HAPPY RETURNS
by Laurence Housman · from Moonshine & Clover
Adapted Version
Once upon a time. An old man lived by a river. An old woman lived with him. Their names were Finn and Lara. Old Man Finn ferried people. Old Woman Lara kept their small house. Life was hard for them. They were often tired. But they loved each other very much. This made them happy.
Each year, a strange thing happened. It was the first day. Old Man Finn went to his boat. The boat was not there. It was on the river's other side. It moved by itself. This was a magic secret.
One cold winter day, Old Man Finn fished. He caught a big fish. It shone like silver. The Shiny Fish looked at him. Tears came from its eyes. "Please let me go," it said. "I will tell a secret." Finn was surprised.
The Shiny Fish spoke. "A Silver Man takes your boat. He crosses the river each year. Catch him with your net. He will give one wish." Finn went home. He told Old Woman Lara. They felt wonder.
They waited in the boat. It was New Year's Eve. The air was cold. A silver light came. The Silver Man stepped in. He shone very bright. Old Man Finn threw the net. It caught the Silver Man. He did not fight. Old Woman Lara spoke. "Take us to the Land. The Land of Younger." The Silver Man nodded.
He stepped out of the boat. Finn and Lara followed. He led them to a place. It looked like a door. A magic door. He pointed inside. "Step in," he said.
They stepped through the door. The land was green. Flowers grew all around. The air felt fresh. They walked hand in hand. With each step, they felt new. Their backs felt strong. Their legs felt light.
They walked and walked. Their old bodies changed. They became young again. Like when they first met. They laughed out loud. They ran and played. Their hearts were full. They felt so happy.
They sat by a stream. Young Finn looked around. "We should go back," he said. "Before we are too young." Young Lara looked sad.
She held his hand. They walked towards the door. With each step, they changed. They became a boy. They became a girl. They were small and happy.
They reached the door again. Little Lara stopped. Tears filled her eyes. "I want to stay here," she said. Little Finn saw her. He loved her very much. "Then we will stay," he said.
They turned around. They ran back inside. They held hands and laughed. They loved this magic land. They wanted to stay young.
They played like children. They ran in the grass. Then they became smaller. They were tiny babies. They crawled in the soft grass. They were sleepy and warm.
A kind man came near. He shone like the moon. It was Father Time. He saw the two babies. They were fast asleep. He picked them up gently. He carried them away. He put them in their boat. The old boat by the river. Finn and Lara slept. They were safe and loved.
Original Story
HAPPY RETURNS
BY the side of a great river, whose stream formed the boundary to two countries, lived an old ferryman and his wife. All the day, while she minded the house, he sat in his boat by the ferry, waiting to carry travellers across; or, when no travellers came, and he had his boat free, he would cast drag-nets along the bed of the river for fish. But for the food which he was able thus to procure at times, he and his wife might well have starved, for travellers were often few and far between, and often they grudged him the few pence he asked for ferrying them; and now he had grown so old and feeble that when the river was in flood he could scarcely ferry the boat across; and continually he feared lest a younger and stronger man should come and take his place, and the bread from his mouth.
But he had trust in Providence. "Will not God," he said, "who has given us no happiness in this life, save in each other's help and companionship, allow us to end our days in peace?"
And his wife answered, "Yes, surely, if we trust Him enough He will."
One morning, it being the first day of the year, the ferryman going down to his boat, found that during the night it had been loosed from its moorings and taken across the river, where it now lay fastened to the further bank.
"Wife," said he "I can remember this same thing happening a year ago, and the year before also. Who is this traveller who comes once a year, like a thief in the night, and crosses without asking me to ferry him over?"
"Perhaps it is the good folk," said his wife. "Go over and see if they have left no coin behind them in the boat."
The old man got on to a log and poled himself across, and found, down in the keel of the boat, the mark of a man's bare foot driven deep into the wood; but there was no coin or other trace to show who it might be.
Time went on; the old ferryman was all bowed down with age, and his body was racked with pains. So slow was he now in making the passage of the stream, that all travellers who knew those parts took a road higher up the bank, where a stronger ferryman plied.
Winter came; and hunger and want pressed hard at the old man's door. One day while he drew his net along the stream, he felt the shock of a great fish striking against the meshes down below, and presently, as the net came in, he saw a shape like living silver, leaping and darting to and fro to find some way of escape. Up to the bank he landed it, a great gasping fish.
