Three Wishes for a Dragon

Saying for the Day- Almost as many people believe in dragons as believe in George Bush.

It's time for another elf tale.
Once upon the time from which legends come dragons roamed the earth. There were good dragons and there were bad dragons. Good dragons never ate people because people could talk and think just like dragons. Bad dragons didn’t care if people could talk or think they just cared if they tasted good. So bad dragons went along catching people and feasting on them whenever possible. Good dragons ate dogs , cats, horses, chickens, apples, plums, cherries and lots of other things. After a few centuries they stopped eating dogs because people seemed to like dogs. That is the good dragons stopped eating dogs. The bad dragons ate the dog and the people with the dog. The dog was like desert.
Some dragons had the ability to take human form and walk and talk with them. The human form, however, could only be held for an hour or so and then they would begin to change back. Bad dragons liked to spend a little time talking to their dinner which shows you how bad they really were.
In the midst of the age of dragons Bob was born. His father was also named Bob and his grandfather as well. Every two or three centuries another dragon entered the line and they were always named Bob. Dragons, as I’m sure you know, had very long life spans, well over a thousand years. The Bob line were all good dragons. That may have been because way back in time one of the first Bob’s ate a person and had an allergic reaction. She sneezed fire for a week burning down most of the forest around her. After that time no Bob ever ate a human being. Over the centuries Bob’s walked and talked with humans and discovered they had a lot in common . They share similar hopes and dreams. The Bob’s not only didn’t eat humans they actually began to like them.
As the centuries past the struggle between the humans and the bad dragons became more intense. Many humans were eaten and some dragons died from a lucky spear throw or an arrow that caught the dragon’s one vulnerable spot. This made one Bob or another very sad. Humans, not being as smart as they sometimes think they are even killed a Bob, not being able to tell the difference between good dragons and bad dragons. Their moto was “ The only good dragon is a dead dragon”. Poor Bob saw the day when there would either be no humans or no dragons. He was not happy with either picture.
So as often as possible Bob took human form and tried to convince people that some dragons were good. But you know how people are . When they know they are right you can’t talk to them. So Bob was not making any headway either with humans or dragons. Indeed some of the good dragons were afraid they would have to start killing humans just to defend themselves.
One day when Bob was in human form he saw an old lady who was pleading with everybody that passed by to stop and chop her wood. It seems winter was coming on, her husband had died, and she was to weak to chop it. She begged for help. But no human would take the time to help her. Humans were not much for good deeds in those days not like today when everybody stands ready to help.
So Bob decided to help her. Being much stronger than any person Bob quickly finished the wood and piled it next to the house. The woman cried and thanked him over and over. Bob just smiled and started down the road. Suddenly he was joined by a short man in a green robe with funny sandals with curly toes. I saw your good deed the man said and I am going to give you three wishes. Bob said I have to tell you something first. I’m not human.
“I know, you’re a dragon” said the elf.
“I thought you only gave wishes to people” said Bob.
“ That’s true but there just aren’t many people in this age that do good deeds the elf muttered.
“ And I thought you only gave out only one wish”. Exclaimed Bob
“Well we have all these wishes backed up because nobody is earning them. Bookkeeping wants us to dump as many as possible”. Our elf said looking very sad.
Bob felt sorry for the elf and said he would take the wishes but he needed a little time to decide what to wish for.
The elf , of course, gave him that time. So after a month of thinking Bob was ready and he wished the following three wishes.
1. That every dragon would have the ability to become invisible at will and take human form for as long as three weeks.
2. Any dragon that ate a human would lose the power to become invisible and to take human form.
3. When a dragon dies it’s body would instantly disintegrate leaving no trace.
In the centuries that followed the bad dragons were one by one wiped out. The last one was killed by the mighty St. Urho of Finland with a pasty as recorded in the Finnish Epic Poem St. Urho Dragon Slayer.
The good dragons flew on but humans for the most part didn’t know they were there, invisibility is a wonderful thing. They walked among humans in human form and called no attention to themselves. In time they became in the minds of men simply legends.
But, my friends the dragons are still here. How do I know? Well one English dragon named Bob, well what name did you expect, was a good friend of my grandfather James. He told James the story and let him see him as a dragon. When James came to America Bob flew over as well. He got here ahead of James. Once he was settled in my grandfather raised chickens just so Bob could have some. When I was a little boy my grandfather introduced me to Bob. Bob flew by the farm and ended my goose problem.
I still see him now and then. He stopped by the other day and I took him to Arby’s for lunch. Even in human form he eats an awful lot.
He said it was ok to tell you this story because like all humans you won’t believe it anyway.
#### News from Pigeon Falls-The little town in my basement where the trains still run, dragons fly, and life is back to normal. Last night the dragon flew. He came right down main street Pigeon Falls breathing fire. It had just finished snowing. Kids were playing in the street since there was no school. Everybody saw it. The strange thing is nobody gets excited anymore when the dragon comes. It is just part of life in Pigeon Falls. Like Nancy’s poltergeist people just take it in stride. A visitor, of which there were none yesterday, might be surprised at a dragon or a floating tea cup but not Pigeon Falls residents. This is normal everyday living. They have quit talking about it to outsiders because though the dragon doesn’t bother them people that want to catch it do.
Of course, the two variety stores still have dragon stuff but that’s because nobody believes what’s on a T-shirt anyway. They think it’s just a sales gimmick. When cups fly around at Nancy’s visitors think that Nancy is some kind of magician and it’s just a trick. People who don’t want to believe just don’t want to believe.
In any case last night the dragon flew. Nothing caught fire but a bit of the snow melted.
The Museum Board is wondering if they should have a weird room where all the odd things from the stone man to the six foot white rabbit are detailed. That hasn’t been decided yet. There are some on the Board who feel there are some tales that shouldn’t be told.
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Today's Link-Chronicles of a Country Girl- Great hortse pictures
After breakfast this morning I took a bath. I don't want you to think I never take a bath but it is not a frequent occurrence. Today I was going to the meeting of the Appleton Clergy Conference. I was going to meet the active pastors and the retired pastors from the area and they were paying for my meal. So I had to get ready. At 12:15 we showed up at the Old Country Buffet. The former Pastor of St. Mark’s was there you can see him in the picture at the end of this nonsense. After the lunch there were introductions and announcements. I learned a lot. The only disappointment was that Betty and I had planned on going shopping after the meeting but it was raining. We decided that we couldn’t get my scooter out of the back of the van without getting wet so we came home. It was still a good trip. Then I visited all my links. Now I need a breathing treatment.
GBYA