Enjoy my latest creative collaboration with Carrie Bruns - a talented artist and recent graduate of UC's DAAP program (www.carriebruns.com)
“The Night of the Magic Light”
It was a cold winter night.
The wind was busy chasing itself around the house and through the trees where rows of puffy sparrows slept huddling and fluffing together. Even the moon was snuggling with some clouds to stay warm.
Taylor was happy he was inside, playing with his knights and horses on the edge of the bathroom sink.
“Taylor,” his mother called from the bottom of the stairs, “have you finished brushing your teeth? I’ll be up in a minute to read you a story.”
He hadn’t even started, so he squirted a big blob of toothpaste on the end of his brush and start to hum a song. Brushing your teeth is always more fun when you hum.
His mother walked past the bathroom.
“Your pajamas are still warm from the dryer.”
“Oh boy!” Taylor mumbled, the toothbrush still sticking from his mouth. “Really warm?”
“Toasty warm,” she smiled, holding out his favorite pajamas. They were silver and grey – just like a suit of armor that a knight would wear.
“Oh boy,” he said again, zipping up his zipper and jumping onto his bed. After taking a sip of water and arranging his knights and horses on the table next to his bed, Taylor settled back to listen to his favorite story.
“Let’s see,” his mother mused, pushing back the glasses on her nose. “Where did we leave off? Here we go. Ready?”
“Ready,” answered Taylor.
“The young knight rode across the drawbridge slowly and carefully. It was night and the old castle was dark. So dark he could barely see past the nose of his trusty horse. The knight wasn’t sure what to do. Should he wait until morning when it would be light, or should he press on in the darkness to recover the stolen treasure? Then he remembered what the wise wizard had told him.
‘When you come to a place that’s lonely and dark, create in your mind a tiny white spark. Think of that spark and help it to grow, until it’s so big it has a bright glow.Then before you know it, you’ll have a great light, a light so bright you can see in the night.’
This was Taylor’s favorite part of the story. Taylor liked it so much because sometimes he was afraid of the dark.
Well, most of the time.
And he didn’t know what to do. Just like the knight. He was especially scared at bedtime when his parents went to bed and he was alone in his room. He was afraid that there were scary things under his bed. And inside his toy chest and in his closet, and just about everywhere else too. That’s why he liked to sleep with the light on. It wasn’t so scary with the light on.
Taylor yawned and stretched and snuggled against his mother.
“I think we’re ready for bed. What do you think?” she nudged, pulling his blanket under his chin. “Your dad and I thought you might want to try to sleep with the lights off tonight.”
Taylor sat up in his bed.
“Sleep with the lights off? In the dark? Monsters come out when it’s dark. It’s scary. Too scary.”
Taylor’s father came in and sat on the edge of his bed. “We know it can be scary. Mom and I were scared of the dark when we were your age.”
“You were? You and mom?”
“Sure. Everyone’s scared of the dark when they’re kids,” encouraged his mom.
“So why can’t we just leave the lights on until I’m as old as you?” Taylor asked.
“Well, we got something for you,” his father said smiling. “Something that will help you until you’re not scared anymore.”
He pulled something out of a small, white box.
“What is it?” Taylor asked.
“A night light.”
“A knight light?” wondered Taylor. “Do real knights use it to scare away monsters when it’s dark?”
“You bet,” said his dad, walking over to the wall and plugging it in. “It helps them to see in their castles when they go to bed. Just like it’ll help you. See?”
When Taylor’s father turned off the big light, the little light came on. Taylor could still see even though the big light was off. It wasn’t as bright as the lamp but it wasn’t really dark. Scary dark.
“Is it strong enough?” Taylor hoped.
“Plenty strong. We bought you the strongest one.”
Taylor sat there for a minute, looking around his room and seeing what he could see. He could see his bed, and his toy chest, and his closet door. But what really mattered, he could see his parents.”
“You’re sure it’s strong? The monsters won’t come?”
“We promise. All the bravest knights have one.”
Taylor’s mom gave him a big kiss and tucked him into his bed while rubbing his head.
Taylor’s father stood at attention in front of the light.
“Oh bright light, light of the night, do your duty and protect this knight.”
He turned and saluted Taylor. Taylor smiled and saluted back. His parents closed the door behind them.
Taylor sat there looking around his room. He was still scared. He was used to his room being much brighter. Looking over at the knight light, Taylor wondered how something so small could scare away scary things which were so big.
