Long ago there was a fishing village that needed one more catch. If they had one more catch of fish, there would be enough food to last that winter. But without it, probably some of the people would go hungry.

In those days, only men went fishing. Women stayed at home. The women of the village went and pleaded with their men not to go. It was the season of storms, and they were afraid that if the men went out in their boats that a storm would break and they would be lost.

The men didn't listen. They were the providers. It was their job to see there was enough food. The husbands, sons, brothers, uncles and grandfathers kissed the women goodbye, got on the boats and sailed off for one more catch.

They hadn't been gone very long when the sky turned perfectly black, the wind howled and the waves came crashing on the shore. Exactly as the women had feared, a mighty storm came. It was the worst storm anyone could ever remember. The women were just sure they would never see any of their men alive again. So the frightened women met at the dock to pray.

As they were standing there praying, someone called out, "Look, up on the hill. There's a cottage on fire!"

They looked up and they saw that there were flames leaping through the roof of a cottage. They all ran up the hill to see what they could do to help. But by the time they got there it was too late. The cottage had burned to the ground. They wondered what had happened.

Annie, one of the newer brides, knew how it had happened. It was her cottage. She remembered that in her hurry to join the other women praying at the dock, she had forgotten to blow out her candles. The wind must have whipped her curtains into the open flame and spread the fire. She had lost everything. All she had left were the clothes on her back.

The women gathered around Annie, comforting her. Then suddenly someone shouted, "Look! Down at the dock! The boats!"

They looked and they saw boats coming into the harbor. The women ran down the hill. The men got off the boats. Soon everyone was hugging, kissing, and laughing...everyone but Annie.

Annie walked up to her big fisherman husband and sobbed, "How can you ever forgive me? I let our cottage burn down."

The fisherman put his arm around his bride and said, "Annie, you must not cry. It was the light of our burning cottage that brought us safely home."

Suggestions to help you tell a story to children:

Find a story you love.
Read the story over to yourself several times. When children sense that you know the end of the story, it ensures trust and safety while they are listening.
Speak naturally and directly. For children, voice is the most magical and fascinating of all instruments. Only the cello can match its range. But nothing can match its power to carry and embody meaning.
Let the meaning and feelings of the story enter you. Go on the journey with the child.
Allow children to share the images that come up for them after listening to the story. A child's personal associations and ideas build an awareness that everybody hears a story based on who she or he is.
Try not to make a moral, judgment or conclusion from the story. Rather let the children's imagination discover empathy, creativity and clarity.

Internet resources for stories:

www.healingstory.org/crisis -- "Stories for Children in Crisis: Nourishing the Heart." Laura Simms, together with a coalition of international storytellers, as part of the Gaindeh Project, has gathered traditional tales from around the world. The stories are being printed in a booklet to hand out to each family that has been personally touched by the terrorism tragedy, volunteers and all schools in New York City and New Jersey.
www.peaceculture.net -- Stories from the book "The Strange War," by Martin Auer, published by Beltz & Gelberg in Germany. Authors and publishers are permiting downloading free of charge.
www.aaronshep.com/stories -- Aaron Shepherd has added stories from the Middle East to help with the tragedy.

Carol McCormick is a professional storyteller, public speaker and trainer in suburban Minneapolis who shares programs with groups of all ages and serves as a school artist in residence. Her latest audiotape, "Making Peace," has 60 minutes of international plus original tales and songs. Contact her at mccobuch@att.net or (763) 546-4133.
Copyright © 2001 Carol McCormick