Giant Boots by David Edgren

Hi, this is Dave Edgren. I'm going to read you a book that I wrote entitled Giant Boots. Giant Boots by Dave Edgren. Chapter 1. The Village. Once upon a time, in a beautiful valley not so very far from here, there was a village. The people who lived there were comfortable and happy most of the time, until the bears came. The bears were big, mean, and angry. They lived under the mountain for most of their lives and were not used to meeting people. One day they found their way into the peaceful little valley through a system of caves that led through the heart of the mountain. They would leave their cave and head toward the sound of happy chatter and laughter that came from the village. Once they were close enough, they would rush at the villagers, swinging their sharp claws. The villagers were quick enough and smart enough to go to their houses and lock the doors when whenever the Bears came. Every day the Bears would come, but never at the same time of day. The people were never quite sure when to expect the Bears, so they built a watchtower and took turns watching. When the Bears came, the huge bell in the watchtower would ring out a warning, and the people would hurry to their homes. Life in the village changed. It wasn't as happy as it once had been. The children were afraid to play outside, the adults were scared to talk in the streets, and the men were too nervous to spend much time hunting for game in the surrounding forest. Chapter 2: The Hunter. One day, a lone bear appeared in the village. The bell rang and the villagers ran to their houses, but one of the men, who was a skilled hunter, had grown tired of these bears ruining the little village. He picked up his spear and decided to do something about it. The aim was perfect and hit the bear in the middle of his broad chest. The hunter was horrified when the spear bounced off the chest of the bear and clattered to the ground. It had been the hunter's best, hardest throw, and he knew it. The bear's fur was just too thick and its hide too tough. The bear kept running towards him, angrier now than ever. The hunter turned and ran towards the watchtower as fast as he could. He made it inside and locked the door behind him just as the bear slammed into the tower, roaring in frustration while clawing at the door. The bear gave up. It wandered through the village, looking down each street. With no one to attack, the bear lumbered back to the cave. The villagers had meetings to work out what they should do. Should they build a wall around the village? Should they move to another valley? One cold day, the bears didn't come. They didn't come the next day either. For days and days, they didn't come. The villagers thought that the bears might have gone away. Then one of the children, who had been reading about bears at school, told the grown-ups that bears sleep all all winter. It was true. The bears were hibernating. They also realized the bears would be back in the spring. The hunter who had faced the bear took a group of men to the cave and they piled rocks until the entire mouth of the cave was completely closed. Hopefully the bears would see that the entrance had been blocked and they would go back into the mountain and find another way out to a different place. Chapter 3: The Doctor. Larry came home during the winter. Larry had grown up in the village. Everyone always knew he was going to be someone great one day. When he was in school, he was the smartest student of all. He was even smarter than most of the adults in the village. When he finished school, the villagers sent him to a university far away to train to be a doctor. The village needed a doctor. When people became ill, an old woman who usually knew what to do would help them. But when something really bad happened, like a broken bone or a serious illness, the villagers could only watch helplessly. The decision to send Larry to medical school was the best idea the villagers had come up with for a very long time. That is what the village councillors said, anyway. Larry had been away for a few years. Now he was back, and he was a doctor. "Larry! Larry!" shouted one of the villagers as he banged on the doctor's door. "Larry, help me! My arm is broken!" "It's Lawrence, not Larry," the response came from inside. Larry had decided that Lawrence sounded more important, just right for a doctor. It was his real name, after all. "Sorry, Lawrence," the man replied. "Please let me in. Please help me." Larry opened the door and let the hurt man in. Larry knew what to do. He straightened the man's broken arm and put it in plaster. Then he put it in a sling. He did his work in silence. "All done," Larry said. "Keep it in the sling and don't use it." Larry pushed the man out of the house and slammed the door. "Thank you, Dr. Lawrence," the man said from outside. But Larry didn't hear. He didn't want to hear it. He didn't need people or their thanks. He had himself, and he was proud to be Dr. Lawrence. Chapter 4: Spring. As time went by, the winter rains subsided and the temperature outside was warmer. The snow melted from the trees