He yawned. After a few minutes, as he squinted at the knight light, Taylor drifted off to sleep.
Not too long after he fell asleep, a noise woke him up. A scary noise. He ducked under his covers and scrunched up into a little ball. Slowly and quietly he reached for his favorite knight, but as he pulled his hand back, the knight fell to the floor below.
“Oh no,” Taylor moaned. “I can’t get him now, the dragon under the bed will get me.” He pulled the blanket tighter to keep the dragon out. He held his breath as long as he could, trying to hear whether the dragon had heard him.
He was scared.
“Get you? Why would the dragon want to get you?” asked a voice Taylor didn’t recognize.
“Who’s that?” Taylor whispered.
When Taylor peeked out from his blankets, he couldn’t believe what he saw. It was his knight light. But now instead of a plastic cover, Taylor saw the face of the knight. The knight from his favorite story.
“Sir Light of the Night,” whispered Taylor again, not quite believing what he was seeing.
“Tis I. At your service, Squire Taylor.”
“Squire? Me?” wondering how he’d become a squire and why Sir Light was in his bedroom.
“Well of course. All knights-to-be must be squires first. But that will come later. First I must teach you about how to find and use your Magic Light.”
“My Magic Light?” Taylor repeated, emerging from under his blankets and rubbing his eyes.
“That is right. You have always had it, but never learned to use it. Not yet. Every little boy and girl has one. And it is my duty to help you find and use it. For it’s one of the most powerful lights of all. Stronger than I, stronger than a thousand of your lamps, even stronger than the Sun.”
“Wow! What does it do? How does it work?”
“It helps you see things the way you want to see them. The way they should be. Let’s take your dangerous dragon, for example. You’re afraid to pick up your toy knight because you think a mean, ugly dragon will get you. But if you think about it, you are a juicy boy and your dragon only likes to eat only dry dust. Under-the-bed dust, to be more precise.”
“Dust?” Taylor asked, looking over the edge of his bed carefully, still a bit scared of what he might see.
“Well, yours does. Other dragons eat old socks. Some eat marbles. A dragon I once knew ate only moonbeams. You’re lucky your Dust Dragon is there.”
“I am?”
“Indeed. Otherwise there would be so much dust under your bed your bed would be touching the ceiling!”
“Gee, the ceiling?” Taylor imagined. “So he doesn’t eat boys?”
“Most certainly not,” proclaimed Sir Light.
“And he’s not scary looking? I always thought he’d be scary looking.”
“See for yourself,” encouraged Sir Light.
Just then, a Dust Dragon slowly poked his head out from under Taylor’s bed. He was much smaller than Taylor had imagined and he wasn’t scary at all. He had big fluffy eyebrows and a big fluffy beard which were all covered with lots of fluffy dust.
“Oh, hello,” Taylor said waving, relieved to see that the scary monster he’d imagined wasn’t scary. Not scary at all.
The dragon looked up at Taylor.
“Hello,” said the Dust Dragon. “Sorry if I woke you. But all this dust makes me snee… snee…, SNEEZE!” The dragon sneezed loudly and then tucked back under the bed to eat some more dust.
“Dust Dragons. What sneezers!” chuckled Sir Light.
“Yeah, what sneezers!” agreed Taylor.
Taylor looked around his room at the spooky shadows and dark corners.
“What about the scary thing in my toy chest?”
“To be scared of a Toy Troll is silly. He wouldn’t even hurt a toy fly.”
“Toy Troll? In my toy chest?” Taylor asked as he slid down off his bed and made his way slowly to the big, wooden trunk. He was still a little scared.
“What does he look like, Sir Light,” asked Taylor.
“Close your eyes and you make him look the way you want him to look. It’s just like pretending.”
Taylor closed his eyes, thought for second, then opened the lid and looked down over the edge. Surrounded by toys, he didn’t see the scariest troll but the hairiest. He was playing with a fire engine with his hands and a soccer ball with his feet. He was even trying to wear Taylor’s football helmet. But it was much too small for his hairy head.
Taylor giggled. So did the troll.
“I sure like your toys!” laughed the troll, spinning the top on the end of his nose. “Thanks for letting me play with them!”
“You’re not scary,” Taylor said.
“Scary?! No, no, my name is Harry!” He giggled again.
“Put everything back when you’re done when you’re finished playing, ok?” Taylor asked, happy to share with someone who obviously enjoyed toys as much as he did.
