Our Fieldtrip to Remick (Connor)

A couple of days ago my sister and my mom and I went to a museum called Remick. First we learned about tin and how it was made and how a lot of stuff called tin was not tin, like tin cans. We did a fun project. What we did is we used safety goggles, a hammer, a piece of tin, and a nail. We hammered the nail into the tin and made imprints like stars and apples. and then when we finished we went into a big room and there was a big fire stove and we were taught how they used to bake in the older days when they didn't have ovens or  measuring cups. They had to estimate with there hands and that is what we did. And we learned how they had different things they used to bake or cook different things. And then we went to make candles. We learned about how different candles did different things for people in the olden days. and about how people used to use whale fat for candles and we made our own candles. Then got the biscuits we made earlier and left it was a super fun field trip!
By: Connor (Age 9)

Our Christmas party (Shaila)

~Little House Christmas Party~

Hey I am going to tell you about the Little house party we did, I think some of you know about the book Little house maybe you have not read the hole season but enough about that here is what we did at the party: We made some food and then we played outside which was so much fun and I loved it!!!!!!!!! And I think that everybody loved it! Oh and my friend Anna was there!!!!!!!!!!!! And all of our friends were there! I hope that all of them loved it. And then we ate candy canes! Oh and we had apple cider and eggnog and everything for Christmas drinks (And food of course) I loved it so much so that was our little house party thank you for listening bye!
By: Shaila Age: 7

"Never Joke Around In the Underworld" (Shaila)

~My Mixed Up Myth: Never Joke Around in the Underworld~

My mixed up myth story: by Shaila Moira Piercey: Characters: Persephone Hades and Zeus: Setting: Earth and the Underworld: Problem or situation: They fall down a hole: They got out of the Underworld hole: This Greek myth explains that you should never ever fool around:

Once upon a time there were 3 gods, They were going to do a sleepover that night and they got to stay the entire day! And they were so excited! And then they were fooling around when Zeus picked up a sword!(Like a fake sword of course) And then Persephone said awe Zeus put that down!! Then Hades picked up a fake sword too! And then they were sword fighting! And then they fell into a hole! Which was going to the Underworld! And then Persephone called down and then she started crying and the flowers started fading and disappearing and then she said Wait have to control myself okay here goes! Oof! She jumped and then fell into the Underworld! Then she said boys were are you!? She started shaking and then a few hours later she found them few! There you are! Now let’s go home ok? Okay then they went up the Underworld! And when they got up they learned to never play or joke around again.

The End

By: Shaila Age: 7

New Hampshire Farm Museum Field Trip (Aidan, Shaila, and Connor)

~New Hampshire Farm Museum Field Trip~

~Farm Museum by Aidan~

       Brandan, Shaila, Connor, Mom, and I all went to a New Hampshire farm museum where we learned about the time period around the civil war era. We started the tour by splitting up into groups. We learned that the farmhouse had been built by a man whose daughter was married to a smith. The fathers wedding gift was a small cape that was attached to the house. The smith turned it into a tavern, which was the only way traveling people got food and rest in that era. He painted it a tan color, which showed hungry and weary travelers who did not know how to read that the tavern was a place to rest and eat. Next to it was a sign with a red heart in the middle, and in the bottom left corner, a sign that showed the owner was a smith. A smith was a popular job. All of the founding fathers had been smiths.
     
       After this we were sent to different stations where we were to prepare food as it was prepared in the olden days. We were to skin and chop vegetables that would be roasted in a pan spread with olive oil. The children were handed skinning tools and a precariously long and dull knife. The vegetables were slowly but surely skinned and chopped, varying in size, but still ready to be roasted.

       In the end, we left to tour the farm. It was self guided, and we were to set out on a treasure hunt. We started with the barn tour, the barn echoing with the cries of people who had found various items. We also had to trip around an extremely long sled, which had been donated to the farm museum a while ago. It was almost as long as a 120 foot long barn, and also reached the breakneck speeds of 80 miles per hour, not your usual bob sled that children sled down hills covered with snow.

       After that we mounted a wagon hitched to the back of a small red tractor. We road to the pigpen to find a rather large and ugly pig. It had long been to large to eat, so she was meant to have piglets next spring. We then drove to a small building which was held up entirely with wooden pegs, not nails. It was the house of an apple pressing machine, and we learned about different apples pressed there. We learned that there were 7,500 different kinds of apples, all whose origins came from one small village. We then were shown how to pick apples using different techniques, and then left the barn, feeling a apple press machine on the way. It had a crank on it, which had used to be rough enough to cut your hand. But the rough metal had been rubbed so many times by hands cranking the machine that it felt smooth.
     
