A Craft from the Woods

Doug Harris was not thrilled with his current situation. He had moved to this small, rural town two years prior hoping to use his woodworking skills to find success and achieve his dream of creating beautiful birdhouses for people to admire and purchase. Unfortunately, nothing seemed to be going his way. He hadn ’t sold one birdhouse in weeks, not even the most intricate ones he crafted from the most exotic woods.

Every morning he forced himself to wake up, get dressed, and head off to his small workspace hoping he would suddenly have inspiration for a new and innovative birdhouse that would bring him the success he promised himself.

Little did Doug know that his wildest dreams were about to come true, and it would all begin in the Birchwood Forest.

Full of trepidation, yet also with a hint of determination, Doug stepped into the forest and almost immediately stumbled upon an old stump. He sat down to take a break, curiously looking around at the unusual plant life, when suddenly a swift fluttering of wings caught his attention.

A colorful, white and yellow bird had landed on the log quite close by, confidently cocked its head, and said “hi there, friend.”. Doug, starstruck, blurted out that he was most certainly not it ’s friend. To his surprise, the bird let out a melodic laughter in response.

The bird began to tell Doug all sorts of exciting tales. Everyone had called it the champion of the forest, able to make the most fantastic birdhouses with its magical powers of the elements. It introducing Doug to his trusty companion, Sam the Slug, and together the three of them rode off through the forrest to an enchanting clearing.

Doug soon realized that the bird was offering him quite a remarkable and exciting opportunity teach him how to design and build magical birdhouses that could actually SING and brim with enthusiasm. Nervous, yet thrilled at the prospect, he accepted the offer and began the apprenticeship.

Now that Doug had started down the road to becoming a true birdhouse builder, he often struggled to keep up with the demands of his new task. Magical birdhouses were hard to make and required perfectly fine craftsmanship. There were many days when Doug wanted to quit, to continue on in his mundane, yet safe, birdhouse building habits.

Yet every time, Peter and Sam were there to catch him if he ever stumbled. With their help, Doug dove deeper into the world of magical creations and it only seemed to get bigger and bigger. Suddenly, Doug was the envy of the Woodsmiths in all the nearby villages, although the folks didn't know what was so special about his birdhouses other than the fact that when you turned them over, one could faintly hear a tune coming from between their walls.

It was almost Christmas and Doug began to worry that his dream of having magical birdhouses being appreciated and bought around the small town was literally slipping away. People had become too used to their magical strangeness and as time moved on it became clear that the winter birdhouse sales were at an all time low.

At least until he got invited to a Christmas party in the marquis in town. Doug figured this was his last chance to get the people to appreciate his hardwork, at least show them a hint of the magical birdhouses that he had been able to craft with the help of Peter and Sam.

In panic, he started over crafting some of his greatest birdhouses, but adding bigger and better magical details. He then figured out a way to put on a light show to truly capture the attention of the guests at the party.

Finally, with the lightshow and his friend's help, people attention focused on the birdhouses. Doug's birdhouses were moved centerstage and whispers about the magical birdhouses spread through the crowd like wildfire with people wanting to have one for their Christmas tree.

The Christmas party turned out to be a great success with Doug's birdhouses being sold within hours. Doug and his friends traveled through the woodlands, curiously selecting the peculiar trees, rocks, and plants that inspired their magical birdhouses. Slowly, they saw their dream of the magical birdhouse becoming people's own Christmas tree tradition come true.

The town people were amazed at Doug's craftmanship and praised the care and passion he had for his products. With Peter's help, Doug was able to make a fantastical arrangement of colors, melodies and scents that people could truly appreciate. Doug also was happy that his dream of making a living from this had come true, and he grew to be respected and well known around the town as the Birdhouse Maker.