and started its slow climb up the mountain. Spring was here. The sun shone and the villagers knew that winter had left for another year. They had become used to moving freely around the village. The watchtower hadn't been used for over 2 months. They had almost forgotten about the bears. Some villagers had wondered if the bears would return. Would they break through the pile of stones at the cave's mouth? A few days into spring, there was a sudden shout from a man as he ran through the village. "Bears! Bears! Bears!" he yelled, and the villagers quickly shut themselves away in their houses. Larry had been told about the bears during the winter. At first he had thought they were just ridiculous stories. Later he was convinced that the bears were real when he had heard all the stories from the villagers. Still, he didn't think they were as big and as scary as the people made out. He heard the bell ring. He came out of his surgery into the street. He watched people running into their houses and slamming their doors. Soon it was quiet in the village as all the houses swallowed the people and their yelling. It was like a ghost town—dead quiet. Then Larry saw one. It was a huge bear, brown, almost black. It walked down the road, stopping to sniff at each door that only moments before had been touched by a panic-stricken villager. Then more bears came from between the houses. There were so many. Larry stood staring, forgetting he was outside, until the big bear stopped in the middle of the road, swiveled his head to face Larry, and sniffed. The bear's head tilted to one side. He looked directly into Larry's eyes. The fur on his neck stood on end. Huge lips curled away from razor-sharp teeth. Then the air split with an earth-shattering roar. Larry spun around and lurched toward the open doorway of his surgery. He missed, smashing into the wall next to the door. He tried again, made it inside, and slammed the door behind him. Moments later, as the doctor rubbed his forehead where he had hit the wall, the bear slammed against the door and gave another blood-curdling roar. The door rattled on its hinges, and Larry crumpled to the ground, shaking with fear. The bears wandered around the streets looking for something to do, something to eat, or something to attack. Unsuccessful, they made their way out of the village. Every day the bears came, and every day people rushed into their houses when the bell rang from the watchtower. Everyone was afraid and no one knew what to do. Chapter 5: Winter Again. The villagers were relieved when the winter drew on again and the bears returned to their cave to hibernate. The hunter led a search for bigger, heavier stones to block the cave entrance. They needed to find something the bears could not move. They found some huge blocks of granite, which were so heavy that it took 3 or 4 men to carry each one. They moved them the long distance to the cave. After a few days, they had built a waist-high wall in the mouth of the cave. It was slow work, but together they could get it done before the snow started. As the hunter and his group of men were returning to get another block, a boy stopped him. "Yes?" the hunter asked. "You should use this boulder," the boy said, placing his hand on a massive rock. "It's huge. I think it would block the entire cave. The hunter looked at the boulder. He walked around it, exploring all sides. He was amazed. It was perfect. And they had been walking right past it many times every day. Help me, men, he said to his group. Let's see if we can move this thing. The 4 men put their full weight behind it. They pushed. They pulled. They tried to lever it loose. Nothing would make the huge stone budge. As other teams of men walked past, they stopped and helped. Soon every man in the village was putting his complete strength into trying to move the boulder. Every man except the doctor, of course. It was no use. It would not budge. The hunter thanked the boy, turned to the group of men, and said, "I need to finish the wall. This boulder is too big for us to move. Let's keep building with the granite blocks." The men nodded in agreement and got back to work. After the other men started to walk away, one man climbed to the top of the boulder and jumped up and down trying to make it move. Instead, he slipped, banged his head, and fell to the ground. Two men saw it happen and rushed to help him. He had a huge bump on his head and a cut on his leg. The men worked together and carried him to see the doctor. "Larry! Larry!" shouted one of the men as he banged on the doctor's door. "Larry, help us! We've got an injured man here!" "It's Lawrence, not Larry," came the response. "Sorry, Lawrence," the man replied. "Please let us in. He needs help." "It's Dr. Lawrence, actually," came the stuffy reply from inside. "Sorry, Dr. Lawrence," the man was angry now. "Please, Dr. Lawrence, help now." Larry opened the door and let them in. Once they had lain the man down, Larry made the others go outside. He cleaned the cut and put 6 stitches in the man's leg. He put an ice pack on the bump on his head. "You're fine now," he said as he