13 The Missing Axe





The Missing Axe

It was a cold winter and the old man who lived alone was feeling the need to keep his log fire burning. Fortunately, he had a large pile of wood stored dry in his back garden. The daily task of going to his chopping block and preparing the next day’s logs was good for him. It gave him a task to accomplish and an opportunity to talk to the neighbours and those passing in the street. In many ways, he looked forward to his time working at his block. Each day he prepared enough logs for the following day knowing that they would protect him from the cold.

It was Wednesday and he pulled on his heavy warm pullover to begin his daily task.  He went out to the block, leaned down to pick up his axe. It was not there. Somebody had stolen it since yesterday.At that very moment of discovering the missing axe, a young man walked past and smiled at him saying nothing. The old man in that minute knew what had happened to his axe. This young man had stolen it! 

He spoke to his neighbour. he told her how shifty the young man had looked. it was so obvious that he was a thief. That smile, not so much a smile as a smirk had said it all. A thief for sure.

That day the old man was warm because he had the logs from the day before, but he would have to go sparing until he could afford to get a new axe. Everybody he spoke to was told about the thief. The story grew and like most stories grew in its telling. Within about two days the whole area was aware of the thief and all were on their guard.

The old man was badly needing heat. He decided he would go to his woodpile and sort the wood into two bundles, small and large. Ones that might fit his fire and those that would have to wait until later. 

As he worked, he was surprised. As he moved the logs into the two piles, he found his axe. It had been left on the ground, some logs had fallen and covered it. 

As he picked it up, the young man who was passing smiled and asked if he could help him by cutting some wood for him.






Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

18 The Magic Window

The Magic Window Once upon a time, there was a little boy who became very ill. The illness meant he had to spend a period of time in isolation, unable to move. Other children were not allowed to come near him, so he spent long days feeling down and miserable. There was very little he could do except look out of the window. Time passed and his feeling of despair grew and grew. Then one day he saw a strange shape in the window. it was a penguin eating a sausage sandwich. He was sure he heard the penguin say good afternoon to him before it turned and left.  Of course, the boy was surprised. He was trying very hard to work out what had happened when they're outside the window he saw a monkey in a nappy, busy blowing up a balloon. At first, the boy asked himself what that could possibly be, but after a while, as more and more crazy looking characters appeared at the window, he burst out laughing and could not stop. Anyone wanting to stop laughing would never be helped by seei...
Read more

27 The Golden Years

The Golden Years A dear friend shared this experience, I leave her to tell the tale.  After a meeting several days ago, I couldn't find my keys. I quickly gave myself a personal "A Pat Down." They weren't in my pockets. Suddenly I realised I must have left them in the car. Frantically, I headed for the carpark. My husband has scolded me many times for leaving my keys in the car's ignition. He's afraid that the car could be stolen. As I looked around the parking lot, I realised he was right. The carpark was empty.  I immediately called the police. I gave them my location, confessed that I had left my keys in the car and that it had been stolen. Then I made the most difficult call of all to my husband: "I left my keys in the car and it's been stolen." There was a moment of silence. I thought the call had been disconnected, but then I heard his voice. "Are you kidding me?" he barked, "I dropped you off!"  N...
Read more

28 A Touch of Sadness

A Touch of Sadness Mother superior was dying., it was a very sad time for the other nuns. They had lived under her guidance and were distraught as they gathered around her death bed.  They were trying to make her last journey comfortable. They tried giving her warm milk to drink but she  refused it . One of the nuns took the glass back to the kitchen.  It was then, that she remembered a bottle of  Whisky that had been received as a gift the previous Christmas, she opened it and poured a generous amount into the warm milk. Back at Mother Superior's bed, they held the glass to her lips. The frail nun drank a little, then a little more and before they knew it, she had finished the whole glass down to the last drop. As her eyes brightened, the nuns thought it would be a good opportunity to have one last talk with their spiritual leader. "Mother," the nuns asked earnestly, "Please give us some of your wisdom before you leave us."  Her teaching...
Read more