When he was about to kill it, he saw, to his astonishment, tears running out of its eyes, that gazed at him and seemed to reproach him for his cruelty. As he drew back, the Fish said: "Why should you kill me, who wish to live?"
The old man, altogether bewildered at hearing himself thus addressed, answered: "Since I and my wife are hungry, and God gave you to be eaten, I have good reason for killing you."
"I could give you something worth far more than a meal," said the Fish, "if you would spare my life."
"We are old," said the ferryman, "and want only to end our days in peace. To-day we are hungry; what can be more good for us than a meal which will give us strength for the morrow, which is the new year?"
The Fish said: "To-night someone will come and unfasten your boat, and ferry himself over, and you know nothing of it till the morning, when you see the craft moored out yonder by the further bank."
The old man remembered how the thing had happened in previous years, directly the Fish spoke. "Ah, you know that then! How is it?" he asked.
"When you go back to your hut at night to sleep, I am here in the water," said the Fish. "I see what goes on."
"What goes on, then?" asked the old man, very curious to know who the strange traveller might be.
"Ah," said the Fish, "if you could only catch him in your boat, he could give you something you might wish for! I tell you this: do you and your wife keep watch in the boat all night, and when he comes, and you have ferried him into mid-stream, where he cannot escape, then throw your net over him and hold him till he pays you for all your ferryings."
"How shall he pay me? All my ferryings of a lifetime!"
"Make him take you to the land of Returning Time. There, at least, you can end your days in peace."
The old man said: "You have told me a strange thing; and since I mean to act on it, I suppose I must let you go. If you have deceived me, I trust you may yet die a cruel death."
The Fish answered: "Do as I tell you, and you shall die a happy one." And, saying this he slipped down into the water and disappeared.
The ferryman went back to his wife supperless, and said to her: "Wife, bring a net, and come down into the boat!" And he told her the story of the Fish and of the yearly traveller.
They sat long together under the dark bank, looking out over the quiet and cold moonlit waters, till the midnight hour. The air was chill, and to keep themselves warm they covered themselves over with the net and lay down in the bottom of the boat. It was the very hour when the old year dies and the new year is born.
Before they well knew that they had been asleep, they started to feel the rocking of the boat, and found themselves out upon the broad waters of the river. And there in the fore-part of the boat, clear and sparkling in the moonlight, stood a naked man of shining silver. He was bending upon the pole of the boat, and his long hair fell over it right down into the water.
The old couple rose up quietly, and unwinding themselves from the net, threw it over the Silver Man, over his head and hands and feet, and dragged him down into the bottom of the boat.
The old man caught the ferry pole, and heaved the boat still into the middle of the stream. As he did so a gentle shock came to the heart of each; feebly it fluttered and sank low. "Oh, wife!" sighed the old man, and reached out his hand for hers.
The Silver Man lay still in the folds of the net, and looked at them with a wise and quiet gaze. "What would you have of me?" he said, and his voice was far off and low.
They said, "Bring us into the land of Returning Time."
The Silver Man said: "Only once can you go there, and once return."
They both answered "We wish once to go there, and once return."
So he promised them that they should have the whole of their request; and they unloosed him from the net, and landed altogether on the further bank.
Up the hill they went, following the track of the Silver Man. Presently they reached its crest; and there before them lay all the howling winter of the world.
The Silver Man turned his face and looked back; and looking back it became all young, and ruddy, and bright. The ferryman and his wife gazed at him, both speechless at the wonderful change. He took their hands, making them turn the way by which they had come; below their feet was a deep black gulf, and beyond and away lay nothing but a dark starless hollow of air.
"Now," said their guide, "you have but to step forward one step, and you shall be in the land of Returning Time."
They loosed hold of his hands, joined clasp, husband with wife, and at one step upon what seemed gulf beneath their feet, found themselves in a green and flowery land. There were perfumed valleys and grassy hills, whose crops stretched down before the breeze; thick fleecy clouds crossed their tops, and overhead amid a blue air rang the shrill trilling of birds. Behind lay, fading mistily as a dream, the bare world they had left; and fast on his forward road, growing small to them from a distance, went the Silver Man, a shining point on the horizon.
The ferryman and his wife looked, and saw youth in each other's faces beginning to peep out through the furrows of age; each step they took made them grow younger and stronger; years fell from them like worn-out rags as they went down into the valleys of the land of Returning Time.
How fast Time returned! Each step made the change of a day, and every mile brought them five years back towards youth. When they came down to the streams that ran in the bed of each valley, the ferryman and his wife felt their prime return to them. He saw the gold come back into her locks, and she the brown into his. Their lips became open to laughter and song. "Oh, how good," they cried, "to have lived all our lives poor, to come at last to this!"