      We then set up for a feast! Everyone sat down and ate freshly made cornbread with hand churned butter ( the cornbread made from scratch by the visitors), roasted vegetables, (also made from scratch by students, fresh apple crisp (or more like apples with a special sauce over it, apples freshly picked from the farms orchard), which had been made on a tripod over a fire outside, and fresh apple cider (apples also picked from the farms orchard. After the feast we cleaned up, and left for home.
Aidan (Age 12)

~Farm Museum by Shaila~

Hey I am going to tell you about the farm museum!

So it all started when we went there it took a little while to get ready to go but we did it! So we went on the long relaxing trip. Well really I got a lot car sick! And I could not really read farmer boy which is our book we are reading for school. But finally we got there! And we all went into the yard they had there it was like a house owned by people. And there was a cow a fake one of course that we got to milk! Well really water came out and there was a pump were you could pump out water! And we had buckets to bring the water to the cow, And then there was a hole on the back of the cow I mean on its back, And we had to dump the water in there! And then the program began! And then she had her daughter there and her name was Betsy. And so she helped us! And our friends were there!
Shaila (Age 7)

~Farm Museum by Connor~

We left for our field  trip to the NH farm museum and  finally got there on time. Then I went over with Shaila and Aidan to milk the cow. There was a pump and a fake cow. First you pumped the pump,  and then you dumped the water into the cow and then milked the cow. The pump was running out of water and one of the udders kept popping  out, making a flood of water under the cow. Then we left there to  hear where we would be going.  First we were going to make roasted vegetables. The lady helping said to very carefully peel the vegetables. Then she pulled out a wet cutting board and a massive dull butchers knife but still super  dangerous . Parents  were ready to cut. They were wishing the knife wasn't so dull because they did not want to hurt themselves. Ready to tell the children to stand back, the lady said, “Oh, I thought maybe the children could use that knife to cut this squash and onions and potatoes.” The kids happily started cutting. Fingers slipping, the parents had to close  their eyes a couple of times. Then, after we were done, we did a barn treasure hunt. It was really fun, and it was a self-guided tour mostly for the kids. Than we did a tractor ride. It was really fun. We drove around the farm, and then we stopped at an apple orchard that had seven trees, and all the kids got in line. But this time they said that a parent should haul over the bucket and go pick the apples while the kids watched.  Then we went and fed a massive pig that they had, and they were going let it have piglets. Then we went to a place to learn about apple cider and stuff like that. Did you know that there are  7,500 types of named apples? The biggest apple on earth that they know of is called the 20 ounce apple, and like its name it is twenty ounces!!!!   After that we learned about different apple picking tools, and one of them was a massive toothed saw!!!!  The guide said all of the little kids could feel the top of it and said the parents did not need to. Then we were going to have a tour of the house, But there was not enough time to. But everybody else had made food, so we all ate what the five different groups made, and it was so fun. Then I played with my friend, and then we went home.  The End

My soccer (Shaila)

I loved all of my soccer it was so much fun and I loved soccer this year! And I am hoping to maybe do it next year that would be so much fun and mostly my dad or mom would bring me. And they would cheer me on and my brother Connor sometimes would come to and he did soccer for a few year! That is how I got the idea of doing soccer, And my last game was last week I think. I think we won a few games! The teams we went against were very hard to go against! And it might be even harder teams to go against next year! And I went against red dark blue and... Oh I can not really remember but still I had lots of fun! And oh silly me I forgot to tell you we were the light blue team. And I had very good players on the team but two of them could not make it. And all of the players were very very very nice once I got to know them. And I am very glad about that. And really I think all of them were very nice even in the first day of soccer. And lots of them were there on the last day of my game! And my hole family came so did the twins and we all went out together and then one of my aunts came! Now that was a really nice thing! And my uncle could not come because he had to go to a problem at his work so ya. And he said that he was sad that he could not come. But so ya my soccer was super duper fun! Thank you for listening bye.

The
End.

