The story of the Key

The story of a key.....

Once there was a lovely young girl who lived inside the protected walls of a far away kingdom. She wasn't the princess but sometimes people called her one because of the lovely glow that radiated from her face. She loved life and was very fond of tromping through the woods, wading in the creeks and exploring outside of the castle walls.

The little girl made friends easily and had many exciting adventures, however, the thing she enjoyed most in life was having her father return safely to the cottage after his day of work. Sometimes he worked late into the evenings but she would always stay up waiting to hear the pleasant tone of his voice as he whistled his way down the lane. When she heard him coming she would throw open the door and run to greet him.

He loved to see his little girl and if he had arrived home at a reasonable hour he would go for a walk with her or help her get the table ready for supper, but if it was late and time for her to get some rest, he would scoop her up into his arms and tuck her into bed. The little girl loved this part of the day most of all because her father never left the room without sharing a story with her. He told her how to live her life in a way that was pleased God, how to be good and kind, and he would always end the evening by offering a prayer to the Lord on her behalf. Then she would drift off to sleep in the happiness of knowing that God and her father loved and cared for her.

One day as the girl's father tucked her into her bed, he pointed out a shiny little key hanging precariously on a shelf in her room. She had spent many hours that day pretending to be a captive maiden who was escaping the gloom of a dingy tower prison using that very key which had been snatched out of the unsuspecting guards pocket. She apologized for not being more careful with it, and listened eagerly as her father recounted the story of the key.

He told her that it was one of her most valuable possessions and worth more than any of her other things. He told her that it had been a gift from the King on the day of her birth. He told her that it represented the King's willingness to do anything for her safety and protection and that it was the key to a nearby castle which the King had tried to give him once after they had closely escaped death in the hands of an arch enemy. He warned her to guard it carefully and that although she was allowed to take it out she needed to watch it carefully and make sure that it never left her sight. The girl flinched because though she usually took very good care of the key and stored it safely away with the other things that she deemed important, she had on that very day lent it to a friend who had promised to be the handsome knight who would save her from her fate.

That night as she allowed herself to drift once more into sleep, she purposed in her heart to be more careful with her precious key and not to lend it carelessly out for play in the future.

As the days passed the young girl stood by her resolution. At first her friends where confused at her reasons for not playing with the beautiful little key, but gradually they grew accostumed to this change and learned to accept it.

To be continued...