The Fox and the Stork
One day the fox, who wanted to play a little trick, invited a stork to dinner . When the unsuspecting stork arrived, the fox told him they were having soup. The sly fox offered the stork soup in a wide shallow dish, but the long-billed stork could not dine on the food. So the poor stork left hungry that night. The next day the stork, who wanted to teach the sneaky fox manners, invited the fox have dinner with him. So when the fox arrived to gulp some food down, the clever stork told him they were having meat in a tall skinny jar. The stork could gobble this down easily because of his narrow bill, but the fox could only lick the brim. This time the fox left with an empty stomach. The fox admitted he had treated the stork poorly and he was sorry.
Moral: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
Monday, November 24, 2008
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Arachne
One beautiful morning in Greece, a proud young girl named Arachne spun and wove a fine silk bedcover. She boasted that her weaving was the best, but then, a tall, frightening woman appeared before her. She declared, “ I am the goddess Athena and I have heard your boasting. I challenge you to a design contest; if you win I will never weave again, but if I win you will never touch a loom or a spindle again!”
When the day of the contest arrived, Arachne set her loom under a tree, but Athena assembled her handiwork in the sky. Arachne spun from yarn, and fashioned an exquisite web, but Athena wove the sun beams, clouds, fields, and woods. Arachne, who realized that Athena’s creation far surpassed her own, cried out; “ I have lost to the goddess of crafts, and her works forever surpass mine!”
Athena felt pity on the distressed girl and transformed her into a spider. “Now,” whispered Athena, “you will spin a web forever.” And so she did.
One beautiful morning in Greece, a proud young girl named Arachne spun and wove a fine silk bedcover. She boasted that her weaving was the best, but then, a tall, frightening woman appeared before her. She declared, “ I am the goddess Athena and I have heard your boasting. I challenge you to a design contest; if you win I will never weave again, but if I win you will never touch a loom or a spindle again!”
When the day of the contest arrived, Arachne set her loom under a tree, but Athena assembled her handiwork in the sky. Arachne spun from yarn, and fashioned an exquisite web, but Athena wove the sun beams, clouds, fields, and woods. Arachne, who realized that Athena’s creation far surpassed her own, cried out; “ I have lost to the goddess of crafts, and her works forever surpass mine!”
Athena felt pity on the distressed girl and transformed her into a spider. “Now,” whispered Athena, “you will spin a web forever.” And so she did.
Theseus and the Minotaur
A long time ago in Crete, in the center of a cave with a thousand rooms, lived a fearsome beast known as the Minotaur. Every year seven girls and seven boys were fed to the Minotaur. Any unlucky person who entered the cave never came back. Now, the yearly sacrifice of the fourteen people arrived. One brave young man named Theseus, wanted to fight the Minotaur and bring an end to the misery of his people. A beautiful girl named Ariadne secretly wanted to help Theseus, so she gave him a ball of yarn and a sharp sword. She carefully instructed him, “Tie the yarn at the entrance of the cave and unroll it as you walk along.” And he did as he was told. He crept into the cave with the other thirteen, and they heard the bellowing of the Minotaur, who came rushing thru the cave wildly. Theseus dashed to the side and smoothly sliced the beast’s leg! The Minotaur screamed madly with pain as Theseus stabbed its heart. Blood gushed out, and the great Minotaur slowly perished! The young men and women shouted with joy at the death of the wicked Minotaur. Following the yarn out of the cave, Theseus led the people out where the adoring Ariadne waited for him
In Memory of Icarus
The name of the Icarian Sea comes from a very interesting story. King Minos realized that only his amazing blacksmith, Daedalus, could have helped Ariadne assist Theseus in escaping from the Minotaur’s cave. Daedalus was the only person who knew the way out of the labyrinth, since he had constructed the maze. Vengefully, the king ordered that Daedalus and his son Icarus, be guarded in the center of the labyrinth. Daedalus pretended to be working for the king during the day, but at night he made for himself a large pair of wings and a smaller pair for Icarus.
