Night Knight - Therapeutic Bedtime Stories has been created in response to help lessen the suffering caused by various circumstances that are common to many of today’s children.
This first book and narrated musical CD version explores four themes – bereavement, separation & divorce, bullying and childhood depression & anxiety.
“These bedtime stories are a wonderful method of inspiring a sense of safety and open communication between children and the parent / carer who is reading the story. The expression of difficult feelings is encouraged and accepted, and the stories leave the listener with a great sense of safety and security. I recommend these stories to young people up to the age of twelve, and their carers. Everyone is likely to benefit, but these stories will be of particular benefit for those undergoing difficult life experiences, losses and transitions.”
Dr Julia Ronder,
Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist
This is bedtime reading at its best - highly recommended.”
Review on Amazon
Orion’s Stormy Flight
Part One
Deep within the shadows of the huge oak tree, the ground itself seemed to be alive. Leaves, twigs and ferns were flying about. They could have been helpless victims caught up in the winds of wild tornadoes! Even the tangled roots that lay bare above the ground were writhing and moving around like angry snakes amidst the chaos. All the while delicate rays of sunlight shone down through the tree’s branches. They pierced the shadows like dancing fireflies.
What was that – over there? Did you notice those ears? Those pointed ears. A little body was moving clumsily through the undergrowth.
“Orion, what are you doing?” A small and very beautiful elf with the shiniest, blackest hair you’ve ever seen suddenly appeared. Where had she come from? It was Rosador.
“You’re causing a right kerfuffle you know!” she said to her friend.
The tree shouted out, “Hey, bro, that hurts!” as her friend Orion tripped clumsily over its roots, half falling into the clearing to join Rosador. As soon as she saw him, she noticed a grey shadowy outline on his left shoulder.
One moment it was there, the next it had gone. Completely disappeared. Rosador recognised the cruel dark figure straight away. Orion’s dark fairy. It had come to try and do him some real harm.
“I’ve lost my flying-cloak ... I think it’s somewhere around here,” Orion said desperately, waving his arms about.
“Orion,” Rosador said, “be careful! You’ve just knocked the sun clock over - now I don’t know how long we’ve got left playing in the forest. Don’t you remember? We’re supposed to be playing back at my house today. Mum’s making some nettle soup and parsnip pie for us. Come on. Let’s go and ask the Walnut Tree to tell us the time.”
“Sorry about that, Rosador!” Orion replied, scuffling his feet about uneasily, feeling embarrassed. “I don’t know what to do. I’m sad about losing my flying-cloak; I can’t stand losing anything these days. Even losing an acorn or a walnut upsets me. I know it sounds stupid.”
Ever since Orion’s younger brother had died, he had been feeling unsettled, even though it had happened a whole school term ago. As a result of how he was feeling, his dark fairy was making a nuisance of itself. It hovered about on his left shoulder, whispering horrible things in his ear that made him feel bad. It was unusual for light elves to attract their dark fairies. Light elves like Orion were full of positive energy that usually kept the cruel whispers at bay. Dark fairies could only come when elves or other creatures of the forests were feeling bad. Orion looked sad.
“Come on, Orion, let’s go and see the Calm Tree by the seashore. How about that?” Rosador asked her friend encouragingly.
“Yes, okay,” Orion said to Rosador, “but first of all let’s go and check out the time.”
Orion was all of a dither. Rosador smiled at the way his sandals were on the wrong feet. This kind and most loyal of friends understood her better than anyone. She didn’t need to explain anything to him. They always knew exactly what the other one was going to say, even before they said it.
Orion made all the elves laugh with his funny expressions and his loud infectious chuckles. He loved to show off, demonstrating the agility and speed of a circus acrobat performing amazing handstands, headstands and even fingerstands to anyone willing to watch him. Orion’s amazing fingerstands were only possible because of the strength developed in his fingers. How? Well, along with his friends, he’d been spending a lot of his spare time opening and splitting acorns and other nuts in his parents’ crisp factory. This was the family-run factory where the tastiest, crunchiest crisps were made.
