Clarity Means EVERYTHING! by DL Larson

Today I want to share a short story with you about clarity ... or the manipulation of clarity ~

'On the outskirts of a small town, there stood an old walnut tree just inside the cemetery fence. One day, two small boys filled up a bucketful of nuts and sat down by the tree, out of sight from prying eyes and began to divide the nuts.

"One for you. One for me. One for you, one for me," said one boy. Several dropped and rolled down toward the fence.

Another boy came riding along the road on his bike. As he passed, he heard voices from inside the cemetery. He slowed down to investigate. Sure enough, he heard, "One for you, one for me. One for you, one for me."

He jumped back on his bike and rode off. Around the bend he met an old man with a cane, hobbling along. "Come quick," said the boy. "You won't believe what I heard! Satan and the Lord are down at the cemetery dividing up the souls."

"Beat it kid," the man said. "Can't you see it's hard for me to walk."

When the boy insisted though, the man moved slowly to the cemetery. Standing by the fence the man and boy heard, "One for you, one for me. One for you, one for me."

The old man whispered, "Boy, you've been telling me the truth. Let's see if we can see the Lord."

Shaking with fear they peered through the fence, yet were still unable to see anything. The old man and the boy gripped the wrought iron bars of the fence tighter and tighter as they tried to glimpse the Lord.

At last they heard, "One for you and one for me. That's all. Now let's get those nuts by the fence and we'll be done."

They say the old man made it back to town five minutes before the kid on the bike.'
(author unknown)


Many a great book has been made with misguided clarity! Have you used this technique to build your story? Share with us!

Til next time ~

DL Larson