The Magic Shoes by L.C. Eastwind

In a small town by the river, there lived a girl named Lily. Lily spent most of her days sitting under a big tree and watching the clouds go by, but sometimes she would help her uncle Matt gather wood and sticks from the edge of the forest.

One day, they went out together to gather firewood for the upcoming winter. Uncle Matt used a saw to cut up any fallen trees and rolled the logs to a big pallet, while Lily picked up any loose sticks and put them in a wheelbarrow. Uncle Matt told Lily, "Now, get long, thin sticks, and don't stray from the path."

Lily responded, "I know, Uncle, you tell me every time."

"Well, it's good to remember, isn't it? And if you ever get lost, follow the river west back to town."

Lily nodded and went further down the path to gather the long, thin sticks, but under the dry, cover of leaves and brush, they were difficult to see and easily snapped. This frustrated Lily, but her mood changed when she happened upon a glen filled with big purple flowers. She was amazed at how beautiful the flowers were, but also at how bright it was in there, since the sky was almost completely covered by tall trees. The light seemed to be coming from the biggest tree at the end of the glen, and as Lily approached, the tree shook its branches as if waving her over. When Lily waved back, the tree opened its eyes and said in a calm, warm voice, "Greetings, young one. What brings you to my glen?"

Lily was startled, as she had never seen a tree with eyes before, let alone one that could speak! The mother tree noticed this and said, "I mean not to scare you, I mean only to solve your plight."

Getting her bearings, Lily said, "My name is Lily. How did you know I have a problem?"

"The trees know many things, dear Lily."

"Well," Lily explained, "I want to help my uncle gather fallen sticks for the winter, but they keep snapping underfoot." Lily lowered her head and sat on the grass near the mother tree.

"Dear Lily," Mother Tree said, "I have just the thing for you."

Lily's eyes grew wide. "Really?" she asked.

"Yes." With a wave of her branches, the tallest flowers parted and revealed a wooden chest. "Look inside, and you will have your solution."

Lily got up and went to the chest. She opened it and inside was a pair of big purple shoes. She picked them up and said, "These are so soft to touch, and very light for their size!"

"They are made of enchanted flower petals." Mother Tree said. "Slip them over your shoes, and you will walk so lightly, no sticks will break."

Lily slipped them on to test this, and sure enough, when she walked on the sticks, they didn’t break. Even when she stomped.

"They're perfect!" Lily exclaimed. "Thank you so much!"

The mother tree smiled and said, "Take good care of them, Lily, and they will take care of you."

"I promise!" Lily then said goodbye to the mother tree and went out of the glen and returned to her task of gathering sticks.

Lily, now unable to break sticks by stepping on them, gathered five times as many sticks as before. She completely filled her wheelbarrow before long. "Just in time," she said to herself. "It's almost dusk!" She pushed the wheelbarrow carefully down the path.

It was getting darker by the minute, and eventually, she could hardly see the wheelbarrow in front of her. Lily slowly winded down what she thought was the path, but after what must have been an hour, she stopped, and looked around at the dark forest. "I'm lost..." Lily whispered to herself. She sat on the ground, her head in her hands. "I have no light, how will I see?"

As tears start to form in her eyes, her shoes start to wiggle by themselves. She wiped away her tears and looked in confusion. The shoes wiggled more and more until they jumped off her feet! Lily couldn't believe her eyes. The shoes tapped the ground three times, and started to light up the area. The shoes then walked to the front of the wheelbarrow and she began to follow, pushing the wheelbarrow along the way. It was as if she had a lantern in front of her.

Pretty soon, she heard the sound of running water. "That must be the river!" She told the shoes. That’s when she realized the shoes could not only tread lightly, but they could light up, walk by themselves, and also understand her! When they got to the river, she directed the shoes westbound to lead them back to town.

As soon as they approached the lights of the town, a wave of relief washed over Lily. Not long after Lily and the shoes exited the forest, Uncle Matt spotted them. "Lily!" He shouted. "Uncle Matt!" Lily responded as she ran up to him and gave him a great big hug.

"Where have you been? I was so worried!" Uncle Matt said as he looked Lily over for any signs of harm.

"Sorry to worry you, Uncle Matt, but I got lost. But my magic shoes helped me find the river!" Lily then pointed towards the shoes, who spun in bold presentation. Uncle Matt was in disbelief. To think, a pair of shoes that can walk by themselves, and glow as well! But Uncle Matt decided to question it tomorrow, for right now, Lily is safe, and that's all that mattered to him.

© LC Eastwind