And now for Benjamin's tale...

He needed a little more help with his rewriting because he doesn't love writing. I was impressed he was able to squeeze out an entire draft at all (he rarely finishes his stories) but he was not keen on changing anything when I told him he'd need to rework parts of his story. So I typed up his manuscript for him and let him explain parts of his story to me orally until he'd filled in enough details that we were both satisfied.

The Three Animals of Ireland (and a Knight)

One hundred years in the past, dragons and trolls roamed Ireland.

GOAT: Can we go to the castle to graze?

KNIGHT: Yes, let me see if it is safe.

NARRATOR: So the knight got out his horn and blew. When he blew there was a thud as a rope bridge was unfurled across the sea.

GOAT: Yay!

NARRATOR: So the goat went across the bridge.

DRAGON: Who is that stomping on my bridge?

GOAT: It is me.

DRAGON: Well, I’m coming to eat you up!

GOAT: Wait for sheep. She’s much, much bigger.

DRAGON: Well, go on then.

GOAT: Yay!

DRAGON: Go!

GOAT: Okay.


SHEEP: Where is goat? I will go and see where he is.

NARRATOR: So the sheep started going across the bridge. But the sheep stopped.

DRAGON: Who’s that trapping over my bridge?

SHEEP: Only I.

DRAGON: I am going to eat you up!

SHEEP: Wait for Knight. He’s much, much, much bigger.

DRAGON: Go on then.

SHEEP: Yay!

DRAGON: Go.

SHEEP: Okay.

NARRATOR: So sheep went across the bridge.

DRAGON: I’m going to eat the knight right up when he comes.

KNIGHT: Cow, stay here. Come across the bridge if I don’t come back, okay?

COW: Okay. 

KNIGHT: Bye.

NARRATOR: So the knight started across the bridge.

DRAGON: Who’s on my bridge?

KNIGHT (pulling out his sword): Me.

DRAGON: I’m going to eat you!

KNIGHT: Wait for cow. He's much, much bigger!

DRAGON: Fine—go!

KNIGHT (to himself): Cow can kill that mean old dragon with his horns fair and square.

COW: Where is knight? I should go across the bridge to find knight, sheep, and goat. 

NARRATOR: So cow went across.

DRAGON: Who are you?

Cow: Cow.

DRAGON: I’m coming to eat you!

Cow: I have two horns, so come on!

NARRATOR: So the dragon came up and the cow charged at him. Then...KAPOW!

DRAGON: *moan*

COW: Yay!

NARRATOR: So the cow went across and joined his family.

THE END

And here his his story with his edits in place. He really is a rather imaginative child (with quite an impressive vocabulary) but getting him to transfer his thoughts onto paper is...a challenge. He's excited with his finished product, however, and is busily working on puppets now. Hopefully we'll have time to record these next week (and by that, I mean: we'll record these next week because I'm the boss of this outfit and I say so).

Here's his finished copy:

One hundred years in the past, dragons and trolls roamed the green fields and hills of the sister nations, Scotland and Ireland. Ireland was protected by a huge and terrible water dragon. It rose from the sea and ate anything that tried to come across.

Now, on the Isle of Islay in Scotland, there lived a cow, a sheep, and a goat. A brave knight watched over the animals as they grazed and looked longingly over the Irish Sea at the beautiful Dunluce Castle. Noticing the knight’s desire, the goat said…

GOAT: Can we go over the sea to graze on the castle grounds?

KNIGHT: It’s not very safe. There is a large and terrible water dragon that eats everything that tries to get to Ireland. But, I have this magic horn that conjures a rope bridge across the Irish Sea. We can cross, but we will have to trick that dragon into letting us cross.

NARRATOR: The knight blew the horn, which he had gotten from a magical cow and a bridge unfurled across the sea. These magical cows of Scotland hold a lot of magic in their horns and anyone who has a horn can wish for anything that they need. 

GOAT: I will try to go across, then sheep, then you, and then cow will finish the dragon off.

NARRATOR: So the goat started across the bridge when waves started whooshing around the bridge and the big and terrible sea dragon rose from the waves.

DRAGON: Who is that tripping over my bridge?

GOAT: It is me.

DRAGON: Well, I’m coming to eat you up!

GOAT: Wait for sheep. She’s much, much bigger.

NARRATOR: The dragon thought about this for a minute and finally he said...

DRAGON: Fine. You may go across, but don’t come again!

NARRATOR: So the goat ran across the bridge quickly and got to the other side. Next it was sheep’s turn. The sheep started going across the bridge. But then stopped as the waves got wild. Soon the wild, rippling waves dissolved into the big and terrible sea dragon.

DRAGON: Who’s that trapping over my bridge?

SHEEP: Only I.

DRAGON: I am going to eat you up!

SHEEP: Wait for the knight. He’s much, much, much bigger.

NARRATOR: So the dragon thought for a minute. He’d already let the goat go and he sure was hungry. Still, the thought of a human was much, much tastier than regular ol’ haggis. 

DRAGON: Go on then.

NARRATOR: So sheep went across the bridge very fast.

DRAGON: I’m going to eat the knight right up when he comes and I’ll use his sword as a toothpick!

NARRATOR: The knight started across the bridge but soon the rippling waves became more wild than they ever had yet. And then the huge and terrible sea dragon appeared.

DRAGON: Who’s on my bridge?

KNIGHT (pulling out his sword): Me.

DRAGON: I’m going to eat you!

KNIGHT: You can eat my blade!

NARRATOR: The knight pierced the dragon’s thick skin, but when he pulled his sword back out, the dragon’s wound sealed up again, like water rushing back together. Realizing that he could never win, the knight begged for mercy...

KNIGHT: Please, don’t eat me! Wait for the cow! It will make a much better meal than me! And it’s a magical cow, so if you eat it you will get much bigger and more powerful!

NARRATOR: The dragon thought about this and said...

DRAGON: Fine. I’ll wait. 

NARRATOR: So the knight ran the rest of the way across the bridge.

KNIGHT (to himself): Cow can kill that mean old dragon with his horns fair and square.

COW: Where is knight? I should go across the bridge to find knight, sheep, and goat. 

NARRATOR: So cow started across the bridge when the waves started rippling and raging, and then from those waves arose the huge and terrible dragon!

DRAGON: Who goes there?

Cow: Cow.

DRAGON: I’m coming to eat you!

Cow: I have two magic horns and four strong hooves, so come on up!

NARRATOR: So the dragon came up and the cow charged at him. Then...KAPOW! The cow used his magic and fire whooshed out of the tips of his horns and hit the sea dragon’s stomach so hard that the dragon fell on top of the bridge and moaned.

DRAGON: *moan*

NARRATOR: The dragon tried to put the fire on his burning stomach out, but he could only conjure a single drop of water, which sizzled when it came close to the scorching fire. And the dragon melted into a puddle which seeped through the bridge and into the ocean. And that was the end of the dragon. 

NARRATOR: So the cow went across and joined his friends: the goat, the sheep, and the brave knight and they all lived happily ever after at Dunluce Castle.

THE END