Shaila's Birthday Essay (Shaila)

My Birthday in the fall,

I loved my birthday it was so much fun and we made apple dumplings and lots and lots of ice cream and then let me tell you a story about making that ice cream. So we were happily making ice cream and then the motor broke. And then it stopped and we all thought that it was very weird cause we did not know that the motor broke. So Ethan had to crank it by hand and then he came upstairs and said mom I think this is done so he came up with perfect ice cream but his face was red! It was so funny so yeah that is how we got our ice cream for my birthday and I loved it. Now let us get to the point of this hole entire thing I had a very fun time at my birthday party and it was little house on the prairie themed and it was amazing! And all of my friends came and I loved it so much! And we did little house on the prairie dolls they were the dolls they used for church the only dolls they could use for church and they are called handkerchief dolls and I did all sorts of races with my friends and it was so much fun and we got to get candy! And got to dance to music and I loved it so much it was the best thing ever and I am hoping to have another birthday party just like it. Oh and I got to dress up like little house on the prairie girls and the boys got to dress like boys and took care of the races. And I made a hole checklist and it was so much fun and just so we know that we have done all of the stuff for the party and everybody had so much fun and oh I was just going to tell you about the dolls they were so much fun to make and I think everybody loved making them so they are really made out of a handkerchief! My grandma found out how to do them online. And she showed us how to do it and I loved doing them she was so nice to show us how to do those and I loved to do them I hope you might be able to do one of those sometime. Maybe I can show you how and Ethan was doing school downstairs and he came up when we were dancing to Pa’s music. And somebody got a prize when they were on the right number. Oh and we had some donuts to eat and we ate the handmade ice cream with it and it was so much fun to eat and Ava and Emily and Lily and Chloe and Ellanah liked it to and I was the sixth girl there. I loved the party so much and what was really nice is that they all gave me presents. It was so nice of them to do that cause they did not have to do that for me. And I think you have heard all about my party and we have done so much this season. And some of the leaves have fallen of the trees now I will tell you about my real birthday. I got a new bike new jeans and a new dress and a new belt that goes with the dress and then I got to go out with my cousin Lydia. And we went out mini golfing and I had so much fun and I hope you liked listening about this but that is my birthday so bye see you later bye again.

The

End.

By: Shaila (Age 7)

Click here for our Apple Cider Doughnut Recipe

Aidan's Fall Writing Assignments (Aidan)

Aidan Piercey

Writing Assignment

9/4/2017

Perseus and Medusa

            Perseus was the son of Jupiter and Danae. He was prophesied to be the death of his grandfather, and his grandfather attempted to escape from his prophesied doom. He locked the mother and the unlucky boy in a chest and caused it to float out into the midst of the sea. Perseus’s grandfather was relieved, and he pushed the memory of the unlucky boy and his mother out of his head. But this hasty act did not succeed in killing Perseus and his mother. As the chest floated out into the swirling sea, a fisherman spotted the chest and rescued the trapped duo. After hearing his grandson had been rescued from this dreadful death, Perseus’s grandfather again endeavored to rid the world of Perseus. After Perseus grew older, his grandfather challenged his to kill the renowned monster Medusa, and again believed he had escaped his coming doom. Perseus got ready to set out on this dangerous quest to slay the monster Medusa. He was unsure how to complete this task, and was then visited by two of the gods. They gave him gifts and instruction. He was to find the grey sisters, and ask them for directions. After that, when the time came to slay the monster, he was to use a polished shield as a mirror to see the monster, and to use the sword he was given to strike her. No second blow would be needed. He was then to wrap the head in goatskin, so as to avoid the monsters eyes. If he looked in the eyes of Medusa he would turn to stone. He was also given sandals that would allow him to fly. They then said goodbye, and Perseus set off.

            Perseus flew for days over the hills and seas. He watched as the clouds shot by, and he felt the wind in his face. He flew all the way to where the grey sisters sat, passing around an eye and a tooth. Perseus greeted them, and asked where the monster Medusa lay. “For!” he exclaimed, “with age comes knowledge.” The grey sisters took offense at this, and they ignored Perseus’s question. They began to pass the eye, and groped for the tooth. As one held out the eye, Perseus snatched it from her hand. He threatened to throw it into the river if they did not tell him where to find Medusa. The sisters wailed, and they told him they knew not the way, but gave him directions to where to find the giant Atlas, and he handed them back the eye. Perseus flew off with the aid of his magic sandals. He soon landed in the garden where the nymphs were, and soon spotted them singing and dancing. They beckoned for him to come and dance with them, but he refused and told them of his business, and asked for directions. They told him they did not know, but that the giant Atlas would tell him. They walked up a hill, and saw Atlas, straining under his heavy load. The nymphs told him of Perseus’s journey. Atlas told him he saw Medusa, lying with her sisters. He also told Perseus that he would need a hat that would cause him to be invisible. Perseus inquired how he was to find the hat, for he was a mere mortal, and only immortals can find the hat. Atlas told him that his daughters were immortals, and that they would give him the hat. For now all Perseus could do was wait, and dwell on the thought of killing the monster Medusa. After the hat was found, Perseus placed the hat on his head. Perseus then flew away to where Medusa lay.

