ThE sHoEmAkEr ThAt LoSt HiS OwN ShOeS

There are many shoemakers in the world but this shoemaker was unique.This shoemaker made so beautiful shoes that even the king wore his made shoes.

He made shoes on order and never hired any assistant to help him make shoes. So since he made shoes all by himself it would take time to complete them. For other shoemakers it took about a week’s time to make a single shoe those days. But this shoemaker made a a pair of shoes in a single day. The secret to this was that he used to wear shoes that were gifted to him by an elf and were magical in nature.

His shoes were gifted to him because of his benevolent work. Once he was going through the woods and saw that an elf was upset and talking to himself that his feet skin gets scratched and hurt when he walks through the jungle and can’t bear that anymore. The shoemaker approached the elf and told him and asked him that why does not he wear shoes? The elf told the shoemaker that he had never heard about anything like shoes. So the shoemaker explained the elf that shoes were a protective equipment that also gave comfort to feet when worn. So the elf was curious and asked how he could get one and where can he get it from. The shoemaker told the elf that he was a shoemaker himself and will make shoes for him. Then the elf asked the shoemaker that how much time it would take. The shoemaker told elf that it will take him a weeks time to make him good comfortable shoes. The elf was happy to hear that and told the shoemaker that he would be happy if he would make the shoes for him.

Then the shoemaker took out his measuring tape and measured the feet of elf and noted them down in his diary which he always carried. He also took out two big sheets of paper and told elf to keep each of his feet on the separate sheets of paper. The shoemaker then took a pencil moved it around the feet of the elf over the paper and marked them down. The shoemaker told the elf that in one week’s time we will meet at this same place in the evening when sun is about to set and I will give you your pair of shoes. The elf agreed and went away thanking the shoemaker.

During that week the shoemaker got the best of the materials to make shoes and made elf’s shoes with utmost carefulness and dexterity. The shoes were ready in the time frame and in that evening he went to the forest to give the shoes to its owner.

When the elf saw met him and saw the shoes he was delighted. He tried those shoes and felt very nice and comfortable. He thanked the shoemaker and thought what he could give to the shoemaker for giving him such a wonderful gift. He then decided that if shoemaker could give him such a nice gift then why can’t he give him something nice like that. So he took out some magical powder from his pocket and said some magical words and threw the powder on the ground. Suddenly a pair of shoes appeared which were of perfect size of the shoemaker and the elf picked them up and gave it to the shoemaker. He told the shoemaker that those shoes were magical and when he will wear them they would help him in his work.

The shoemaker thanked him and by that time wondered how could those shoes help him in his work.

The next day he went to his shop taking the magical shoes along with him. He had one order of shoes pending which he decided to do wearing those magical shoes. It would had taken him a week to complete that order but he finished it in a day. The shoes that were made were like never he had made. They were so beautifully made that it looked like a machine had made them.

The buyer when came to get his shoes next week was ecstatic to see how finely his shoes were made. He not only thanked the shoemaker and gave him triple the price of the shoes.

Slowly his shoes became talk of the town and the shoemaker started receiving more orders than usual and he became a rich man. Even the king used to order one pair of shoes per week.

Now there was this carpet maker who was a friend of shoemaker. He used to come to shoemakers house quite often.

Although reluctant but once shoemaker told the carpet maker that all his wealth was because of the shoes he wore. The carpet maker wondered how that could be. He told the carpet maker that his shoes were gifted to him by an elf and were magical. When the carpet maker asked him that what was magical about them? The shoemaker told him that they helped him do his work and that instead of taking a week to make a pair of shoe he did that in a day and not only that they caused a workmanship on shoes that was incomparable.

It so happened that the carpet maker was jealous of his friend, the shoemaker and when he came to know of the secret to the shoemaker’s success he then thought of using those shoes for himself.

That day the carpet maker went to another shoemaker and asked to him make a look alike shoe of his friend shoemaker who had already seen the shoes of his friend as they were of the famous shoe maker from whom the king got his shoes made. The shoemaker made look alike shoes and gave it to the carpet maker.

The next day the carpet maker went to his friend, the shoemaker’s house and stealthily replaced the magical shoes of the shoemaker with the look alike shoes.

Now he went to his shop and wore the magical shoes. The shoes were a bit loose to him but he still decided to wear them and work on making a carpet. The carpet which took him a month’s time to finish was completed in a day’s time and the workmanship of the carpet was indeed the best of the best as was described by his friend the shoemaker. The carpet maker was surprised to see that and realized that those magical shoes were indeed magical and they really helped in work.

The next day the shoemaker went to work wearing the look alike shoes. He then started to work on his shoe orders but making shoe started taking a week as previously when he used to work without magic shoes.

In the mean time the carpet maker started making carpets that could fly. What he did was he attached wings to the carpet and sold them at a very high price which only rich people could afford.

The shoemaker was confused that he was unable to make shoes in less than a week and his friend the carpet maker had started making flying carpets. This caused him to suspect something fishy was going on so he went to see the carpet maker and when he met him in his shop he saw that the carpet maker was wearing the same shoes as his but were loosely fitted. Upon asking the carpet maker that where did he get the same type of shoe as him and why were they loose to him. The carpet maker replied that he liked the shoemaker’s shoes and had asked a shoemaker to make similar kind of shoes as his but the shoemaker made a bit loose fitted shoes as he had lost his size while making.

The shoemaker realized that the carpet maker was lying. The shoemaker went away and did not know how to get

back his magical gifted shoes.

The next day the shoemaker went to the king and told him the whole story. Now, the king ordered the carpet maker who had stolen the shoemaker’s shoe to appear in front of him. The carpet maker appeared in front of the king. The king then told the carpet maker that he was accused of stealing the shoemaker’s shoes but the carpet maker told that the shoemaker was lying and that he was a noble man and can’t steal anybody’s things. Then the king asked the shoemaker if he could prove that the shoes carpet maker had were shoemaker’s shoes only. The shoemaker after thinking for a while told the king that one night he was working wearing those shoes and suddenly a candle felt on his shoes when he was trying to keep it on a table. So that caused some wax to fall on the shoes back. He had removed the wax but since the wax had fallen on his shoes back there must be a sign of oil at the back of the shoe. The carpet maker did not know that. Upon checking the carpet maker’s shoe it was true what the shoemaker had told about his shoes. The carpet maker was then sentenced to prison and the shoemaker was returned his shoes.

Now the shoemaker went home thanking king for letting him get his shoes back.

Now that day he wondered that if the carpet maker made carpet that could fly by just adding wings to it why can’t he add wings to the shoes he makes and then people can fly wearing them. He also thought the carpet maker was making flying carpets only for rich people but he will make flying shoes for poor people too and then they could enjoy flying too as other people would do.

From that day he started making flying shoes and was famous once again and this time not only in the town but the whole world.