stood the man up and pushed him out the door. "Now, be more careful. People who climb on things fall from things. So use your head for thinking, not bumping." He slammed the door behind the man. In just under 2 weeks, the wall was finished. It was huge. It blocked the entire cave entrance. "I doubt the Bears will make a dent in that," the Hunter said. "They do not know how to use their strength together like we do." The villagers waited with anxious talk and high hopes for the winter to end. Chapter 6. With the first day of full sunlight, the people heard roars coming from the cave. They were frustrated, muffled roars. The hunter took a few men to see how the wall was holding. When they got close, the roaring was much louder, but they could see the wall was still standing. They heard a huge thud as a bear ran full speed into the wall from the other side. The wall shook, but the stones stayed in place. There was another huge thud. The wall shook again. The bears seemed to be taking turns running at the wall. Over and over they thudded into the wall— the wall side— the other side of the wall. Each time the wall shook, but did not fall. The thuds and shaking stopped. The silence lasted a long time. "Perhaps they have gone," the hunter said with a smile. "Let's go closer and listen." As the group approached the wall, they heard a steady new noise, a sort of scratch, scratch, scratching. "What's that noise?" one of the men asked. "I think it's the bears," replied the hunter. "What are they doing?" asked another. "It sounds as if they are trying a different strategy," said the hunter. The scratching moved across the wall from one side to the other. It went down to the bottom of the wall and then up, up to the top of the wall to the weakest spot. One of the huge chunks of rock wobbled at the top of the wall. "How are they able to reach way up there?" asked one of the men. "I think I was wrong," said the hunter. "They are working together. I think the bears are climbing on top of each other to get to the top of the wall." Just then, the block that had been wobbling slipped forward and fell. The next block began to wobble. "It won't be long," said the hunter. "The wall is coming down." "Ko'ko'ko'! Hurry back to the village. We must tell the Village Council. They must think of something to get rid of these bears." As the men jogged back to the village, they heard louder roars and the thud of another block hitting the ground outside the wall. Chapter 7: A New Strategy. The Village Council had been in discussion since the men returned. It was now late in the evening. They knew the bears would be out in the next day or two. Every grown-up in the village was at the meeting. Most of the kids huddled outside, listening through the walls. They were full of ideas. Some said they should trap the bears. Others said the villagers should pack up and leave. The hunter thought he might be able to make stronger spears. There wasn't any solution that pleased everyone. Larry had sat in silence. Finally, he spoke. "Wah! Wah! Wah!" 'Why don't you just put something bigger at the entrance to the cave? Make a stronger wall. Get bigger blocks?' The hunter spoke. 'There is a boulder that would block the hole for good. But we tried to move it. Every man in the village helped. It won't budge.' 'Well, I wasn't there,' said the doctor. 'I didn't help.' Some of the men sniggered. The hunter replied, Dr. Lawrence. It wouldn't have mattered. It is too big. We cannot move it. Even if we could make it wobble, we could never move it all the distance to the cave. A boy entered the back door. "Can I speak?" he asked. "Of course not," Larry responded. "This is grown-up talk. We need to save our village from the bears." The hunter recognized the boy. "Wait," he said. This is the boy who found the boulder. He's a good thinker. We saw it— he saw it when none of us did. I wish for him to speak. The people in the council hall went quiet and looked at the boy, waiting to hear what wisdom he might share. Maybe— the boy paused, reconsidered— well, maybe we should ask the giant to help us. He could move the boulder easily. Some people began to laugh. Others shook their heads. Larry spoke. The giant? The giant? He Larry laughed. "The giant hasn't been seen for years. Some think he is dead. Others think that he never existed at all, just a story." Another man continued, "And even if he is out there, his valley is far away." "And if I remember the stories correctly," said someone else, "the giant never helps anyone. He's a selfish brute." The boy hung his head. "Well, I just thought—" "No," interrupted Larry. You didn't think! This is the real world, not a fairy tale. These are real bears. We need real answers now! Everyone talked over the top of everyone else. The room grew louder and louder. The boy stood staring at the floor, crying. I will go! shouted the hunter. But nobody heard him; the talking and arguing was too loud. The hunter climbed onto a table, put his fingers in his mouth, and whistled loudly. People stopped talking and looked up at him. "I will go," he said boldly. "I will go and find the giant, and