They drank water out of the streams, and tasted the fruit from the trees that grew over them; till presently, being tired for mere joy, they lay down in the grass to rest. They slept hand within hand and cheek against cheek, and, when they woke, found themselves quite young again, just at the age when they were first married in the years gone by.
The ferryman started up and felt the desire of life strong in his blood. "Come!" he said to his wife, "or we shall become too young with lingering here. Now we have regained our youth, let us go back into the world once more!"
His wife hung upon his hand, "Are we not happy enough," she asked, "as it is? Why should we return?"
"But," he cried, "we shall grow too young; now we have youth and life at its best let us return! Time goes too fast with us; we are in danger of it carrying us away."
She said no further word, but followed up towards the way by which they had entered. And yet, in spite of her wish to remain, as she went her young blood frisked. Presently coming to the top of a hill, they set off running and racing; at the bottom they looked at each other, and saw themselves boy and girl once more.
"We have stayed here too long!" said the ferryman, and pressed on.
"Oh, the birds," sighed she, "and the flowers, and the grassy hills to run on, we are leaving behind!" But still the boy had the wish for a man's life again, and urged her on; and still with every step they grew younger and younger. At length, two small children, they came to the border of that enchanted land, and saw beyond the world bleak and wintry and without leaf. Only a further step was wanted to bring them face to face once more with the hard battle of life.
Tears rose in the child-wife's eyes: "If we go," she said, "we can never return!" Her husband looked long at her wistful face; he, too, was more of a child now, and was forgetting his wish to be a man again.
He took hold of her hand and turned round with her, and together they faced once more the flowery orchards, and the happy watered valleys.
Away down there light streams tinkled, and birds called. Downwards they went, slowly at first, then with dancing feet, as with shoutings and laughter they ran.
Down into the level fields they ran; their running was turned to a toddling; their toddling to a tumbling; their tumbling to a slow crawl upon hands and feet among the high grass and flowers; till at last they were lying side by side, curled up into a cuddly ball, chuckling and dimpling and crowing to the insects and birds that passed over them.
Then they heard the sweet laughter of Father Time; and over the hill he came, young, ruddy, and shining, and gathered them up sound asleep on the old boat by the ferry.
Printed in Great Britain by Hazell, Watson & Viney, Ld.,
London and Aylesbury.
Transcriber's Notes:
Obvious punctuation errors repaired.
The remaining corrections made are indicated by dotted lines under the corrections. Scroll the mouse over the word and the original text will appear.
*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MOONSHINE & CLOVER ***
Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will be renamed.
Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG™ concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you charge for an eBook, except by following the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use of the Project Gutenberg trademark. If you do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the trademark license is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and research. Project Gutenberg eBooks may be modified and printed and given away—you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks not protected by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the trademark license, especially commercial redistribution.
Story DNA
Moral
True happiness and peace are found not in escaping the natural course of life, but in embracing each stage and the companionship shared.
Plot Summary
An old, impoverished ferryman and his wife, weary of their hard life, discover that a mysterious Silver Man takes their boat across the river every New Year's Eve. Guided by a talking fish, they capture the Silver Man and wish to go to the Land of Returning Time, where they rapidly grow younger. After experiencing the joy of renewed youth, the ferryman initially wants to return to the world, but as they regress further into childhood, they decide to remain in the enchanted land. They continue to grow younger until they become infants, at which point Father Time gently returns them, sound asleep, to their old boat.
Themes
Emotional Arc
suffering to joy to contemplation to acceptance
Writing Style
Narrative Elements
Cultural Context
Laurence Housman was a British writer and illustrator, known for his fairy tales and fantasy. This story reflects a common theme in literature of the early 20th century: a yearning for escape from the hardships of modern life, often through fantastical means, and a contemplation of time and mortality.
Plot Beats (14)
- An old, poor ferryman and his wife live by a river, struggling to make ends meet and fearing the future.
- The ferryman notices his boat is mysteriously taken across the river every New Year's Eve.
- One winter, the ferryman catches a talking fish that offers a wish in exchange for its life.
- The fish reveals the yearly traveler is the Silver Man and instructs the couple to capture him to get their wish granted.
- On New Year's Eve, the couple waits in their boat, captures the Silver Man with a net, and demands to be taken to the Land of Returning Time.