Wellness Island was known far and wide as the land of well-being. All the trees had magical qualities that varied from tree to tree, and every single tree was blessed with the great gift of speech.
Walnut trees were the ones to go and visit if you had simple problems that you needed help with, like reminders of how to tie your laces properly. For more serious matters, the elder trees were the ones to go to for advice. This is why they were called the ‘Wise Elders’! When they were feeling sad and mad and bad, the elves would fly all the way over to the seaside to ask for help from the Calm Tree.
As Orion and Rosador approached the Walnut Tree they noticed the ‘Branch Open’ sign gently swinging back and forth in the warm summer breeze.
“Walnut Tree,” Rosador called, tapping on the bark.
“Yes,” a slow voice from deep within replied.
“Walnut Tree, please will you tell us the time? We’re not sure how long we’ve got left to play.”
“Mmm - that all depends on whether you’re living in the now or whether you’re living in the future.” The tree studied Rosador’s face very carefully.
“Can’t I live in the now and in the future?” Rosador asked.
“Why would you want to live in the future? What’s wrong with now?” Walnut Tree asked. “Anyway, I would say the time is very definitely now, so there’s no hurry for you to return home.”
“Thank you, Walnut Tree,” Rosador said. She didn’t really understand what Walnut Tree meant, but she could feel its warm energy flowing through her, and it made her smile.
“Be away with you, little ones ...” the tree said, smiling.
Being in a hurry to get to the Calm Tree, Rosador reached for her flying-cloak. This is why oak trees were called Cloak Trees. Every elf family had hooks by their front doors for the elves to hang their cloaks on. In the mornings when leaving their homes to go to school the elf children would pop their cloaks into their waist pouches. They often came in handy if they were late for school and needed to fly.
Rosador pulled the cloak out from the pouch that hung from her belt, attaching it around her shoulders.
“Come on, Orion, hold on tight!”
“Are you crazy, Rosador?” Orion shouted. “I’m heavier than you, and we shouldn’t be sharing the same cloak! It can be very dangerous!”
“Not as dangerous as your dark fairy. Now come on!” his friend commanded.
“Well – all right then,” Orion responded anxiously.
Soon the pair were skimming the tallest trees of Cloakwood Forest. As they flew towards the north shore of the island the two elves could feel the damp coolness of a single wispy cloud floating aimlessly just above them. It always felt amazing to fly through the skies. Sometimes they pretended they were magnificent birds of prey, gliding gracefully along. Once beyond the high mountains on the far side of Willow River it was only a short flight over the Dark Forest. Before long they were flying down to the seashore where the Calm Tree was waiting for them, already aware of their approach.
Once settled on the soft sand, the elves enjoyed the cool shade of the branches. Soon, they were offered some coconut milk by the Calm Tree. After drinking the rich liquid, Rosador wandered over to the shoreline and paddled in the waters. As she picked up a shell that glistened in the sun’s rays, she could feel the waves rolling and tumbling over her hot toes. She looked over at her friend across the beach. He was snuggled up by the trunk of the Calm Tree. The tree had wrapped one of its branches gently around Orion, protecting him from the gusty wind.
“Tell me, young elf,” the wise old tree asked, “when you think about your brother, how do you feel inside?”
“I feel really sad,” Orion said, big tears welling up in his eyes. “Sadder than sad ... I often feel empty. Sad empty; not happy empty. I don’t understand something, Calm Tree: why did my brother have to die and not me? Doesn’t seem fair. He didn’t do anything bad or wrong.”
“We can’t ever hope to understand the deeper mysteries of life, Orion. The question is – how would your brother feel if he knew you were carrying all these sad and bad feelings around inside you?”
Orion thought for a while. “He’d feel mighty sad. He’d start pulling funny faces and make me laugh.”
“How do you think he’d like you to feel now?” the tree asked.