The troll winked and nodded and buried himself under Taylor’s blue kite.
Taylor hopped back onto his bed.
“I always thought there was something scary in there. Something I couldn’t see. But something scary. Now I can see that he’s really silly – not scary. Not scary at all!”
“Ah, you are a fast learner, Squire Taylor. Soon you’ll be the bravest knight in the land. A knight who isn’t afraid of anything in the dark!”
Taylor walked over and sat in front of Sir Light, pulling his blanket over his back like a cape.
“Sir Light?” whispered Taylor.
“Yes, Squire Taylor?” whispered Sir Light.
“I used to be afraid of something in my closet most of all,” Taylor said, pointing to his closest door.
“Used to be? You are not anymore?”
“Well before, I thought something scary lived in there. I couldn’t see it with my eyes, but I could see it with my head.”
“And now?”
“Now it’s not scary because what I see in my head isn’t scary.”
“What do you see know?” asked Sir Light.
Taylor thought for a second. “A horse,” imagined Taylor.
“A horse? What is a horse doing in your closet?
Taylor rubbed his chin as he smiled and pictured what a horse might be doing in his closet.
“He’s trying on different shoes!” Taylor burst out laughing, seeing a horse wearing his sneakers and his bunny slippers.
“I see him as well,” laughed Sir Light. “He’s trying on your soccer cleats now!”
Just then, the closet door opened and out walked the most beautiful horse Taylor had ever seen. He looked just like the horse from his favorite story. Sir Light’s horse!
“That’s your horse. From the story!”
“He is your horse now, Sir Taylor.” proclaimed Sir Light.
Taylor looked at the horse then back to Sir Light then back to the horse.
“Mine?” Taylor asked, his eyes wide with excitement. “Hey, you called me Sir Taylor. Only knights are called ‘sir’”.
“Only knights who have found their Magic Light.”
“My Magic Light? I found it?”
“Did you have to turn on the light to see the Dust Dragon and the Toy Troll? Or discover that it was your horse in the closest and not some scary monster.”
“No, I guess I didn’t.”
“Then how did you see them?”
“I saw in my head what I wanted to see. Nice things instead of scary things. Just like pretending.”
“So you are not scared anymore?”
“No, why should I be?” Taylor smiled.
“Why, indeed! Afterall, you have learned to use your Magic Light.”
Just then, Taylor’s horse nudged him from behind.
“Why don’t you take a ride around the room and let everyone know you are not scared anymore.”
Taylor nodded as he climbed on his bed then onto his horse, who helped with a push from his nose.
“Dust Dragon, Toy Troll, and anyone who’s listening. I, Sir Taylor, am not scared anymore. I have found my Magic Light,” he declared, looking over to Sir Light smiling and waving. Sir Light smiled back.
“You can stay in my room now if you like, but when I’m ready, you’ll need to go and stay with someone else. Maybe my younger cousin Felix. He’s still scared of the dark. Is it a deal?”
“It’s a deal,” answered a chorus of voices.
At that, the horse lowered his head and Taylor slid down his nose right onto his bed. Getting under the covers, Taylor yawned.
“Thanks for helping me find my Magic Light.”
“You found it yourself,” Sir Light winked. “Have a good sleep.”
But Taylor was already dreaming. Dreaming of his new friend, his new horse, and his new powerful light.
His Magic Light.
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My Happy Birthday!
I just had a very happy day.
It was my birthday!
All my birthdays up until now have been great, but today was the best one yet.
When I woke up, I was expecting the usual. Cake, balloons, games, friends and of course, presents. Don't get me wrong, that's the stuff birthdays are made of. But today, today was something special.
I came downstairs and saw my family waiting with smiles. They pointed silently into the family room where I suspected was a pile of presents. But as I entered the room, I didn't see any.
No presents? Why the smiles?
Then they pointed at the closed curtain which was covering a big, sliding glass door. That door led to a porch which led to our back yard, pond and tree-house.
I walked up to the curtain, slowly peeking through the opening I'd created with my hands.
There were animals. Lots of animals. Everywhere!
I turned to look at my family as they shouted, "Surprise! Happy Birthday!"
I threw open the door and ran out onto the porch. As I stood there, taking it all in, a giraffe walked over, stretching her neck over the railing and blinking a big, brown eye.
"All aboarrrddd," she sang. I climbed up, slid down, and settled nicely on her back.
