Keep Your Eye on the Leprechaun

I've always enjoyed the tales of the fine Irish lads who come across the gnarled, grizzled, tiny bootmaker, also known as the Leprechaun. There are a few versions, all ending the same way. An underlying theme is the young men's desire to achieve success for very little effort.

Leprechaun lore tells us, and them, that in order to get the Leprechaun to take you to his pot of gold you must hold on to him fast, and never, never, never take your eyes off him - not for an instant. To look away or loosen your grasp is to lose the shrewd ticket to your fortune.

In this fairly short tale, I'd found it difficult to connect to any wisdom.

I could always see the value in taking the path of least resistance, ie, finding the pot of gold being the quickest path to wealth. Yet, in every version, the gold remains hidden. It wasn't until listening to Seth Godin's, The Dip, that the threads of this story came together for me.

He speaks of quitting all those things that drain energy from our true purpose (my words). Quitting anything that isn't bringing us to a place of being the best in the world at whatever it is we are best in the world at doing.

It made me think of the Leprechaun story - everyone knows that no one has ever succeeded in capturing the pot of gold.  The knowledge of how it's to be done is there - it's just been shown to be impossible.  Now, you don't want to not try something you believe in, just because everyone else has failed - that's not what this is about.

I think it's that when we are clear about our passion, when we visualize our plan clearly, when we show up each day to take the next step, and when we slog through the dips - distractions and false promises of easy achievement won't even get our attention.  It isn't that the gold doesn't exist; it does.  It's even possible that one day someone will outsmart the Leprechaun.

What's most true, now, is that the way to the gold is by digging deep into one's own path.  This quote sums it up best for me; I was told this came from Native American wisdom:

Number 1:  Show Up

Number 2:  Pay Attention

Number 3:  Tell The Truth

Number 4:  Release Any Attachment To The Outcome

Follow these and I guarantee you'll find your own personal gold.

Be Nice, Be Polite

This is a Japanese folktale that I learned from another teller a number of years ago. I've never seen a written version, although I imagine there must be one.

In this story we meet a kind, thoughtful, graceful, submissive Japanese woman of the marrying age, which, at the time, was probably 15. Her parents were very happy when she received an offer of marriage from the parents of a young man in their village. His family was among the wealthiest in the town. A match of this caliber would insure their daughter's future and happiness.

At least that's the plan.

Fortunately for our tale, the young man also had a reputation as being obnoxious, rude, boastful, conceited, boorish.......keep going until you run out of the worst personal qualities.

Unfortunately for our kind-hearted young woman, life with this man as her husband was promising to be difficult and without joy. That is, until they found out they were going to have their first child.

Now our young mother-to-be felt joy and lightness. A child to raise and experience the happiness of life with....until it occurred to her that this child might be more like her husband than herself. The possibility of another of his ilk in her home, dominating her life was more than she could bear. And so, taking the advice of the local wise woman, she performed a ritual all the while she was pregnant to insure that the baby would inherit her grace and kindness.

At this point, I ask myself, 'what situations in my home, my community and my world have I accepted despite knowing that they don't fulfill me or even offer the circumstances in which I might be fulfilled?' 'How often do I resort to hopeful rituals, sometimes without knowing they cannot bring about my desired result?' You see, in this story the desired outcome arrives...sort of.....but neither she, nor her husband, live to see it since it takes 50 or 60 years!

Belief, and hope, and desire are all important components of my life, but must be balanced with genuine action. I look at my choices now, with this awareness in mind. I'll probably even keep a few of the hopeful rituals, while integrating genuine action. I'll probably find, along the way, that the balance shifts and sways with the circumstances of my life, and once in a while things might even turn out the way I want them to.

Most of the time, things will go the way which brings me a deeper experience of life - it won't always feel good, it won't always look pretty. I like that - it makes the other times even prettier and it gives depth to my experiences that I wouldn't necessarily seek out myself.

Run With Great Joy

If you know the story of The Archer, The Firebird & The Princess Vasilissa, you know that there comes a time when the archer makes a choice. His Horse of Power tells him to run with all his strength toward the cauldron of boiling water and leap as if with great joy, into the boiling water. Is this really the best way to face one's doom?

Apparently, since the cauldron of boiling water held the medium of the archer's transformation.

It occurs to me that if one were to run with all one's strength at life's challenges and leap as if with great joy into the boiling cauldrons of our lives we, too, will enjoy optimum transformation.

The path which brought the archer to that place of fear, hopelessness and sorrow was not an easy road and we aren't told what he felt while sinking down under that boiling water three times. Boiling water sounds very painful. We also know that he has no prescience of the actual outcome of his sacrifice. He can believe nothing other than that he will be boiled to death.

What we can rely on, is that having finally trusted his Horse of Power, he is rewarded beyond imagining. He becomes all that a human being can. His heart is whole and his life's purpose is assured. He achieves union with the great source of Love and becomes the sovereign of his kingdom.

Ready, set, run!

The Crane Wife

One of my favorite tales is from Japan.  It's a common motif found in stories all around the world.  It is the story of The Crane Wife.  In this tale a man satisfied with his simple, undemanding life lives by his heart.  He appears to be in tune with the natural world around him and enjoys much of his time in silence.

The day he saves the crane is the day everything changes.  He has no idea that listening to his heart, which tells him to gently wrap the crane in his coat and carry her home is the beginning of a transformative adventure.  This simple act opens a door to complexity, joy, loss, and finally, wisdom.  If someone or something had told him at that moment not to pick up the crane do you think he would have listened?

At the end of this tale, I like to ask the listeners what they think he did with the 3rd bolt of cloth.  In many of the versions he is redeemed.  I always like to hear that.  It gives me a sense of hope and a belief in the inherent goodness and optimism of people.

When it comes to the important things - we are so much alike.

The Firebird, The Horse of Power and the Princess Vasilissa

In this story we have an archer, who, although it's never stated, is highly skilled in his art.  No doubt he has seen a few battles and survived, apparently unscathed.  He is young, handsome and strong.  This type of young man would feel that he had little to fear from the ordinary world.  He is desiring advancement and success, like so many 20-somethings.  It's no wonder that a mere golden feather, even though it is from the breast of the Firebird, would not cause him trepidation.

His Horse of Power warns him - 'don't pick up the feather; if you do, trouble will come to you and you will come to know the meaning of the word FEAR'.

His battle experience, training, youth and strength all assure him that there is no trouble he cannot withstand, and no fear he cannot face.  Surely the Tsar will reward the man who brings him a gift no one else has or has even seen.  The Firebird is well known, but, as the stories say, never been seen, never captured.  This is a great opportunity and against his Horse's advice, the archer takes it.

It's said that we are sent only as much tribulation as we can handle and yet, the trials that cause us to grow and bloom are often the ones that knock us off of our feet.  We almost never see the trouble coming and once we're in it we almost never see the way through.

The Wisdom In Story

For many years, as a Traditional Storyteller, I have enjoyed folktales as a pool of imagery and ideas from which to draw upon.  Telling, listening to and reading stories can increase our creative problem solving abilities, give us opportunities for empathy and bring greater self-awareness.  Each post will talk about the story wisdom of a multi-cultural folktale, book, movie, and even, current event.

It's been said that we can change only one thing in life - how we perceive and therefore respond to the 'what happens' in our life.  The richness of cultural and personal information in stories can assist us and deepen our experience - truly a great gift.