Simple steps

The invisible dragon had been circling lazily in the skies above a big city in the middle of Europe. With a flick of his wings he zoomed down toward a little school next to the big city, and perched on the fence. He could see his father the magician through the window.

He could also see the Queen of Crafts, who was teaching a few of her favourite students.
"First, you make a stitch upwards...
Second, you count 4 holes to the left...
Third, you make a stitch downwards"
The children were making presents for their parents, sewing decorations onto jute fabric. 

Teaching children to find love in the world starts with small, simple steps.

One of the young girls had begun daydreaming, magnificent fantasies that transported her into a fairytale of her own creation. The Queen of Crafts knew that love exists beyond fantasies, and so she called her student. “Come here... Show me what you have done.”
The young girl was suddenly dumbfounded. Little tears began to well in her eyes.

The magician looked up from the back of the classroom. His magical eyes saw something strange happening.

The Queen of Crafts had not seen it. “You don’t have to cry. Everyone else can do it, why not you?”

The magician could see the answer to the question, even though it was beyond the sight of the others. A dark force was taking hold of the young girl. Tears began streaming down her face. He crossed the room to her. “Come with me. Sit down.”

The young dragon at the window tried to understand was happening. He cocked his head left, and then right.

The dark force was ripping the young girl’s tiny soul into pieces. The magician sat next to her, and tried to lead her out of the darkness. “Count 4 holes to the left, then make a stitch.”
Through her tears the girl struggled to keep up. “1, 2…” The dark force ripped her apart again.
Holding her hand, he rebuilt one tiny piece so that it could never be ripped apart again. “Count with me... 1,2,3,4.”
Although she could barely hold a thought together she followed him one step away from the darkness. “1,2,3,4.”

Slowly, with very simple steps, she followed him further and further until the dark force could no longer touch her. 

Teaching children to find love in the world starts with small, simple steps.

The class had finished but invisible dragon waited by the window. 

The Queen of Crafts was now talking with his father, asking him questions. “Did I do something wrong? Was I too hard on her?”
He drew a long breath. “No, what happened had nothing to do with you. Something you said triggered her fears, or bad memories.”
She looked at him. “We talked about people with psychic power once. Are you psychic?”
His response was truthful while hiding a deeper truth. “No, I just saw something happening to her, and that she needed a little extra help.”

As he left the school, he sensed the invisible dragon was hovering above him. “Come down my good son. Let me climb onto your shoulders.” He scrambled onto the dragon’s enormous shoulders, immediately cloaked by his invisibility, and they rose into the sky.

After a few minutes, the dragon craned his head back to speak. "Watching you today, good father, I learned something very special, but I'm not exactly sure what it was."

Teaching children to find love in the world starts with small, simple steps.

The Queen of Crafts is alive and well and living in Vienna.

>> Books