One fair night they quietly sneaked out of the labyrinth to try flying with their new wings. They practiced flying for many nights and slept in the mornings. Then one early morning, Daedalus and Icarus, who felt confident in their abilities, flew out of the city while everyone was asleep. They headed west to the nearby island of Sicily. Everything was fine until noon, when the sun shown hot and high.
Daedalus called to his son, “Do not fly too close to the sun, for your wings, which are held together by wax, will fall apart!” But Icarus, delighted with his newfound skill, said, “I will fly a little higher where I might see the great Sun Master who rides on the fiery chariot!”
So he soared higher and higher until the wax began to melt, and his wings loosened and then fell into the sea. He screamed desperately to his father, but it was too late. All Daedalus could do was peer into the unpitying sea, and then fly on. This body of water is now called The Icarian Sea in memory of Icarus.
A long time ago in Crete, in the center of a cave with a thousand rooms, lived a fearsome beast known as the Minotaur. Every year seven girls and seven boys were fed to the Minotaur. Any unlucky person who entered the cave never came back. Now, the yearly sacrifice of the fourteen people arrived. One brave young man named Theseus, wanted to fight the Minotaur and bring an end to the misery of his people. A beautiful girl named Ariadne secretly wanted to help Theseus, so she gave him a ball of yarn and a sharp sword. She carefully instructed him, “Tie the yarn at the entrance of the cave and unroll it as you walk along.” And he did as he was told. He crept into the cave with the other thirteen, and they heard the bellowing of the Minotaur, who came rushing thru the cave wildly. Theseus dashed to the side and smoothly sliced the beast’s leg! The Minotaur screamed madly with pain as Theseus stabbed its heart. Blood gushed out, and the great Minotaur slowly perished! The young men and women shouted with joy at the death of the wicked Minotaur. Following the yarn out of the cave, Theseus led the people out where the adoring Ariadne waited for him
In Memory of Icarus
The name of the Icarian Sea comes from a very interesting story. King Minos realized that only his amazing blacksmith, Daedalus, could have helped Ariadne assist Theseus in escaping from the Minotaur’s cave. Daedalus was the only person who knew the way out of the labyrinth, since he had constructed the maze. Vengefully, the king ordered that Daedalus and his son Icarus, be guarded in the center of the labyrinth. Daedalus pretended to be working for the king during the day, but at night he made for himself a large pair of wings and a smaller pair for Icarus.
One fair night they quietly sneaked out of the labyrinth to try flying with their new wings. They practiced flying for many nights and slept in the mornings. Then one early morning, Daedalus and Icarus, who felt confident in their abilities, flew out of the city while everyone was asleep. They headed west to the nearby island of Sicily. Everything was fine until noon, when the sun shown hot and high.
Daedalus called to his son, “Do not fly too close to the sun, for your wings, which are held together by wax, will fall apart!” But Icarus, delighted with his newfound skill, said, “I will fly a little higher where I might see the great Sun Master who rides on the fiery chariot!”
So he soared higher and higher until the wax began to melt, and his wings loosened and then fell into the sea. He screamed desperately to his father, but it was too late. All Daedalus could do was peer into the unpitying sea, and then fly on. This body of water is now called The Icarian Sea in memory of Icarus.
Friday, November 21, 2008
John Knox
John Knox was the greatest Reformer of all Scotland. He was born at Giffordgate around 1513 to 1514. We are not exactly sure when he was born. For his education he studied at the University of Glasgow and St. Andrews sometime in the 1530s. He became an ordained Catholic priest in 1540. Later he left the Catholic Church and became a Reformed preacher.
In 1547, during his middle life, he was taken prisoner and sent to the French galleys, where he stayed for a terrible 19 months and severely damaged his health. When he was eventually released he didn’t go straight back to Scotland. For ten years he lived and preached in England, Switzerland, Germany, and then he went back to Scotland.
John Knox married a lovely young woman whose name was Marjorie Bowes and she had two sons. But then a terrible thing happened; his beautiful wife died, and he was left alone with his two sons. Later he married again and all the people talked about this marriage. He married a woman (more like a girl) who was 17, and John was 50! Her name was Margaret Stewart, and she gave him two daughters. Another astonishing thing was that she was part of the royal family!
