Hello everyone,
I know I do not say this enough so I will say it now, thank you, all of you, so much for supporting MO-TELL. We have wonderful members and followers on our team, and I am so grateful. Many thanks to the board, Sue Hinkel, Jim Two Crows Wallen, Gary Kuntz, Linda Kuntz and Perrin Stifel and to our volunteers. We would not be where we are without them. Thank you, Ken Wolfe, as creative director of the newsletter. We would love to have more followers so if any of you are interested in joining the board or volunteering for MO-TELL, let me know.
The Liar’s Contest on July 11, proved that Missouri Storytelling is important to a lot of people both in and out of Missouri. There was a great audience in attendance from all over. Even our judges came from a variety of states, Missouri, Kansas, Massachusetts and Hawaii. Our tellers were from Missouri and Illinois. What a day! Thank you for being there.
For now, storytelling in the Missouri State Parks and Historic Sites is on hold, but we are talking to the parks personnel and making plans. Thanks for your patience.
Schools all over are opening up again either virtually, in person or a hybrid method. Please stay safe and healthy.
Let us hear from you.
“Things worth telling - take time”
― Nicholas Denmon
Joseph Bubenik met Ken Wolfe as officers of the Saint Louis Beard and Mustache Club. As their friendship grew, Ken shared his love of story with Joseph and encouraged him to submit an entry for the 2020 MO-TELL Missouri Liar's Contest. On his first try, he placed third in the written category. Joseph thought the Missouri Liar's Contest was fun and is already planning his next entry for 2021.
Joseph relishes writing stories. He likes to pick and choose his words with care. He may twist or curl a sentence to achieve his goal to express his thoughts as carefully as he styles his beard and mustache. In school, he wished he had more opportunities for creative writing, and now, as a thirty-something, Joseph doesn't need to wait for an assignment; he can be a creative writer whenever he wants.
Joseph is a native of St. Louis. About two months ago, he started working on a podcast which is similar to the film, "Big Fish," where he takes stories from his life and turns them into unbelievable takes. Having five children, he and his wife, Alison, have lots of material to choose from. Making it a family project, his children help Joseph with sound effects on his current podcast, Downright Lies, which you can find on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Google Podcasts.
Professionally, Joseph is a house painter, but his creativity spills out in all areas of his life. He has written and published a children's Christmas story, Believer: Book One of the Yuletide Tales, which is available on Amazon or Kindle. Book Two: Wonderworker is in the works.
Joseph is just dipping his toe into the world of storytelling and wonders what MO-TELL is doing to reach out to younger generations – 20 to 40 year-olds who may not even realize they have a story to tell.
A story from Burma and Thailand retold by Margaret Read McDonald.
Variants may be found in Burmese and Thai Fairy Tales by Eleanor Brockett (Follett, 1965); A Kingdom for a Drop of Honey and Other Burmese Folktales by Maung Htin Aung and Helen G. Trager (Parent’s Magazine Press, 1969); and The Tales from Thailand by Marian Davies Toth (Charles Tuttle, 1971)
The king sat with his advisor, eating honey on puffed rice. As they ate, the leaned from the palace window and watched the street below. They talked of this and that. The king, not paying attention, let a drop of honey fall onto the windowsill. “Oh, sire, let me wipe that up,” offered the advisor. “Never mind,” said the king. “It is not our problem. The servants will clean it later.”
As the two continued to dine on their honey and puffed rice, the drop of honey slowly began to drip down the windowsill. At last it fell with a plop onto the street below. Soon a fly landed on the honey and began its own meal. Immediately a gecko sprang from under the palace, and with the flip of its long tongue, swallowed the fly. But a cat had seen the gecko and pounced. Then a dog sprang forward and attacked the cat!
“Sire, there seems to be a cat-and-dog fight in the street. Should we call someone to stop it? “Never mind,” said the king. “It is not our problem.” So, the two continued to munch their honey and puffed rice.
Meanwhile, the cat’s owner had arrived and was beating the dog. The dog’s owner ran up and began to beat the cat. Soon the two were beating each other.
“Sire, there are two persons fighting in the street now. Shouldn’t we send someone to break this up?” The king lazily looked from the window. “Never mind. It’s not our problem.”
The friends of the cat owner gathered and began to cheer him on. The friends of the dog owner began to cheer her on as well. Soon both groups entered the fight and attacked each other.
“Sire, a number of people are fighting in the street now. Perhaps we should call someone to break this up.” The king was even too lazy to look. You can guess what he said. “Never mind. It is not our problem.”
Now soldiers arrived on the scene. At first, they tried to break up the fighting. But when they heard the cause of the fight, some sided with the cat owner. Others sided with the dog owner. Soon the soldiers too had joined the fight. With the soldiers now involved, the fight erupted into civil war. Houses were burned down. People were harmed. The palace itself was set afire and burned to the ground.
The king and his advisor stood surveying the ruins. “Perhaps I was wrong,” said the king. “Perhaps the drop of honey was our problem.”