Week 13 Story: Wait for your cake
There once was a man named Ivan,
Who had to leave his wife once day.
Work was gone and money was short
So off he went, leaving his wife behind.
He found a farmer needing some help,
And agreed to work for 3 pound a year.
He worked his year, and asked for wages.
The farmer had a proposal
Instead of money, instead take advice.
Ivan was unsure but
soon convinced.
The farmer told Ivan, his message
“Never leave the known for
new”
And so Ivan worked another
year,
At the end he received new
advice
“Make sure to never stay
where
An old man is married to a
young woman.”
Then next he heard this
“Honesty is the best
policy.”
Finally after 3 years and
no money,
Ivan decided it was time to
return.
The farmer’s wife gave him
a cake
As a goodbye and thank you.
But she asked him to promise
To not eat the cake, until his happiest
day.
So off Ivan went on a journey home.
When almost there, he met old friends.
They offered to take him on a new
route,
But Ivan refused remembered the advice.
On the new road his friend met robbers,
While Ivan was safe on the old path.
When he heard them yell, he yelled too.
This scared the robbers off and Ivan’s
friends
Were so grateful that they asked him to
stay.
They took him to a lodge but Ivan soon
realized
The old innkeeper was married to the
young hostess.
Ivan thanked his friends but went next
door to stay.
That night the young woman killed her
husband
And Ivan saw it all through a hole in
the wall.
She accused Ivan’s friends who were
staying there
But Ivan attested to their innocence
and her guilt.
After the drama, Ivan returned home to
his wife.
She had just found a purse of gold
coins.
Ivan realized it must be the Lord’s who
lived close.
They returned it to his servant since
he was out.
One day, the Lord came by and they
after it,
But the Lord had never received his
purse.
Ivan and his wife took the Lord to the
servant,
Who was forced to return the purse and
fired.
Since Ivan was so trustworthy, the Lord
hired him
And gave him the purse as a thank you.
This was the happiest day of Ivan’s
life
So he took his wife home and they cut
into the cake.
They were surprised to find the cake
had 3 years wages in it.
In the end, the advice the farmer gave
Was more valuable than 3 pounds.
Author's note: I decided to change this story by taking a free verse approach. The story was pretty long and dense so I thought this might break it up. Also, I tweaked certain things like the Lord giving them the gold coin purse instead of just hiring Ivan to give it an even happier ending.
Image Information: Cake, Wikimedia Commons
Bibliography: Celtic Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs with illustrations by John D. Batten (1892).
Kennedie, I love what you did with this story. Your choice to not make it rhyme helped it to flow more smoothly and kept the pace steady. You also made the transitions between each portion of the tale smooth so that it felt like one tale rather than three. Condensing long and dense works can be tough, but this is an excellent read and makes me wish I had also read the original. Great work!
ReplyDeleteHi Kennedie! I enjoyed reading your story. I agree with Rachel about your choice to not make it rhyme. At first, I had to catch myself and reread the first paragraph because I couldn't get the words to rhyme, but it started flowing very nicely after. I haven't read the original story, but I'm sure you did a great job at condensing it because I got the gist of it through your story. Good job!
ReplyDeleteHi there Kennedie! I absolutely love that you made a free verse approach. I think having the pressure to make things rhyme can be difficult and sometimes impossible to get the point across. This style allows the story to flow a better. I have not read the story, but I like that you gave it a happy ending! Great job!
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