Zebras were playing tag on the grass. Bears and baboons were wrestling on the beach by our pond. Dolphins and otters were splashing and jumping in the water as flamingos and pelicans played catch with a tennis ball. Monkeys were throwing a frisbee from tree-to-tree as a lazy lion rested on the roof of my treehouse.
I couldn't believe my eyes. It was like having my own, personal zoo!
A toucan perched on my shoulder, singing songs and telling jokes.
"Whad'ya get when you cross a birthday cake and a trampoline?" he squawked.
"I don't know," I said, after thinking for a bit.
"A MESS!" he shouted with a big grin.
As I giggled, the giraffe just rolled her eyes. I think she'd heard that one before.
All at once the giraffe lowered her head and sent me sliding down her long neck into the pond. I had barely reached the water when a dolphin began balancing me on the tip of his nose. I was still in my pajamas!
A seal glided by on her back and offered me a complimentary, birthday fish. Though I thought she was very nice to offer, I told her I was saving room for cake.
I was having so much fun, I didn't want the day to end. But like all birthdays do, it did. The animals had to go home and I had to go to bed.
As I lay here under my blankets with the taste of cake still on my tongue, I can almost hear the splash of the dolphins, the laughter of the monkeys, the yawn of the lion.
Though I am sad to see this happy day come and go, I'm just imagining what my next birthday will be like.
I've always wanted to go to the moon.
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The Girl and the Squirrel
“You can’t go swimming or watch any TV until you clean your room.”
It was just before 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, but already it wasn’t looking good.
“Remember,” her mother reminded. “That was our deal.”
“I remember,” the girl sighed, shuffling back upstairs. “A pretty stinky deal if you ask me.”
She wandered into her sister’s room looking for some sympathy but found something else instead.
“Did you use my brush again?” her sister asked accusingly.
She didn’t wait for an answer.
“Stay out of my room. You have your own room and your own brush, too.”
“Girls, do we have a problem?” their mother asked from the kitchen.
“Where should I start?” the girl muttered, plopping herself down on her bed and staring out her window into the big maple.
Between the softly, swaying branches and the deep, red leaves, she could see two squirrels spiraling up and down its trunk.
“They’re having fun,” she said with envy.
After delaying for as long as possible before the boredom got bad, she finally cleaned her room. By this time, all the good shows were over, all her friends were off having fun at the pool, and the best day of the week was more than half over.
She sat down on the front steps and looked up and down her street and saw not much of anything. Shifting her weight to lean back on her elbows, she felt something by her leg. Looking down, she saw a snake! Scrambling and screaming, she stumbled onto the sidewalk.
She heard him before she saw him.
It was the pesky boy from next door. And he was laughing.
“Snake! Snake!” he giggled, holding his plastic prank by the tale as he wiggled it with glee.
“You are so not funny!” the girl shouted as she stomped around to the back of the house. She slid down the trunk of her tree as tears fell down her face.
“I don’t like it here anymore.”
She tilted her head back against the trunk and looked up at the blue sky through the fluttering leaves.
And then she got the idea.
“If I lived in this tree,” she thought, “there’d be no rooms to clean, no brushes to borrow, and no boys or snakes or…” her voice trailed off.
She stood up, wiped her tears away, and started to climb. Normally she went slowly, checking with each step to make sure she was solid. Not now. Not today. She was focused and she was fast.
When she had climbed as high as she could before the branches became too thin, she found a comfortable spot in the crook of two limbs. Looking around, a satisfied smile grew on her flushed face.
“I’m going to live here for the rest of my life!” she exclaimed, hoping somebody would hear. “I’ll just play all day with the squirrels, and listen to the song birds, and just… just be left alone!”
She crossed her arms with purpose.
The summer breeze blew through the leaves and her hair, cooling her brow as it passed by. For the first time, she realized how high she’d climbed. Uncrossing her arms and holding a small branch above her for support, she peered downward to her previous home. Past all the branches, down at the base of the tree, she saw something odd.
It was a squirrel. And he looked mad.
“What’s the matter? Are you mad or something?”
“Or something,” came his reply.
“What’s wrong? Do you need help?” the girl asked.
“Nope. Everything’s fine. I’ve left all my problems behind,” the squirrel answered with a twitch of his short but fluffy tail.
“Really? So have I? Where’d you leave yours?” she wondered.
“Up there,” he pointed with his nose, “up there, in that tree.”
“Here? What problems could you have up here? I came up here to live. To leave my problems behind down there.”