John Knox's life might have been really exciting, but nobody can live forever. John Knox died in Edinburgh in 1572, and was buried at St. Giles Church. The Earl of Morton gave a speech at his funeral and remarked , “Here lyeth a man who in his life never feared the face of a man, who hath been often threatened with dagger, but yet hath ended his days in peace and honor.”
John Knox was the greatest Reformer of all Scotland. He was born at Giffordgate around 1513 to 1514. We are not exactly sure when he was born. For his education he studied at the University of Glasgow and St. Andrews sometime in the 1530s. He became an ordained Catholic priest in 1540. Later he left the Catholic Church and became a Reformed preacher.
In 1547, during his middle life, he was taken prisoner and sent to the French galleys, where he stayed for a terrible 19 months and severely damaged his health. When he was eventually released he didn’t go straight back to Scotland. For ten years he lived and preached in England, Switzerland, Germany, and then he went back to Scotland.
John Knox married a lovely young woman whose name was Marjorie Bowes and she had two sons. But then a terrible thing happened; his beautiful wife died, and he was left alone with his two sons. Later he married again and all the people talked about this marriage. He married a woman (more like a girl) who was 17, and John was 50! Her name was Margaret Stewart, and she gave him two daughters. Another astonishing thing was that she was part of the royal family!
John Knox's life might have been really exciting, but nobody can live forever. John Knox died in Edinburgh in 1572, and was buried at St. Giles Church. The Earl of Morton gave a speech at his funeral and remarked , “Here lyeth a man who in his life never feared the face of a man, who hath been often threatened with dagger, but yet hath ended his days in peace and honor.”
Promethius and The Men
When the earth was young, Promethius, a god that did not want to live on Mt. Olympus, departed to live among men. Arriving at his destination, he found the men freezing and starving to .
Promethius begged Zeus to offer the gift of fire to the men, but Zeus refused to help. But Promethius was determined to find a way. He discovered a reed and lit it on Apollo’s flaming chariot. Then he yelled, “Zeus is a tyrant! Men shall have fire!”
Fire helped the men greatly. Promethius showed them how to build more fires from the embers and stay warm. They also learned how to build houses, tame livestock, and farm. He also showed them how to cook food and dine like men, not savages. They lived warmly and happily ever after.
When the earth was young, Promethius, a god that did not want to live on Mt. Olympus, departed to live among men. Arriving at his destination, he found the men freezing and starving to .
Promethius begged Zeus to offer the gift of fire to the men, but Zeus refused to help. But Promethius was determined to find a way. He discovered a reed and lit it on Apollo’s flaming chariot. Then he yelled, “Zeus is a tyrant! Men shall have fire!”
Fire helped the men greatly. Promethius showed them how to build more fires from the embers and stay warm. They also learned how to build houses, tame livestock, and farm. He also showed them how to cook food and dine like men, not savages. They lived warmly and happily ever after.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
The Dreadful Punishment
When Zeus found out what Prometheus had done, he sent Vulcan, the god of blacksmithing, to chain Prometheus to the highest peak in the world. So Vulcan did what Zeus had commanded and chained Prometheus to the highest peak. Every day for ages an eagle devoured his liver, and every night it would grow back. Prometheus wanted to escape, but he did not say he was sorry to Zeus. Finally a hero called Hercules came to rescue him. He dodged all of Zeus’s thunder bolts successfully. When he got there he slew the eagle and broke the chains. The delighted Prometheus was thankful to Hercules. And the dreadful punishment was over.
When Zeus found out what Prometheus had done, he sent Vulcan, the god of blacksmithing, to chain Prometheus to the highest peak in the world. So Vulcan did what Zeus had commanded and chained Prometheus to the highest peak. Every day for ages an eagle devoured his liver, and every night it would grow back. Prometheus wanted to escape, but he did not say he was sorry to Zeus. Finally a hero called Hercules came to rescue him. He dodged all of Zeus’s thunder bolts successfully. When he got there he slew the eagle and broke the chains. The delighted Prometheus was thankful to Hercules. And the dreadful punishment was over.
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