I will convince him to come. He is a fighter like me. I will speak to him of the bears. He will come." The people were amazed. There was certainly no one better to send. The hunter had faced a bear. He could face a giant. Chapter 8: Proud Giant. That afternoon, the bears broke through the wall, but by then the hunter was far away. The villagers had started using their watchtower and warning system again, hoping that soon the hunter would return with help. The hunter walked for days. The days turned into weeks. After 2 months of walking, the hunter found the Giant's Valley. There was only one way in, down a steep rocky slope. The hunter made his way into the valley and shouted, "I come in peace! I need your help, Great Giant!" A large hill at the far end of the valley rolled over and stood up. It wasn't a hill at all. But a very large, very hairy giant. The giant took 3 huge steps. Now he was in the middle of the valley. The giant spoke in a deep rumbling voice, "Who dares enter the valley of the great giant?" "I am the greatest hunter from a distant land," replied the hunter. "We need your help." "Vat kan I do for little people such as you?" asked the giant. "Surely your problems are much too small for my attention." "Bears attacked our village," said the hunter. "There is a boulder. We need your help to block the cave entrance to trap the bears." "I will help," said the giant. The hunter was incredulous. This had been easier than he thought. "If you can answer my question well enough," the giant continued. "What question?" asked the hunter. The giant bellowed, "Can you wear my boots?" The hunter, without even thinking about his answer, laughed and blurted out, "Wear them? What a silly question! I could live in your boots. They're huge!" The giant shook his head sadly. Saying, "You have not answered well enough." Then he turned, took 3 large steps, lay down, and looked once again very much like a hill. The hunter stood in stunned silence. Was that it? He had not traveled all this way to be rejected. He walked over to the hill. It took the hunter nearly an hour to get across the valley. He stood next to the huge hill of a giant. "Please come," the hunter said. "We really need your help." He walked around the hill, begging for the whole time. The giant never moved, not even a twitch. After a couple of hours of yelling and demanding attention from the giant, the hunter gave up. There was no response. The hunter left the giant's valley. It was a long 2 months walking back to the village, knowing he must tell them their bear problem was as big as ever. The giant would not help. While the hunter had been away, the bears had come to the village every day, sometimes in the morning, sometimes at noon, sometimes just before dark. The villagers always listened carefully for the bell in the watchtower. One day the bears came early in the morning. After they had gone back to their cave, one of the villagers took his son hunting in the forest. They had been hunting for about an hour when they heard the bell ring. "Twice in one day?" the boy said. "Yes," the father replied. "That is not normal. I didn't think they'd be back. We'd better run." As the father and son emerged from the forest, they saw the bears running along the tree line not far behind them. The village was a couple of hundred meters away. "Run!" yelled the father. "We can make it!" They ran as fast as they could, but one of the bears was catching them up. A man who lived on the outskirts of the village came out of his house and yelled to them, pointing at his house, "Come into my house, quick!" He had a spear in his hand. They had almost reached the house when the bear jumped forward, raking one of its paws down the boy's back. Then, with another swipe, one claw cut into the back of the father's arm. Just then, the spear whizzed between the father and son, striking the bear in the shoulder. The bear slowed just enough for the two to reach the house. The man who had thrown the spear rushed in after them, slamming the door. The bear was close behind and banged into the door a moment later. "I've been hurt," the father said, trying to look at the back of his upper arm. "Me too," the boy said as he slumped to his knees, out of breath. The man who lived there looked at their wounds. "We need to get you to the doctor." he said. "Luckily your wounds aren't that bad, but the cuts need proper treatment." The bear had wandered back towards the forest. The man led the father and son to Larry's office. "Larry! Larry!" shouted the man. "Larry, help us! A bear has wounded two villagers!" "It's Lawrence, not Larry," the response came from inside. "Sorry, Lawrence," the man replied. "Please let them in. They need you." "It's Dr. Lawrence, actually," came the reply. "Sorry, Dr. Lawrence." The man shook his head in disgust. "Please, Dr. Lawrence, please let them in." Larry opened the door and let the father and son in. He told the other man he could go home now, and then shut the door. Larry looked at the wounds. The father's cut was deepest. Larry said, "You're more injured than your son. I will clean your wound first." Larry