Perseus spotted Medusa laying by her two sisters. Perseus looked at Medusa by using the polished shield he had been given. As he neared her, he saw she had once been beautiful, and he pitied her. But after seeing her brazen claws and the vipers in her hair, he remembered his mission, and he struck her with his sword. He then wrapped her head up in goatskin to conceal her eyes, and shot away from the evil place. He had slain the renowned monster Medusa, and had again foiled his grandfather’s plan!    

  

Aidan Piercey

Writing Assignment

9/12/17

Perseus and Andromeda

                Perseus continued over the ocean after slaying the dreadful Monster Medusa. He flew far and there was no t much to see. But this dull scenery changed as he neared a cliff where the sea broke its incessant rolling, and the calm turned to thundering lashing crashing foam forever throwing itself against a pile of untidy rocks. As Perseus looked upon this lifeless picture of nature, a movement caught his eye, a movement much smaller than the huge waves thrashing the unmoving rocks. No, it was a human, the only sign of life among the lifeless unfeeling rocks. Perseus for the first time in what seemed an eternity followed a charted course. He shot down toward the person, and found a woman tied down. The sea spray flung itself furiously at her, but was barely able to reach far enough to touch the life among the rocks. The woman cried out, but not at Perseus because of his hat of invisibility. He flew down unnoticed toward the bound victim. He found her very beautiful, and found it pointless to hide in front of her. He quickly tore the hat from his head, and the terrified girl became even more terrified at the sight of another human being appearing on the rocks after her being left there all night. Perseus inquired why she was stranded upon the rocks with no one with her, and why she was bound. The woman told him that she had been framed for a crime she had not committed. She had angered the sea god, and she had been left to be consumed by the Black Galley. Perseus was indignant after hearing her tale, and he took his sword and cut through her bonds as one cuts through flax. He was again aided by the gift of the gods. After being freed, instead of asking Perseus to rescue her, she begged him to leave.

                Perseus told her that he would not leave, but she begged him still. She said that they would both suffer the awful fate of being consumed by the beast of the sea if he did not leave. She said that she would obey the gods and stay where she was, stranded with no one to help her. She had angered the gods and would receive her fate for no reason. Perseus insisted that he would stay and slay the horrible Black Galley. He would not let this helpless woman be killed for a crime that was not committed. As they conversed the sun rose above the blue see and brought the darkness to an end. Many that day rubbed their eyes and began a new day, going about it as if nothing was going wrong. But something was grievously wrong. The sea continued its endless thrashing of the shore, and a monster awoke that morning, ready to consume a helpless human, and not ready to find Perseus bounding toward him, with his sandals carrying over the blue sea. The Black Galley decided he would consume two victims that day, and quickly moved towards Perseus. But Perseus was defiant. He had never given up a task, and he never would. If he would die fighting the Black Galley he would accept his fate. He would carry any wound with pride, but if his pride was wounded, there was no way he could bear it. He quickly and nimbly approached the Black Galley. As Perseus neared it, the woman bent down behind a rock, ready to be consumed by the Black Galley. “These Rocks will no longer hold life” she thought to herself. She found herself to be right. She would escape yet. She heard a long wail, and she looked up. Perseus was flying back toward her, holding aloft his sword which he had used to save her from what had seemed to be inescapable doom! Perseus picked up Andromeda, and he watched as the waves broke again against the shore, confused by the sudden departure of the only life among the rocks.