“He’d like me to enjoy my life.”
“That’s right. When you feel sadness, allow those feelings of sadness to flow through you. When you feel that way, do what feels right for you. Crying can be healing for some,” the Calm Tree added.
“Sometimes I stand on the beach and cry out to the waves. The seas don’t mind. The sea’s mighty kind.” Orion said.
“Yes!” the Calm Tree said. “It washes all those sad feelings away, just like it washes away writing in the sand.
“Some elves feel angry when someone close to them dies. They feel they’ve been left all alone, sometimes with no warning and they can feel very angry. They need to shout their feelings of anger out from the mountain tops.”
“Do ya mean like a big lion roaring, or Grizzles the bear growling; like this?” Orion asked, taking a deep breath and making wild noises till he was red in the face.
“Yes,” the Calm Tree laughed. “The mountains send those wild cries down into the corridors of the valleys where they fade away into distant echoes. Others need to quietly curl themselves up in their homes for a while and watch the world pass them by. There are no right ways or wrong ways to grieve. Time itself heals and you will feel better as time passes by, even though you may not believe that right now. You’ve heard all you need to hear for now, Orion.”
With that, the Calm Tree smiled and closed his eyes. Orion could feel the pure love of the tree settling and soothing his troubled heart.
Orion gently hugged the tree and turned away. The elves knew that all trees are sacred and special. They understood that if there were no trees there would be no elves. Orion walked towards the shoreline, waving gratefully back. He didn’t really want to leave the Calm Tree yet. His eyes searched the beach for signs of Rosador.
Suddenly, he caught sight of his friend running towards him. As she drew close, he noticed a huge black cloud in the sky, looming behind her. It looked frightening, like it was chasing her. The wind was picking up speed.
“I’m cold,” Rosador panted, her teeth chattering louder than monkeys. “We must hurry home, Orion, before the rains come. Come on!”
Her shaking hands were scrambling about, trying to get the cloak from its pouch. A distant rumble could be heard as if from the belly of a hungry giant.
“I’m not so sure,” Orion said nervously, watching the blackening skies above. “You know we shouldn’t risk flying in the rain.”
“I promised Mum I’d be home. I don’t want her worrying about me. Come on, Orion, if we get going now we’ll be okay. I’m sure we can beat the rain.” It was not like Rosador at all to do something like this. The elves had been given strict rules for flying in bad weather. As the pitter-patter sounds of raindrops could be heard speckling the golden sand, footprints were all that remained. The two young elves were heading home, sharing only one cloak between them.
Thunder roared. It was closer now. The frightened friends found themselves battling against pouring rain that splashed heavily on the cloak. As Orion’s fingers desperately clung on to Rosador, he watched with horror as a large black shape suddenly emerged through the rain alongside him. Upon a long curved neck rested an ugly head with a hook-shaped beak. Straggly yet strong wings easily overpowered the force of the storm.
“Jump on! I’ve come to save you from the storm; that cloak is about to fail you,” the mysterious creature shouted beside him, menacingly tugging at the corner of the soaking cloak.
Rosador couldn’t hear what was happening behind her due to the deafening noise of the thunder and rain.
In desperation, Orion leaped onto the bony back of the bird, grasping at its wiry feathers.
“Rosador, Rosador,” Orion desperately called out. His friend, though, continued flying, unaware of Orion calling to her, unaware that he was no longer with her.
The creature circled and swooped down; down into the depths of the trees below.
“Rosador, Rosador,” Orion kept calling, but his voice had been stolen away by the wild winds.
Once again, thunder bellowed across the skies as the two friends went their separate ways.
There’s no need for you to worry about Orion; the elves want to reassure you that he’s going to be all right. They’re also saying that he’s soon going to become happy, safe and secure. All the creatures on Wellness Island are looking forward to sharing Orion’s continuing adventure with you. It’s going to be fun!
Sleep tight and Night Knight.TM
ooOoo