- The Silver Man agrees, takes them to the edge of a deep gulf, and instructs them to step forward.
- They step into the Land of Returning Time, a beautiful, verdant place, and begin to grow younger with every step.
- They rapidly revert to their prime, experiencing immense joy and renewed vitality.
- After resting, the ferryman, now young, insists they return to the world before they become too young.
- His wife is hesitant, but follows him as they continue to grow younger, becoming a boy and a girl.
- At the border of the land, now children, the wife cries, not wanting to leave, and the husband, also a child, changes his mind.
- They turn back into the Land of Returning Time, embracing their continued regression.
- They grow progressively younger, from running children to toddling infants, eventually becoming babes crawling in the grass.
- Father Time, young and shining, appears and gathers them up, sound asleep, back in their old boat by the ferry.
Characters
The Old Ferryman ★ protagonist
Bowed down with age, his body racked with pains, suggesting a hunched posture and a frail, thin build. His skin would be wrinkled and weathered from years of outdoor life by the river.
Attire: Simple, worn peasant clothing suitable for a ferryman in a temperate European climate, likely made of coarse linen or wool. Perhaps a patched, dark tunic, loose-fitting trousers, and sturdy, well-worn leather boots. His clothes would be practical and show signs of long use and repair.
Wants: To provide for himself and his wife, to end their days in peace, and to escape the hardship of their old age.
Flaw: His physical feebleness and the weariness brought on by a lifetime of poverty and hard labor. He is also easily swayed by the promise of an easier life.
Starts as a weary, old man longing for peace, is granted youth and the chance to relive life, but ultimately chooses to return to infancy with his wife, finding ultimate peace in a childlike state.
Pious, patient, hardworking, weary, loving (towards his wife), and initially skeptical but ultimately trusting.
Image Prompt & Upload
An elderly man standing, facing forward, full body visible from head to toe. He has a hunched posture, a thin, frail build, and a deeply wrinkled, weathered face with tired eyes. His sparse, white hair is unkempt. He wears a patched, dark brown linen tunic, loose-fitting grey trousers, and worn leather boots. He holds a long wooden ferry pole in his hands, leaning on it slightly. A weary, hopeful expression. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
The Old Ferryman's Wife ◆ supporting
Likely frail and thin, similar to her husband, with the physical toll of a hard life evident in her posture and movements. Her hands would be gnarled from housework.
Attire: Simple, practical peasant clothing, such as a long, dark linen dress or skirt and bodice, with a plain apron. Her clothes would be well-worn and mended, reflecting their poverty.
Wants: To support her husband, to find peace, and to maintain their companionship.
Flaw: Her reluctance to leave the comfort of their newfound youth and the land of Returning Time, which almost causes them to become too young.
Starts as a weary, old woman, is granted youth, and initially wishes to remain in the land of Returning Time, but ultimately follows her husband's lead, finding peace in shared infancy.
Pious, supportive, patient, loving, and more content with their simple life than her husband, initially hesitant about returning to the world.
Image Prompt & Upload
An elderly woman standing, facing forward, full body visible from head to toe. She has a thin, slightly stooped build, and a kind, wrinkled face with gentle eyes. Her grey hair is pulled back simply. She wears a long, dark grey linen dress with a plain cream apron tied at the waist. Her hands are clasped gently in front of her. A serene, loving expression. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
The Fish ◆ supporting
A great, gasping fish, described as a 'shape like living silver'. It would be large and powerful, with shimmering scales that reflect moonlight, giving it an ethereal glow.
Attire: None, as it is a fish.
Wants: To save its own life by offering valuable information.
Flaw: Its vulnerability to being caught and killed by humans.
Appears to offer a magical solution, then disappears, having fulfilled its role.
Intelligent, cunning, persuasive, and self-preserving.
Image Prompt & Upload
A large, powerful fish, shimmering with silver scales, lying on a riverbank. Its body is thick and muscular, with wide, gasping gills. Large, dark eyes are visible, with a single tear tracing a path down its cheek. Its fins are broad and slightly fanned. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
The Silver Man ◆ supporting
A naked man of shining silver, clear and sparkling in the moonlight. He appears physically perfect and ethereal, with a radiant glow.
Attire: Naked, but described as 'shining silver', implying his skin itself is metallic and luminous.
Wants: To fulfill his role as the yearly traveler and to guide those who capture him to the land of Returning Time.
Flaw: He can be captured by the net, suggesting a vulnerability to physical restraint, though he does not resist.