cleaned the wound with antiseptic. He was surprised when the father didn't flinch or say anything. The antiseptic stung. Tough guy, thought Larry. "I'll need to give you a few stitches," Larry said. "I just have to give you a couple of injections so you won't feel it." The father interrupted, "Just stitch it up quickly. Don't worry about the pain. I want you to help my son as soon as you can." Larry raised his eyebrows. "Well, if you insist, but it will hurt." The man said nothing, so Larry threaded the needle and stuck it in the man's arm. He didn't react at all. Larry finished the stitches, amazed at how tough this man was. Larry went over to the boy. "You will need to lie down," said the doctor. "You have 3 scratches on your back from the claws. I'll clean 2 and leave them, but I will need to put a stitch or 2 in the other one." The boy nodded bravely. Larry washed the 3 scratches, then he dabbed some antiseptic on a cotton ball and pressed it on the first scratch. The boy sucked in air with shock. "Phew! That stings!" he said. "Yes, it does," Larry said. "But we've got to kill the germs." Larry put the antiseptic on the other 2 scratches, and the boy reacted both times. He didn't like it at all. After Larry had given the boy a couple of injections, he started stitching the wound. It was more than the boy could handle. The antiseptic, the needle, the stitches. The boy started to cry. Larry was just about to say something to the boy when he saw the father wipe his eyes. Larry looked over at the man and was amazed to see tears flowing down the father's cheeks. Something happened to Dr. Lawrence's heart right then. Something Larry couldn't understand. Something Wonderful! The father could handle all the pain in the world as long as it wasn't happening to his son. Larry realized the father loved the boy more than anything else in the world. That's when Larry's heart changed. He wanted to be that kind of man, like the father. Larry realized he no longer wanted to be Dr. Lawrence so people would think he was amazing. He wanted to be Larry the doctor, who helped people because he loved them. Larry finished the last stitch and wiped a tear from his own eye. "You will need to keep these clean," he said. "Be careful, and I hope you feel better soon." Larry opened the door and said they could go. As they left, the boy looked into the doctor's eyes. "Thank you, Dr. Lawrence." "You're welcome," he said. "And please call me Larry." Chapter 10: Giant Truth. Larry was a good doctor. He helped people with a smile for the rest of the summer. He gave treats to the children, said kind words to the adults, and cared for all the people from the bottom of his heart. When the hunter returned, everyone was sad to see he was alone. The hunter told the village council what had happened. They listened to the story of his journey. It was a great story, even if he had returned without the giant. When he finished, people started talking about the right answer to the giant's question. One person said the giant was mean and wanted people to say that they were afraid of his boots because they could stomp anyone to death. Another villager said the giant was selfish and wanted to hear how great he was. Lots of people had lots of ideas, but no one knew what to do next. Summer was coming to an end. When the winter had passed, they would send someone else to talk to the giant. They had all winter to decide what answer to give the giant. For now, they would have to put up with the bears for another year. It was a miserable situation, and no one wanted to leave the Council Meeting and go back to real life outside. Larry was at the meeting, listening carefully. He heard the hunter's story. He heard the many answers people suggested. Then he spoke. "Tell us again," he said to the hunter, "Exactly what the giant said about your answer?" The hunter stood and answered, "He just said, 'You have not answered well enough.' Then he ignored me." "I know what to say!" Larry said with an excited smile. "I know what the giant needs to hear! I will go! I will go and I will speak to him right now!" "It's too far," the hunter said. "You will barely get there before winter. You'll never make it back before the snow." "I must go now," said Larry. "The giant will bring me back." "Very well," said the hunter. "I will draw you a map." The villagers started to cheer and clap. Many asked Larry what he was going to say. What would his answer be? Larry just said, "I will just tell him the truth." Larry left in the dark while the bears were asleep. By the time the bears came out of their cave the next morning, Larry was far away. Chapter 11: Well Enough. Two months later, as the snow started to fall on the mountains, Larry climbed down the rocky hillside into the giant's valley. As he walked into the clearing, a large hill at the far end of the valley rolled over and stood up. Three huge steps later, the giant stood before the doctor. In a deep rumbling voice, he asked, "Who dares enter the valley of the great giant?" "I am a doctor from a distant land," replied Larry. "We need your help." "What can I do for a people