Once Upon A Time

….there was a silly old woman who fell in love with a funny old man. She lived in an old house in a city and he lived in a fortress on a distant northern hill by beautiful mountains, lakes and the sea. The old man’s hill was so far away that they couldn’t see each other, even when they leaned right out of their bedroom windows. This made her very sad. But every morning the silly old woman looked north from her window and imagined she saw the funny old man smiling at her, and every morning he looked south from his window and imagined he saw her wave.
Every night they both looked up at the moon they shared and felt they were together, even though miles apart.
Then the funny old man sent the silly old woman poetry so she could wrap his words around her shoulders and keep him close. The silly old woman sent the funny old man tears of joy and sadness wrapped in letters of love. She put her laughter into beautiful crystal bottles which she set upon the tide in hope that they would reach him and fill his heart with happiness.
One day, after a very very long time, the silly old woman had so many beautiful poems from the funny old man that she could wear no more. So she hung them at her windows for protection from the cold night and she lay them across her floor to cushion her delicate feet from the sharpness of the tears she had spilled. And from that day on the cold never reached her and the tears never hurt her.
Meanwhile the funny old man could not collect all the bottles of laughter which drifted onto his beach. So he invited all the people from the town to visit the beach and take a bottle for themselves. And they did. Then every day one of the town’s people took a bottle and set the laughter free upon the breeze.
And for ever after the silly old woman heard the sound of her own laughter every time she opened her window.