Throughout this last year, I have enjoyed reading a variety of beautiful stories on the Daily Gathering; we read and discussed the story of a rabbit who desired to be real, a Mermaid who sought an immortal soul, and a cowboy who lassoed a tornado. These, and many other stories, have brought the participants into a world of fairies and giants, witches and kings, and wonder and joy; they have taught the students how to attend through imagination, narration, discussion, and comparison.

This last month, participants were given the opportunity to write their own stories. They all wrote well crafted and creative stories, a testament to the power of reading stories. We at CiRCE enjoyed reading each of the submissions, and carefully selected three stories to publish on this blog.

I hope you enjoy reading them as much as we did.

Larissa, Daily Gathering Host

The Wizard’s Wood

by Jacob and Jesse King

Two young lads were playing in a field. They were having a great deal of fun when all of a sudden their ball fell out of one of their hands and into the deep dark forest. Stubborn as they were, they ran into the forest after their ball.

John, the oldest, had bright orange hair blowing in the wind as he ran. The youngest was Theodore who had freckles and black hair.

Soon the boys approached a foggy valley. They couldn’t find their ball as trees surrounded them on all sides, so Theodore began to weep for their mother and father.

Just then a harsh gruff voice came from the valley. They looked around and saw no one. The voice came again, louder and closer. They heard a sharp ripping sound. They spun around and saw a tree smiling down at them. It said in a cheerful voice, “Look everyone. We’ve found two little boys. Let’s bring them to the wizard.”

Multiple sharp ripping sounds came from all around them, and five trees emerged and formed a circle. The tree who had spoken first picked up their ball and handed it to little Theodore. Then John said, “Will you lead us out of the forest?”

A tree in the circle spoke and said, ”Oh no, only the wizard can do that. When you enter the forest you are locked here until he bids you free.” The trees let the boys climb on top of them, and they traveled to the wizard’s house. When they arrived, the wizard greeted them. He showed them to a cozy chamber with beautifully made beds waiting for their arrival.

The next day the wizard told them he would release them under one circumstance. They could go if they found the blue mushroom, the golden rose, and the red jaybird. He gave them swords and said,” There are many dangerous things in these woods. Be careful.” He told them they had until sundown to find the blue mushroom. They set out and looked and looked for hours but had no luck. It was almost sundown. John quickly found a blueberry patch, grabbed a stray mushroom, pounded the blueberries together, and coated the mushroom with them. They took it to the wizard. He examined it and frowned. “This is not the blue mushroom,” he said in a serious voice. Then he sent them to their chamber.

The next morning, he told them to find the Golden Rose. “Be warned,” he said, “The Rose is guarded by a serpent.” They set out and

came to a slope where there was a cave. Suddenly a sharp hissing sound came from the depths of the cave. John drew his sword, and Theodore threw himself behind his brother. They slowly tiptoed into the cave. Two glowing beady eyes locked with John’s eyes. The serpent struck at John. John thrust his sword at the serpent, but he missed. The serpent got his leg. Unluckily for John, the serpent was poisonous. Theodore grabbed his brother, and they ran for the wizard’s hut. Once more they lay in their beds and wept at their failure. Two more days passed, and John recovered.

The next item they went to look for was the red jaybird. The wizard said it lived in the meadow a little way away from the hut.

The boys set out. They found the meadow, and in the middle sat the red jaybird on a twisted pole. Theodore approached the bird, but it flew furiously away. Theodore ran after it. They chased it for an hour until at last they caught up to it. The bird sat on a tree branch. It turned into the wizard. He looked at them with a cheerful smile. Then instantly they found themselves home again.