Hello,
This is davidji and welcome to today's sleep story,
The elves and the shoemaker,
A grim's fairy tale.
Let's find a comfortable place to sit or lie down.
Let's relax into wherever we're sitting or lying down.
This beautiful parable reminds us that the kindness we receive,
We can effortlessly flow back out into the world.
And that every time we receive a kindness,
We can return that and make a powerful difference in the lives of others.
Receiving love and flowing love back out.
Receiving kindness and flowing kindness back out.
Just as we breathe in air,
Allow it to fill us,
And then exhale air back out,
We are uniquely created to bring in all the sweetness of life and flow it back out to everyone we know.
So as you're laying with your head on your pillow,
As you're laying there with your arms,
Resting gently by your side,
Take a long,
Slow,
Deep breath in,
And gently release it.
Let's do that one more time.
And as you breathe in,
Watch your breath,
And as you breathe out,
Continue to observe it.
And just see if you can watch it with your eyes closed as it flows in,
And as it flows back out.
Notice your toes are relaxed,
Your legs are relaxed,
Your belly is relaxed,
Your shoulders are relaxed,
And your head is relaxed.
Your hands,
Your arms,
Just laying there with you,
Feeling light as a feather.
Your mind is calm,
You're feeling peaceful,
And so let's begin.
There once was a shoemaker who worked very hard and was very honest.
Still,
He could not earn enough to live upon,
And at last all he had in the world was gone,
Save just enough leather to make one pair of shoes.
Then he cut his leather out all ready to make up the next day,
Meaning to rise early in the morning to his work.
His conscience was clear,
And his heart,
Light,
Amidst all his troubles.
So he went peaceably to bed,
Left all his cares to heaven,
And soon fell asleep.
In the morning,
After he had said his prayers,
He set himself down to his work,
When to his great wonder there stood the shoes already made upon the table.
The good man knew not what to say or think at such an odd thing happening.
He looked at the workmanship.
There was not one false stitch in the whole job.
All was so neat and true that it was quite a masterpiece.
The same day,
A customer came in,
And the shoes suited him so well that he willingly paid a price higher than usual for them.
The poor shoemaker,
With the money,
Bought leather enough to make two pairs more.
In the evening,
He cut out the work and went to bed early,
That he might get up and begin the next day.
But he was saved all the trouble,
For when he got up in the morning,
The work was done ready to his hand.
Soon in came buyers who paid him handsomely for his goods,
So that he bought leather enough for four pair more.
He cut out the work again overnight and found it done in the morning,
Just as before.
And so it went on for some time.
What was got ready in the evening was always done by daybreak,
And the good man soon became thriving and well off.
One evening,
About Christmas time,
As he and his wife were sitting over the fire chatting together,
He said to her,
I should like to sit up and watch tonight,
So that we may see who it is that comes and does my work for me.
The wife liked the thought,
So they left the light burning,
Hid themselves in a corner of the room behind a curtain that was hung up there and watched what would happen.
As soon as it was midnight,
There came two little elves,
And they sat themselves upon the shoemaker's bench,
Took up all the work that was cut out,
And began to ply with their little fingers,
Stitching and wrapping and tapping away,
At such a rate that the shoemaker was all wonder and could not take his eyes off them.
And on they went,
Till the job was quite done,
And the shoes stood ready for use upon the table.
This was long before daybreak,
And then they bustled away as quick as lightning.
The next day,
The wife said to the shoemaker,
These dear elves have been so kind to us,
And we ought to be thankful to them and do them a good turn if we can.
I am quite sorry to see them run about as they do,
And it hurts my heart,
For they have so little clothes,
I believe they are very cold.
I'll tell you what.
I will make each of them a shirt,
Coat,
Waistcoat,
And pair of pantaloons,
And you make each of them a little pair of shoes.
The thought pleased the good cobbler very much,
And one evening,
When all the things were ready,
They laid them on the table instead of the work that they used to cut out,
And then went and hid themselves to watch what the little elves would do.
About midnight in they came,
Dancing and skipping,
Hopping around the room,
And then went to sit down to their work as usual,
But when they saw the clothes lying before them,
They laughed and chuckled and seemed mightily delighted.
Then they dressed themselves in the twinkling of an eye,
And danced and capered and sprang about as merry as could be,
Till at last they danced out the door and away over the green.
The good couple saw them no more,
But everything went well with them from that time forward,
For the rest of their lives.
Pleasant dreams.
