The Well of Honor | Ep. 276

There’s an old Egyptian proverb that says: “A lie has no legs.”

In other words, a lie – an untruth – has no legs to stand on. And with nothing to support it, it’s bound to come crashing down.

In this week’s story, we’ll meet a character whose lie is so big, so whopping, HE comes crashing down, too!

Our story is called “The Well of Honor.” You’ll find versions of this tale from Egypt, Sudan, Tunisia, and parts of the Middle East.

This episode was the first of two recorded live at Symphony Hall in Boston, Massachusetts. Joining host Rebecca Sheir on stage was a star-studded cast of actors: Josh Gondelman, Hari Kondabolu, Faith Salie and Bethany Van Delft.

Providing musical accompaniment, under the direction of composer Eric Shimelonis, was a world-class sextet from the Boston Symphony Orchestra: Cathy Basrak on viola, Christopher Elchico on clarinet, Clint Foreman on flute, Ben Levy on double bass, Suzanne Nelsen on bassoon, and Austin Ruff on horn.

This episode was adapted for Circle Round by Rebecca Sheir. It was edited by Dean Russell. Original music and sound design is by Eric Shimelonis. Our artist is Sabina Hahn.

GROWN-UPS! PRINT THIS so everyone can color while listening. We’re also keeping an album so please share your picture on Facebook and Instagram, and tag it with #CircleRoundPodcast. To access all the coloring pages for past episodes click HERE. Our resident artist is Sabina Hahn and you can learn more about her HERE.

Now It’s Your Turn

Think about the last time you shared something. Then think about these four questions:

With these questions in mind, find some paper and draw a picture of your sharing moment. Show your drawing to someone you have fun with. And, if you’d like, show it to us! Ask a grown-up to snap a photo of you and your artwork and email it to circleround@wbur.org.

With your permission, we may feature you in “The Lion’s Roar”: the monthly newsletter of the Circle Round Club! Learn more about this super-fun membership opportunity for super-fans like you here.

Script:

NARRATOR: Once upon a time… in a wide green valley… there lived four animal friends. Sheep:

SHEEP: (sheep bleat)

NARRATOR: Goat:

GOAT: (goat bleat)

NARRATOR: Goose:

GOOSE: (honk)

NARRATOR: And Donkey:

DONKEY: (“hee-haw” bray)

NARRATOR: The soil in the animals’ valley was rich and fertile. So Sheep, Goat, Goose and Donkey had plenty of grasses, weeds and other yummy plants to nibble and graze.

But there was one plant that did NOT grow in the rich, fertile valley. A rather delicious plant which the four friends craved. And that plant was…

SHEEP: / GOAT: / GOOSE: / DONKEY: …BARLEY!

NARRATOR: Barley is a type of grain. It has a long, thin stem and a spiky top that turns into kernels you can eat. Barley has sort of a nutty flavor… and Sheep, Goat, Goose and Donkey were nutty FOR it!

So the four friends decided to start their own barley farm.

SHEEP: That way, we can eat as much barley as we want!

GOAT: You betcha, Sheep! We’ll plant it, grow it, and harvest it ourselves!

GOOSE: We sure will, Goat! So long as we split the harvest evenly between us! Isn’t that right, Donkey?

DONKEY: That’s right, Goose! We’ll split the crops four ways. (beat) Now let’s get started!

NARRATOR: The first thing the animals did… was weed.

SHEEP: Yank up those unwanted vines and creepers, friends! We need a clear plot!

NARRATOR: The second thing they did was plow.

GOAT: Everybody grab a stick and loosen up the soil!

NARRATOR: The third thing they did was plant.

GOOSE: Go up and down the rows, friends! And sow those seeds!

NARRATOR: And all the while, as they tended their growing crops, the animals worked hard.

…Or most of the animals worked hard. While Sheep, Goat and Goose kept their noses – and snouts and beaks – to the grindstone, Donkey came up with excuse after excuse for why he couldn’t lend a hand… or a hoof. Like:

DONKEY: I’m too tired!

NARRATOR: …or…

DONKEY: I’m too hungry!

NARRATOR: …or…

DONKEY: I’m too sore! I must have slept weird last night, because I am aching all over! You guys do all the work today, okay? I’ll help out tomorrow.

NARRATOR: And yet, when “tomorrow” rolled around…?

DONKEY: My eyes are watery! My tummy is queasy!

NARRATOR: … so did another excuse!

DONKEY: My hair is itchy! I think I’m getting FLEAS!

NARRATOR: Sheep, Goat and Goose wanted to trust Donkey; he was their friend after all. But as the excuses piled up, their patience wore thin.