                Perseus shot upwards like an arrow, and quickly climbed the rocky cliff without touching its slippery surface. The rocks watched as the two shot upwards, and they seemed to mourn over the loss of the only life among them. Andromeda waited to wake from a dream, and find herself tied again to the rocks and watch the approach of the Black Galley, and have no rescuer to help her. But she never awoke, for she was awake, and Perseus was a real hero. There was no Black Galley anymore. Suddenly, they heard a faint sound of weeping, which had earlier been veiled by the relentless crash of the waves against the turf. It was now unfurled in front of them in the most sorrowful manner. For a moment, they did not sense anything other than the feeling of sorrow that hung over the gloomy group of people that wept and waited for the death of a guiltless villager. They waited for the sound of the Black Galley devouring her. They had no sense to what rescue had happened far below their place of mourning and waiting. A few had “dreamed” that they saw the monster being slain by Perseus. They now saw that those who had been called insane had been more sane then their accusers. For there before them stood, completely intact, the girl who had been unjustly sentenced to death by being consumed by the beast of the sea. Andromeda’s mother shot towards her like a bullet, all the grief swept from her face, and replaced by a joy that few have experienced. She embraced her daughter, and her father joined the two with a face so full of joy that mourning had left no trace. The men of the city circled around their “imagined hero.” They asked much of his adventure, and he told them freely of it. The father of Andromeda asked for Perseus to be his son in law, and to stay with them. Perseus accepted the offer, but did not consent to leave his homeland permanently. He had his own family that he wished not to desert. The father asked him to stay with them for a year, and Perseus consented. After what seemed like an eternity to Perseus passed by in twelve months of staying in this foreign land. A wedding feast was held, but not all were merry. A few men felt that Perseus should not just desert them with the girl. They plotted against him during the feast, and their plot took sudden and vicious action. They insulted Perseus and rushed upon him. Perseus remembered Medusa’s head, and he quickly unveiled it with a flourish straight at the men. Just as they were about to attack Perseus, they quivered, stuck fast to the ground, and turned from humans full of life, to lifeless stone. Twelve they were in number. Perseus called for them to be rolled away, and this was quickly done. That was the last anyone saw of those men. After the feast concluded, Perseus went to bed and dreamed. He dreamed Minerva the goddess asked him for the gifts that had been given to him, the sandals, the sword, and the shield, so that she could return them to their owners. Perseus reluctantly gave these items up. Each one of them had saved his life, and now he would lose them forever. When he awoke, he searched for them, but never found them!  

Aidan Piercey

Writing Assignment

9/20/2017

Perseus Returns Home

                “Timber!” A giant tree falls, crashing down from the stance it had once held. It breaks its kingly arms against the trunks of fellow trees. It bends the sapling as it clears its way toward the ground. It watches as men dodge out of its path and rejoice as they watch it falling from the long held position it had held towering above the other great trees. It had once held great dignity, but now it met public disgrace as it was lowered lower down than a mere sapling. This great tree had once comfortably housed birds in its trunk, and insects had dug great caverns through its trunk. Children had found disappointment after staring up at the hopelessly high branches. The tree finally hit the ground. Its leaves quivered as it struck the lowly soil and groveled before the workmen. The men began to hack of its bark, skinning the tree until the pure wood shone bright in the sun. The great tree was then cut so as to fit a load of men and supplies. A lesser tree was driven into it and other great trees, and soon men dirtied the wood with the mud and sweat that followed work. This happened to many trees, and soon they were floating in the water. Sobbing could be heard from near the boats, but it was not lamenting for the kingly bows, but instead for the parting of humans from humans. Perseus was returning to his home. The rock where the people had mourned for the expected death of a beloved girl was now struck again by the sound and feeling of grief. Andromeda began to walk with Perseus to the boats. She was followed by wave after wave of grief-stricken people. The matter of months had shot by like a masterfully fired arrow.  They walked near the place where the waves had struck the cliff. This is where Andromeda had once been housed, waiting for her seemingly inescapable doom. The people watched as she set off from the shore in the great fleet of floating trees, which were no longer thought of as honorable, but as mere servants of the captain and the crew. The sounds of lamenting floated across the water, but were silenced by the crashing of the waves against rocks. Only the calls of the people could be faintly perceived by the ear of the crew. Soon the island disappeared, along with the rock from which Andromeda had been saved from.

