Once upon a time there was a joyful man named Rupert, who lived in the deep forest with his family in a quaint cottage he made with his own hands. Each day he would walk to the nearby village where he made the best shoes in the land. People from around the entire Provence, ruled by the Great Lion King, came to buy a pair of shoes from Rupert the Cobbler for there was none that fit so well and lasted so long as the shoes he made. Rupert was not rich but he had a beautiful, loving wife and three children that never went without a meal. Rupert was a hard worker, loved his life and was seldom seen without a twinkle in his eye.
One day on the way to work, whistling a happy tune, he was approached by a tiny little man with his head bent to the ground. Rupert’s heart went out to this man in his crooked condition so he walked with him all the way to his shop in the village. Along the way he discovered that this little man, Yaroslav, knew quite a bit about making shoes and Rupert began questioning him about it. Yaroslav shared many details with Rupert about the art of shoemaking. He pointed out that the leather that Rupert used for the sole, from the hide of a Chichi dragon, was soon to become impossible to obtain. Yaroslav heard that the Chichi dragons were steadily moving further away into the mountains where someday, no one could find them again.
Rupert couldn’t believe his luck to find such a clever man as Yaroslav! He bid him farewell and as soon as he got to the shop he began making his shoes from the belly of the common warthog. Rupert knew he would never run out of warthog belly and he was safe from the impending dragon hide shortage.
The next day on the way to work Rupert watched for the crooked little man. Sure enough, there he was around the next bend. Today Yaroslav revealed that he also once lived in the woods with his family just eighteen hectares North of here, until his wife was attacked by a rogue pack of Wolverineans while she was hanging the laundry on the line. Until now, Rupert thought the Wolverineans were an ancient savage species that only lived in legends. In the stories, they only attacked what they could see. He was so shocked by this news that he built a fence around his property tall enough that the Wolverineans could not see his cottage and consequently, Rupert and his family could no longer see the trees. He was sure that now his family would be safe, for a while...
He never ran into the old man again but often thought about all the dangers surrounding him everyday. He felt his best defense was to think of them before they happened then he would be prepared to fend them off. He regretted his old haphazard life and spent all his time thinking of problems that might steal his home, family or business away. Yaroslav had taught him how to be smart and stay one step ahead of potential problems. Rupert felt smarter than others for staying ahead of heartache and loss by predicting ways that he might be vulnerable. But gradually Rupert began to stoop a little due to the load of thoughts swirling in his head. His steps were slower and more cautious. Gone was his happy whistle and jolly step. Gone was his lovely unprotected forest home and the summer evenings watching his children swinging from the trees. Gone was his high quality shoes and most of his customers!
In keeping with his cautious lifestyle, Rupert made a regular swing by the post office to check out the pictures of the most wanted criminals. One day, the 13th of May, I believe, Rupert spotted a familiar face at the top of he most wanted list. It was Yaroslav! Under his picture it said “Joy Thief”. Reading the fine print, it said Yaroslav’s modus operandi was to instill fear in the heart of unsuspecting souls, submitting them to a life of haunting worry. Rupert knew immediately he had been under Yaroslav’s curse. Regret filled his heart and he wept over all that had been stolen from him.
Rupert tried the best he could to rid his mind of the thoughts of impending doom. But try as he might, he only seemed to obsess even more. When Rupert was at his wit’s end he decided to go see the Great Lion King, known for his wisdom, to see if he could remove the spell and restore his joy.
Upon arrival, Rupert bowed low before the Mighty Lion King’s thrown asking the kind compassionate King for relief from this curse. The King quickly asked Rupert if he wanted to be free of this curse. This seemed like a silly question but Rupert answered saying that more than anything, he wanted it gone. Then the King told Rupert the pathway to freedom. He said, “It will not be easy. You will need to take the time daily on your way to work to stop by and tell me one new and beautiful thing about your life”. Rupert was desperate and agreed to this practice. Early the next morning he dutifully got up and started thinking about the previous day to find one small piece of beauty in his miserable cursed existence. He finally thought of one thing to tell the Great Lion King: He now had hope. Each day he had to come up with a new point of gratitude and remember the ones from the previous days. He diligently reported to the Lion King every morning and each morning it became easier to think of a new beautiful thing in his life in which he was grateful.
Gradually, as winter turned to spring, Rupert’s family noticed the softness returning to his eyes, the skip was restored to Rupert’s step and his back straightened out. He no longer had difficulty thinking of something to tell the Lion King and looked forward to his visits. He often sat for an hour just telling of all the beauty in his life. Rupert, now recognizing the fears and lies of Yaroslav, removed the fences around his forest home and once again began making shoes from the quality Chichi dragon hide. In the summer evenings he could again watch his children playing in the forest, swinging feely from the tree branches. Rupert was blessed in everything he did and he never stopped reporting to the Lion King, living most happily ever after!