as little as you?" asked the giant. "Surely your problems are much too small for my attention." "Our hunter told you of the bears attacking our village," said Larry. "We need you to move a huge boulder to trap the bears by blocking the cave entrance." "I will help," said the giant, "if you can answer my question well enough." "What is your question?" asked the doctor. "Can you wear my boots?" the giant bellowed. Larry was impressed by his loud voice. He replied confidently, "Not anymore." The giant took a step toward Larry. "Are you suggesting—" You used to be as big and as great as me. Were you once a giant like me? No, Larry replied, but I used to walk in your shoes. How could you walk in my shoes with such little feet? asked the giant. I was the smartest kid in my village, Larry said. They sent me away to become a doctor. When I came back, I was great. I was the only one who had been to the big city, the only one who had been to university, the only one who could heal their cuts, bruises, and broken bones. I was the doctor, and I was a giant compared to them. A rumble came from the giant's throat. Hmm, go on. I was so proud of myself, said Larry. That I treated everyone as though they were useless and annoying. I didn't need them or want them, but they needed and wanted me. Then a bear attacked a father and his son. The man was tough as I fixed his wounds, but when I fixed his son's wounds, the man cried. He cried? the giant murmured, interrupting, clearly caught up in the story. The Doctor's Story. "What happened next?" the giant asked. Larry continued, "Seeing the way the man loved his son changed me. It made my heart hurt. I wanted to love people. From that moment on, I started helping people because I cared about them, not because it made me look good." Larry stopped and shuffled from one foot to the other, looking down at his shoes. Then he looked directly into the giant's eyes and spoke, "So no, I cannot wear your boots. Not anymore." The giant leaned right over the doctor. A huge tear trickled down the giant's nose and splashed on Larry. It was as if a bucket of water had been poured over him. The giant lowered himself to one knee and laid his hand on the ground in front of Larry. Larry stepped into the giant's huge hand and walked to the middle of his palm. The giant lifted the little doctor high in the air until he was looking straight into the giant's eyes. In a whisper choked with tears, the giant said, "You have answered well enough." Then, standing to his full height, the giant stepped out of the valley and started to run. Chapter 12: Giant Change. A few hours later, they arrived at the village. The giant's strides were gigantic. The villagers heard the thud, thud, thud of the giant's footsteps and gathered at the watchtower. They watched as he ran through the forest. They could see his head above the trees. They watched as the giant ran across the valley toward the village. They watched as he ran right past them towards the boulder. As, as he rushed past, some people said they heard Larry's voice call out, "We'll be right back!" From where he sat high up in the giant's hand, Larry could see that winter had come to the valley. The mountaintops were all white. The bears would be asleep in their cave. The giant reached the huge boulder with his free hand and picked it up like a football. The village people ran to the cave and arrived just in time to see the giant lower the huge boulder into the entrance. It was a perfect fit. He gave it a push and sank— and it sank into the mouth of the cave. Rock grating against rock, biting into each other, the cave was sealed. The bears would never return. The people cheered and shouted, "Larry! Larry! Larry!" The giant faced the crowd and opened his hand so Larry could see the people. Larry clapped his hands with the people. Then he put his fingers to his lips, a finger to his lips. The crowd went quiet. "Don't thank me," Larry said. "Thank this great giant. He has chosen to help us." The people clapped and cheered for the giant. Then the giant held up his finger, his huge finger to his lips, copying Larry. The people grew silent. "Neither Dr. Larry nor I deserve thanks today," boomed the giant. "It is all of you, for without you neither Larry nor I would have helped you today." The people stood in stunned silence. They looked at each other in confusion. What could the giant mean? What had they done? The giant continued, "You have loved each other. Your love changed Larry's heart, and his heart has changed mine. You have all answered well enough." The people cheered. Then the hunter approached the giant. "Before you go back to your valley, we would like to give you a gift, Great Giant," he said. "Ask for anything and we will gladly give it." The giant paused for a moment and said, "I would like very much to stay here. I want to learn to be like you, to love and be loved." "May I stay and be the protector of your valley?" The people cheered with joy. They danced around the giant's great boots and dodged the huge tears of joy that fell from his eyes. And they all lived happily together in harmony and love.