                The mighty galley shot through the waters of the swirling sea, and Perseus found it much more difficult than flying around with the sandals he had been given. They were tossed by many storms and they found themselves many a time off course. The sea would not let Perseus return to his home without mishap. But he found it all worthwhile when he spotted the shores of his homeland. It had been seven years since he had last seen its great shores. He had left a mere lad, and had returned a celebrated hero. He stepped onto the sandy shoreline, his ships floating majestically behind him. He quickly walked inland. Saplings had grown to trees, boys had turned to men, and bushes had spread. The fawn had grown horns and had found a mate. Chicks had learned to fly, and they had built themselves great nests on the trees that had once been saplings. The memory of Perseus had been forgotten by earlier friends. He had been thought dead. But when he walked past, the memory of him reentered their minds. “But this cannot be! Why would he leave for seven years before returning? It seems he has found a wife. No, it cannot be.” These were the thoughts of all he passed. But after he found his mother and father, he was greeted as he should be, and this caused others to believe and greet him like a hero. After the greetings had been said, he again met trouble just as on Andromeda’s island. He was at a party, just as before. He began to boast of how he slew the Gorgon, and this was not met with belief. The host challenged him to show them the head, for it is easier to boast of something than to do it. Perseus took this as a challenge, so he took the head and tore off the goatskin. Before he had wrapped it up, he was surrounded by statues. Around that table, grass grew. Wild animals sniffed the strange humans. Moss covered them, and as far as we know, they sit there still today. A while later, a tournament was announced, and Perseus signed up. He wanted to try out sports after so much danger, and he believed himself a worthy sportsman as well. One sunny day, all was bustling as people traveled to where the sports were to be held. The athletes prepared themselves for the challenges, and when he was with the pother athletes, Perseus noticed an old man. He was sitting in front of the crowd on a beautiful chair, and his beard trailed down his chest like a never ending path. It blew like a flag in the wind. Perseus studied the man, and found his face familiar. Then, suddenly, as if meant to interrupt his daydream, he was called to start the challenges. Perseus had grown strong from all of his challenges, and he found it easy to outdo the other atm hletes. After showing himself by far the best sportsman, having won four events, he was praised by the crowd and even the other athletes. As he was surrounded by the crowd, a flood of memory flew over him! The kingly looking man was his grandfather! Perseus wished to prove himself a great sportsman and reveal himself to his grandfather. But it was not to be.

                Perseus stepped up to the place where he and the other athletes were to hurl. Perseus felt as confident as a lioness chasing a sick animal. He proudly stood beside the other hurlers, and it was soon his turn. He squared his shoulders, wound up, and hurled as far as he could. As he hurled, the crowd gasped. A wind was stirred up at sea, and the hurl curved, and a thump and a cry sounded. Men rushed from the crowd. Perseus’s grandfather had been hit. Perseus’s head swirled as he saw his grandfather, his features twisted in pain. He ran, but before he could reach the kingly old man, he had swooned. And so, his grandfather died by his hand. The prophecy that Perseus’s grandfather had tried to twist and snap had bent itself so as to complete its task. It had curved itself around like a snake, closing itself closer and closer no matter how hard Perseus’s grandfather had tried to change it. Perseus saw this all, and he wept. After this day, many people mourned for the man. His memory was fixed in Perseus’s mind tighter than any other. After a while, Perseus became king, and he ruled with Andromeda, who would always remember that day when Perseus had risked all to save her. And now, the memory of those two have passed from many people’s minds, and the memory of Medusa, and the rock where Andromeda had been bound. Even the trees have forgotten their comrades, those trees that had once stood, but had been brought low to be used by Perseus to return home again.        

Aidan Piercey

Writing Assignment

10/6/2017

The Promise of Jason

                “So you wish for me to train the boy!” exclaimed the Centaur, “and I will do as you ask. He will stay with me until he is old enough to venture out on his own. He will be well cared for.”

                “Thank you, noble Centaur” cried the king, “I know you will train him well.” The king then left the cave without a word. No second thoughts. He hurried down the side of the mountain. The centaur watched as the king hurried down the cliff, and the boy stood and watched by his side.

                “Come boy,” mumbled the centaur. “You and your father have gone through much, and it is time for some rest.”

                And so the training began. The boy grew in stature and knowledge, and he also grew more ready to leave the cave at the top of the mountain. He was trained well by the centaur, and was especially skilled with medicine, so the centaur named him Jason the healer. But it was not to be forever. The two became good friends, and once the boy was grown, he found the ultimate test to his training and friendship.

                Jason watched as the sun set over the hills, and the bright colors painted the world outside of his little cave, the centaur, whose name Juno, watched by his side.

“Juno,” said Jason, “I wish to go out of this cave, for I tire of just watching from up here. I wish to be part of the life down there, and even regain the kingdom that was stolen from my father long ago. You have trained me for what seems to have been a lifetime, and now I wish to test your teachings out in the real world, and not just play-act my life in this cave.”