“Well you didn’t pick a very good place, I can tell you that,” the squirrel said. “All day long, it’s ‘Find your share of the nuts.’, or ‘Go clean your nest.’, or ‘Stop chasing your brother.’ And on top of all that, there’s a really cranky crow who is always bugging me. I want to be down here where I can go where I want, do what I want, when I want… well you know what I’m… Hey!? Why are you up there when you could be down here?”
The girl was a little confused and a lot disappointed.
“Well, I’m not down there for the same reasons you’re not up here. My mom never lets me have fun, my sister is always yelling at me, and the boy next door… well, let’s just say he sounds like the crow.”
“But what about all the fun you have. I’ve seen you in your room with your friends. My nest, my old nest I mean, is on that branch across from your window. You’re always laughing and joking and singing. That’s the kind of fun I want to have.”
“We do have fun,” the girl said smiling until her smile drooped down into a frown. “But my sister never wants me around. She’s always yelling at me for something!”
“Is that the same sister you were running through the sprinkler with last Saturday?”
The girl knew what he was getting at.
“She’s nice sometimes I guess. I don’t know why I’m mad. You’re confusing me,” the girl said. “Hey, I’ve seen you having fun, too. You and your brother seem to be having fun when you’re chasing each other from branch to branch.”
“He’s ok some of the time. Most of the time, maybe. But he still gets me in trouble!”
“He gets you in trouble, or you get yourself in trouble?” the girl asked.
The squirrel twitched his tail back and forth, slowly, thinking. “Now you’re confusing me.”
“What about the fresh air, and watching baby birds fly for the first time, and gathering nuts so you can stay chubby in the winter? Won’t you miss all that? Won’t you miss your parents?” the girl asked.
“Being a squirrel is pretty cool,” he confirmed. “We have a great view from up there, you know. But what about you? What about all the sleepovers, and pizzas with pineapple, and playing with your toys, and going to camp, and…”
”OK. OK. I get it,” the girl admitted. She looked around and shifted in the branches. Her bottom was getting a bit sore. “Maybe we don’t have it so bad after all.”
“I feel sorta silly,” the squirrel said.
“Me too,” the girl smiled. “But I don’t think anyone’s noticed yet.”
And without saying another word, the girl climbed down and the squirrel climbed up. Looking up and looking down, they winked at each other and nodded.
Back in her room the girl poked her head out her window as the squirrel balanced on the tip of the branch across from her room.
“Make sure you clean your nest,” the girl joked, shaking her finger
“Don’t bug your sister,” the squirrel added, twitching his tail.
They touched the tips of their noses and laughed.
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The Greatest in the Kingdom
¨Cock-a-doodle-doo! Cock-a-doodle-doo!"
The Royal Rooster strutted back and forth atop his royal roof, greeting the autumn sun as it peeked over the mountains. It was his official duty to wake up the whole kingdom and he took his job very seriously.
¨Wake up, wake up! The sun is here! Wake up, wake up! The day is near!"
Even at the farthest edge of the kingdom where the farms were big and wide, Justin could hear the rooster's call. He pushed off his heavy blanket and pulled on his sweater and pants.
"What will I do today?" he asked himself, looking out his window at the rising sun and the falling leaves. He didn't know, but he hoped it would be fun.
Justin's family was already awake and busily getting ready for the day.
"I'm going hunting in the Wild Woods for the king's banquet tonight," said his father.
"Can I go with you today?" asked Justin, holding out his father's bow and arrow.
"Not quite yet Justin. You're still too young. Stay with your mother today. Soon you can come. Soon."
Justin's mother was holding a basket of eggs and some blankets which she'd knitted to sell at the market.
"I’m going to the market and I'm afraid you'll get lost like last time. Why don't you stay with your brother today?" she smiled, rubbing his cheek.
"He can't come with me," his brother said as he rushed out the door. "I'll be working at the stables all day and he'll probably just get stepped on by one of the king's horses."
Justin felt sad and mad at the same time.
"I can't do anything," he said. "Nothing important anyway."
Justin went outside and looked around for Sebastian his dog, but it seemed even he had left to do something. Without Justin.
"I'm a nobody," Justin said with a sigh.
He started walking down the long, dirt road to the castle kicking a small rock along the way. Before long, he saw an old man in a hooded robe sitting on a stump. Justin couldn't really see his face but he could tell he was sad.
"Hello, my name is Justin. What's wrong? Are you lost?"
