods.
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May you, too, experience an exciting adventure as you go about your daily business today.

1 comment:

Ruth said...

The picture of the day is Jim, Dan & Paul Morse with my grandfather from Milo, Maine, Ed Wingler. Gramp was a fire chief for over 40 years.