Juno stood thoughtful by the side of the young man, whom he had raised as his own. His old wise heart was struck with sadness, but he knew it would be best to grant this wish and let young man leave the cave, as a bird leaves the nest once it has been fledged. He looked at the pleading face of Jason, and he knew it was time to let him go, and use the training he had received to succeed in the world beneath him.

“You may leave the cave, but on one condition. You must promise me two things.”

“Yes sir, anything!”

“You must promise me two things,” Juno repeated, “that you will never speak a harsh word to any soul, no matter how they have offended you. The second is that you will always keep your word, and never lie nor turn back from a promise. If you keep these two vows, you will exceed greatly in your life out in the world.”

“I will!” cried Jason. Later that day, Jason said farewell to the noble centaur that had trained him for so long. The two parted, never to see each-other again.

Jason descended the mountain, torn between joy and sorrow, for he had left the cave that had trapped him, but had also left the only friend he had. He was free, but also alone. After finding himself at the bottom of the mountain, he made straight for the city that he had been born in. He walked on for a while, leaving behind the jagged rocks and steep trails, and he neared a river that ran through the forest. He also neared an old woman, looking with eyes wild with fear at the churning and swirling waters. Jason stepped on a twig, and the woman turned quickly, much quicker than any normal old woman. Her eyes connected with his, and the two stared for a moment.

“Don’t you know better than to frighten a feeble old woman like that!” she cried out, indignant at finding her fear meaningless.

Jason was about to reply, when she suddenly broke out into a hideous laugh.

“You have come at just the right time!” she cried. “Help me over the river at once!”

Jason was about to step into the waters and refuse the order he had been given, but then he remembered Juno, and he walked over to the ancient woman. He was about to give her a hand, when she sprung nimbly up onto his back, and struck him and yelled at him as one does to a stubborn donkey. Jason kept his temper, and he put one foot into the swirling water. The old woman clung onto him like a leech, and he began to wade through the waters.

The flood began to push him downstream, its swirling currents attempting to knock him from his feet. He continued on, and one foot in front of the other, he began to make progress. The waters soaked Jason, but the old woman was kept dry. Suddenly, they neared a rock, and a spray shot out from it. The old woman turned to avoid it, causing the edge of her dress to dip in the water.

She began screaming as if Jason had thrown her into the current, and she beat her benefactor with her bony hands, and tried to think of the worse insults possible.

But all that came out was: “You lazy ox, you soaked me!”

Jason readied himself to insult her and fling her into the water, but he remembered Juno, and he only said:

“Even the strongest horse may stumble. We are nearly to the other side. Please be patient.”    

Finally, they reached the other side, and the old woman sprang off his back as nimbly as she had sprung on, dry and unharmed.

Jason heaved himself over to a rock, and he leaned on it, soaked and bruised. A cut bled where a sandal should have been. He had lost it in the current. He looked up to where the old woman had been, but in her place stood a beautiful goddess.

“Because you have helped me” said the goddess, “I will repay you by helping you in your time of need.”

Jason was about to thank her, but she disappeared. Jason got up, and began to walk toward the city. When he entered, he found himself a source of attention, which he did not mind. As he strode through the city, he asked a man why everyone was staring at him.

“You have been prophesied about” answered the old man. “It was written in ancient times that one who entered the city with one sandal would take the throne!”

Jason strode right up to the castle, and after being received, he found the king, who greeted him courteously. For many days he was given food and lodging in the castle, and Jason began to doubt the rumors he had heard. However, he soon found the tales to be very true.

One day, Jason was walking with the king.

“My good Jason!” cried the king, “I have a problem that has been haunting me for many a day and night, and I come to you first to ask for advice, for you are intelligent and will solve the problem more quickly than my counselors.”

Jason asked what the problem was, enjoying being called wise, above even the wisest of wise men!

“I have one whose presence I loathe here in my castle. Please tell me a way I can rid myself of him.”

Jason thought for a second, and the answer struck him.

“I would send him after the golden fleece,” Jason answered casually.

“Thank you Jason!” cried the king. “Normally I would reward you, but I believe you will not have time for that in between preparation for such a journey!”

Jason, fuming with anger, prepared to fire an angry remark, and turn back from his word, but he remembered Juno, and he held himself back.

Later that day, he prepared for the journey. Between thoughts of anger and worry, he was glad he had not disappointed his teacher, the noble centaur Juno.