"No, I'm not lost," he said in a deep voice. "But I am looking for something I can't find."
"What are you looking for? Maybe I can help you find it."
"I'm looking for the Greatest in the Kingdom."
"Wow! The Greatest in the Kingdom," Justin said, his eyes wide with excitement. "I know that I'm small, and not very fast, and I sometimes get lost myself but I will try my hardest to help you look."
"Very well then. Let's be on our way."
"We can be friends!" Justin said happily.
He took the old man's hand to help him up, smiling from ear to ear. He was finally doing something important!
Their first stop was the Royal Bakery. Inside, the fire from the oven warmed their ears and noses and the smell of fresh bread made their stomachs growl. A short, round man with red cheeks and a white hat was busy rolling some dough.
"Excuse me sir," Justin said. "My friend and I are looking for the Greatest in the Kingdom. Is that you?"
The man stopped rolling for moment as he looked at the small boy and the hooded man.
"Well of course it's me you silly boy. If it weren’t for me, the king would have no chocolate cakes, or pecan pies, or tasty tarts for his parties and banquets. Now go away! I'm much too busy and much too important to talk to you."
With that, Justin and the old man left and continued on their way until they came upon the Town Tailor. She was busy sewing a fancy suit.
"Mrs. Tailor. My name is Justin and this is my friend. We're looking for the Greatest in the Kingdom. Is that you?"
"Greatest in the Kingdom? Could there be another? Don't you know that I make all the king's royal robes? If it weren’t for me the king would look like a thief! Be on your way. I have no time for such obvious questions!"
Justin wondered how they'd know when they'd found the Greatest in the Kingdom.
"Everyone thinks that they're the Greatest. How will we know? How can we tell?"
"I told you," said the old man. "It's not an easy search."
"That’s ok. Let's keep looking," Justin said, not wanting their adventure to end.
Just outside the castles walls, they came upon one of the king's knights. He was sitting on a big, black horse polishing some shiny medals on his uniform.
Justin was a little scared, but he was determined to help his friend.
"Pardon me, Sir," he said, waving up at the giant man. “Down here.”
"Yes?" bellowed the knight. "What is it? Can't you see I'm busy?"
"My friend and I were just wondering if you are the Greatest in the Kingdom?"
The knight laughed loudly.
"Is that a joke? Are you the new court jester? Why I've fought dangerous dragons and conquered evil enemies from here to the Serpentine Sea and back. Who do you think protects the king and his kingdom? It is I!" the knight said with a wave of his sword before galloping right past them.
Startled, Justin fell down on the muddy ground.
"Let's go inside and get you cleaned up," said the old man, helping Justin to his feet.
After the old man had given Justin a change of clothes and something to eat, they sat down on the steps that led to the king's magnificent throne.
"We've looked all day and talked to many people," said the old man. "Who do think is the Greatest?"
Justin thought for a moment about all the people they'd met.
"Well, they all have great jobs. And they all think that they are important. The most important, I guess. They all think they’re the Greatest."
“What do you think?” asked the old man.
Justin thought some more. "Even though we didn't talk to him, I still think the king is the Greatest in the Kingdom.”
"What makes the king the Greatest?"
"He's the Greatest not because he's king, but because he makes everyone else around him feel like they're kings. Like his baker, and tailor, and knight. The king makes them feel special and important. He makes them feel great," Justin smiled.
The old man smiled beneath his hood and laughed softly.
"That's why, my dear friend Justin," the old man said as he pulled off his hood, "that I think you're the Greatest in the Kingdom. Because that's the way you made me feel. Wondering if I was sad or lost. Wanting to help me. Calling me your friend."
Justin looked at the old man's face and recognized him right away.
"The King! You're the King!" Justin shouted in disbelief.
The King laughed and patted Justin on the head.
"Why were we looking for Greatest when that's what you already are?" Justin asked, scratching his head.
"Well, Justin. I have no heir. No one to be king after me. I began searching for someone with a pure and good heart. Someone helpful and friendly. Someone who would treat me like a king before knowing who I was. Someone who would make everyone feel great.”
“But I haven’t done anything great yet! I can’t even go to the market without getting lost! How can I be the King?”
“You don't need to have done important things to be important. You're important just they way you are. You're the new King!"
Justin couldn't believe it. He was so happy and so grateful. He looked around the throne room and than back at the King. He was smiling so hard his cheeks hurt.
"I promise to be the best king I can be. To make everyone else feel as special me!"