Appears as a mysterious traveler, is captured, acts as a guide to the land of Returning Time, and then departs, leaving the couple to their fate.
Wise, quiet, powerful, and a silent guide. He does not speak much but acts with purpose.
Image Prompt & Upload
A tall, slender man standing upright, facing forward, full body visible from head to toe. His entire body is made of shimmering, polished silver, reflecting light. Long, flowing silver hair cascades down his back, reaching his waist. His face is serene and wise, with calm, reflective eyes. He holds a long, slender wooden pole, resting it on the ground beside him. A quiet, knowing expression. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
Father Time ○ minor
Young, ruddy, and shining. He embodies vitality and health, a stark contrast to the traditional image of an old, scythe-wielding Father Time.
Attire: Not explicitly described, but implied to be simple and natural, fitting his youthful and elemental nature. Perhaps a light, flowing tunic or robes that do not detract from his 'shining' quality.
Wants: To gather the ferryman and his wife, bringing their journey through time to a peaceful conclusion.
Flaw: None apparent, as he is a powerful, elemental force.
Appears at the very end to provide a final, comforting resolution to the couple's journey.
Benevolent, gentle, and overseeing. He brings a sense of peace and resolution.
Image Prompt & Upload
A young man, appearing as a vigorous young adult, standing upright, facing forward, full body visible from head to toe. He has a ruddy, healthy complexion and bright, shining golden hair. His eyes are warm and kind. He wears a simple, flowing cream-colored tunic made of soft linen, tied at the waist with a thin rope. He has a gentle, benevolent smile on his face. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
Locations
The Ferryman's Hut and Riverbank
The humble dwelling of the old ferryman and his wife, situated by the side of a great river that forms a boundary between two countries. The river is wide and often cold and moonlit, with a strong current when in flood. The bank is dark and provides mooring for the ferry boat.
Mood: Desolate, humble, weary, hopeful, later tense and mysterious
The ferryman's daily life, the discovery of the boat moved, the catching of the talking fish, and the waiting for the Silver Man.
Image Prompt & Upload
A wide, slow-moving river under a cold, clear winter moon. On the near bank, a small, weathered wooden hut with a thatched roof, smoke faintly rising from a stone chimney. A simple, flat-bottomed wooden ferry boat is moored to a rough-hewn post on the dark, muddy bank. Sparse, frost-covered reeds line the water's edge, and distant, bare trees are silhouetted against the pale sky. The moonlight casts long, stark shadows across the water and the humble dwelling. no border, no frame, no watermark, no text, no signature, edge-to-edge illustration.
Mid-stream on the River
The broad, quiet waters of the river, especially at midnight, illuminated by moonlight. The current is strong enough to make ferrying difficult for an old man, and it is here that the Silver Man is captured.
Mood: Mysterious, tense, pivotal, magical
The old couple's encounter with and capture of the Silver Man, marking the transition to their magical journey.
Image Prompt & Upload
A wide, dark river at midnight, reflecting the cold, bright moonlight in shimmering streaks. A simple, flat-bottomed wooden ferry boat is positioned in the middle of the stream, its rough planks visible. The water around the boat shows subtle ripples from its movement. The distant banks are barely visible as dark, indistinct lines under a vast, star-dusted sky. The air feels crisp and still, emphasizing the quiet solitude of the scene. no border, no frame, no watermark, no text, no signature, edge-to-edge illustration.
The Land of Returning Time
A verdant, idyllic land of perfumed valleys and grassy hills, where crops stretch down before the breeze. Thick fleecy clouds cross the hilltops, and the air is blue, filled with the trilling of birds. Streams run in the beds of the valleys, and fruit trees grow abundantly. The landscape is vibrant and full of life, contrasting sharply with the bleak world left behind.
Mood: Magical, rejuvenating, joyful, idyllic, bittersweet
The old couple regains their youth, experiences the joy of life, and ultimately decides to return, only to reverse their journey back to infancy.
Image Prompt & Upload
A breathtaking landscape of rolling, verdant hills covered in lush, green grass and vibrant wildflowers, stretching into the distance under a brilliant, clear blue sky. Gentle breezes ripple through fields of golden crops in the valleys below. Scattered clusters of fruit-laden trees with rich green foliage dot the slopes. Overhead, soft, white fleecy clouds drift lazily. A narrow, sparkling stream meanders through a valley, reflecting the bright sky. The air is filled with an invisible sense of warmth and vitality. no border, no frame, no watermark, no text, no signature, edge-to-edge illustration.
