Saint Kentigern and the Robin:
From reading the title, I thought that the robin would play a larger role in the story than it did. However, from reading the story I quickly realized that the focus of the story was not on the robin, but what it represented. This story is about a group of boys who are constantly trying to find a way to get the favorite boy, Kentigern, in trouble. Kentigern is kind, smart, and obedient. Despite all the boy's attempts, they are never able to succeed in their mission of getting Kentigern in trouble. In their last attempt, they decided to kill Saint Servan's robin and blame the death on Kentigern. Saint Servan believes that it was Kentigern that had done the terrible deed, until Kentigern revives the bird by praying to God. The boys are then exposed at the culprits and are punished for their actions. This story reveals how kindness and honesty prevails and how evil deeds will be caught and punished in the end. If I were to re-tell this story, I would change the time setting so it is in the present, and with present day issues such as cheating on tests. I liked this story a lot because it seems that far too often, bad actions are rewarded and good ones go unnoticed- so this was a good refresher of how the world should be.
[Saint Kentigern. Image Information]
Saint Comgall and the Mice:
From the beginning of this story, I was surprised because the first half of it had nothing to do with mice at all. Instead, it talked about the relationship between Saint Comgall and swans. Saint Comgall was a teacher to a group of pupils and surprised the group when the swans readily accepted him although they were strangers. The pupils had previously tried to befriend the swans, but had no luck. The swans somehow knew that Saint Comgall was an animal lover and that is why they approached him. In the continued story, Comgall went to a Prince's palace to ask for grain for his starving household. Unfortunately, the Prince was selfish and entitled and did not share any of his grain although he had an overabundance. It became clear that he wanted the people to starve. Comgall then condemned the Prince and told him that the mice will come for his grain, and the following night that is what happened. The Prince awoke to having no grain, and realized that his selfish and cruel ways were the reason Comgall had asked the mice to do such a thing. I like this reading a lot because it combined two different stories into one, although each story had similarities to the other.
[Mice eating grain. Image Information]
Bibliography:
Farwell, Abbie. The Book of Saints and Friendly Beasts. Link.
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