Still, they kept working. And after some months of sun and rain, the animals’ field was billowing with tall, yellow stalks of barley.

DONKEY: This barley looks amazing, friends! Surely we can EAT it now, right? After all of our hard work?

NARRATOR: Sheep, Goat and Goose gave Donkey a bristly look.

SHEEP: Did you just say… “all of OUR hard work”?

GOAT: Because YOU hardly lifted a finger! 

GOOSE: Or a hoof!

SHEEP: So if you want to eat some of this barley…

GOAT: You have to work for it!

GOOSE: By harvesting the crop and dividing it up!

NARRATOR: As you can imagine, the last thing Donkey wanted to do was work. He was far more interested in eating! But if he had to work in order to eat, then so be it!

DONKEY: Alright. I’ll harvest the crop. Then I will divide it four ways – just like we promised. See you back here tomorrow morning.

NARRATOR: Pleased by their friend’s sudden agreeableness, Sheep, Goat and Goose walked, trotted and waddled home.

Donkey, meanwhile, buckled down and got to work. He used his sharp teeth to cut the barley stalks, gnawing and slicing the stems from the roots.

DONKEY: (ad-lib efforting sounds of using teeth to separate stems from roots)

NARRATOR: Then, he began dividing the stalks into four even piles.

DONKEY: One for Sheep… one for Goat… one for Goose… one for me! One for Sheep… one for Goat… one for Goose… one for me!

NARRATOR: By the time Donkey was done, night was falling… and he was falling asleep!

DONKEY: (YAWN!!!) I have never been this exhausted in my life! And come to think of it, I’ve never been this hungry either! (beat) I’ll take one little nibble from my share of the crop. Just to tide me over until morning.

NARRATOR: So Donkey took a nibble from his share of barley.

DONKEY: (ad-lib nibbling sounds) Mmmm! Yummy! …But I’m still hungry. How about one more nibble…?

NARRATOR: So he took another nibble…

DONKEY: (ad-lib eating sounds) Delicious!

NARRATOR: Which led to another nibble…

DONKEY: (ad-lib eating sounds) Scrumptious!

NARRATOR: Which led to ANOTHER!

DONKEY: (ad-lib eating sounds) Oh man! This barley is the best!

NARRATOR: On and on it went. Donkey kept swearing he’d take just one more nibble, but he couldn’t help himself. And before long, he hadn’t just polished off his share of barley…

DONKEY: (ad-lib eating) Just ONE more!

NARRATOR: …he had polished off his friends’ shares, too! The field was now empty – and Donkey’s stomach was full. SO full, it was swollen like a balloon, and he could hardly move.

DONKEY: Ugggghhhh!

NARRATOR: He tried dragging his bloated body away from the field and back home. But after just one or two heavy, halting steps, he sank to the ground…

DONKEY: (ad-lib collapse sound)

NARRATOR: …and dropped off to sleep.

DONKEY: (ad-lib cartoonish heavy-sleep sounds)

NARRATOR: The next morning, Donkey was still snoozing away when Sheep, Goat and Goose came back. The moment they spied the empty field – and Donkey’s full belly – they immediately knew what happened.

SHEEP: Donkey ate all of our barley!

GOAT: And now it’s in his swollen stomach!

GOOSE: We must wake him up and make him admit his crime!

SHEEP: But – what if he refuses to fess up?

GOAT: We need a plan!

GOOSE: Yes! A plan!

NARRATOR: Sheep, Goat and Goose huddled together. They tossed around idea after idea, until – at long last – they had a plan. And if their strategy worked, it wouldn’t just make their balloon-bellied friend confess… It would BURST his balloon, too!

What are Sheep, Goat and Goose cooking up? Will their plan succeed?

We’ll find out what happens, after a quick break.

[BREAK]

NARRATOR: I’m Rebecca Sheir and welcome back to Circle Round, live at Symphony Hall in Boston, Massachusetts. Today our story is called “The Well of Honor.”

Before the break, Donkey ate all the barley that Sheep, Goat and Goose worked so hard to grow. Then he fell asleep in the field.

When Sheep, Goat and Goose realized what happened, they came up with a way to make Donkey confess. But first, they had to wake him up!

SHEEP: / GOAT: / GOOSE: (ad-lib appropriate animal sound: Sheep bleats, Goat bleats, Goose honks)

DONKEY: (groaning as he wakes up) Ugh. Cool it with the racket, will ya?

NARRATOR: Donkey blinked open his eyes. The first thing he noticed was his swollen, gurgling stomach.

DONKEY: Ugggh!

NARRATOR: The second thing he noticed were his glowering, glaring friends.

Clearly, Sheep, Goat and Goose had discovered the missing barley… and he was the prime suspect!

DONKEY: (feeling ill) Uhhhh… hi there, friends! Sorry to snap at you. But I’m feeling rather poorly. After harvesting and dividing our barley crop, I fell ill! SOO ill, I was moaning and groaning all night! (beat) I’m still pretty queasy. So why don't you go ahead and bring your shares of barley home? I’ll get mine later.

NARRATOR: Sheep, Goat and Goose exchanged a look.

SHEEP: We WOULD bring our shares of barley home, Donkey!

GOAT: But they’re all GONE!

GOOSE: Because YOU ATE them!

DONKEY: (panicked, ill) I ATE them????

NARRATOR: Donkey’s heart began to hammer. His stomach continued to churn.

DONKEY: (panicked, ill) What are you talking about, friends? How could I possibly eat ANYTHING when I feel so wretched? I mean, LOOK at me! My belly is so puffed-up I can barely move! (beat) If the barley really is gone, maybe one of YOU snuck over in the night and ate it!

NARRATOR: Sheep, Goat and Goose exchanged another look. Clearly, it was time to put their plan into action.

SHEEP: Okay, Donkey… if you truly think one of US bolted down the barley…

GOAT: …then we should ALL put ourselves to the TEST!

GOOSE: …by visiting… the Well of Honor!

DONKEY: The Well of Honor?

NARRATOR: Donkey held back a burp.

DONKEY: What is the Well of Honor?

SHEEP: It’s a magical well with special powers!

GOAT: All you have to do is JUMP over it…

GOOSE: …and it will determine the guilty from the innocent!

NARRATOR: Donkey cringed. He knew full well that HE was the “guilty” one, but he wasn’t about to confess. So he staggered to his feet, then dragged his bulging belly along the ground as Sheep, Goat and Goose set off across the countryside. They stopped at a high, round wall of stones with a big deep hole in the middle.

SHEEP: This… is the Well of Honor!

GOAT: Tell the truth while jumping over it, and you’ll make it to the other side!

GOOSE: But tell a lie, and you’ll fall in! And splash down to the water below!

NARRATOR: Sheep volunteered to jump first. She took a running start, then sprang into the air.

SHEEP: (as she jumps) I hereby swear I did not eat the barley! (bleat!)

NARRATOR: Sheep soared over the well… before landing safely on the other side.

SHEEP: Look at that! Guess I’m innocent! (beat) Goat? Why don’t you go next?

NARRATOR: Goat agreed. He lowered his head, broke into a trot, then took a leap.

GOAT: (as he jumps) I hereby swear I did not eat the barley! (bleat!)

NARRATOR: Goat whizzed over the well… then he, too, safely landed on the other side.

GOAT: Hey! Looks like I’m innocent too! (beat) Goose? Why don’t you go next? …And no flying, okay?

NARRATOR: Goose nodded. She waddled toward the well, then launched herself off the ground.

GOOSE: (as she jumps) I hereby swear I did not eat the barley! (honk)

NARRATOR: Goose gracefully glided through the air… before landing on the other side with Sheep and Goat.

GOOSE: Gosh! It appears I’m innocent too! (beat) (relishing this) Donkey? Why don’t you go next?

DONKEY: Me???

NARRATOR: Donkey shook his head.

DONKEY: (trying to delay) Come on, friends! Do you honestly believe in magical wells that can separate the guilty from the innocent? I mean, why don’t we just forget about this whole thing and go – (gets interrupted mid-sentence)

SHEEP: (interrupting Donkey) No way, Donkey!

GOAT: The rest of us jumped over the Well of Honor…

GOOSE: Now it’s YOUR turn to give it a go!

NARRATOR: Donkey knew he was stuck. So he took a deep breath – said a little prayer – then lumbered toward the well. But when he sprang into the air…

DONKEY: (as he tries to jump) I hereby swear I did not – (gets cut off)

NARRATOR: …his ballooning belly was so heavy, he couldn’t make it to the other side! Instead, he fell into the well…

DONKEY: (voice getting quieter, as if falling into well) …eaaaat the barleyyyyyy!!!!!

NARRATOR: …before landing at the bottom with a splash.

DONKEY: (quieter, as if at bottom of well) Hee-haw!

NARRATOR: Sitting there in the water, in the dark, Donkey felt a wave of remorse. And after his friends ever-so-generously extracted him from the well, he gave each one of them a sincere apology.

Because Donkey learned an invaluable lesson that fateful day. He learned the importance of sharing… and being honest… and never, ever biting off more than you can – or should – chew.