Hi, Rebecca Shear here. Before we get to our story, exciting news.
Circle Round is going back on tour. with live recordings across the united states our first stop Sunday, October 5th in Parker, Colorado at the Pace Center.
And Circle Round Club members are invited to a special post-show meet and greet with me and composer Eric Shimalonis.
Get your tickets at wbur.org slash circle around and click on events.
We're announcing more tour stops soon, so stay tuned.
We look forward to circling around with you live.
Have you ever had trouble? Trouble making something happen?
Trouble getting something done? Life seemed hard, right?
No matter what you did what you said it felt like things couldn't get any worse.
Has that ever happened to you? Well, you're not alone.
We're about to meet a man who felt exactly the same way you did, and he decided to do something about it, something involving feathers and fur and one very noisy house.
I'm Rebecca Sheer, and welcome to the first episode of Circle Round, where storytime happens all the time.
Today our story is called It Could Always Get Worse.
It's an old Yiddish folktale that goes back years and years.
And hey, if your parents are listening right now, This story's for them too.
Not only will you all have a lot of fun listening, but you'll get to hear the voice of a guy your parents probably have seen on TV and in the movies.
His name is Jason Alexander, and he's a really big deal.
So circle round. Here we go with today's story.
It could always get worse. Once upon a time in a village far, far away, there lived a man.
The man lived a simple life and shared a tiny one-room house with his wife, their four children, His mother, his father, plus two cats and two dogs.
Can you imagine one tiny room with two parents, four kids, two grandparents, plus two cats and two dogs?
The winds were cold in the man's village, and the land was covered with snow.
Life was not easy, and the man had to work hard.
His wife had to work hard, too, helping him harvest their vegetables and feed their animals.
For outside the tiny one-room house lived two goats, six chickens, and one brown cow.
The man's four children helped with the work, too, collecting the chickens' eggs and milking the cow before they went off to school.
At the end of the day, everyone was so very tired.
But the tiny one-room house was so very small, there was never enough room to relax.
One day, the man decided he had had enough.
He trudged through the snow to the wisest person in the village, an old woman.
When he reached her cottage, he sat down across from her and looked into her bright blue eyes.
Dear old woman, It is so crowded in my house.
I mean, really, there is no peace, no quiet.
No place to sleep. What should I do? The old woman rocked in her creaky old chair and thought for a moment.
Let me ask you, dear man, do you have a goat?
Why, yes. You won't believe this, but I have two goats.
Then do as I say. Take the two goats, bring them into your house, and keep them inside with your family.
The man thought this was a funny request, but he did as the wise old woman said.
After trudging back home through the snow, he brought his two goats into the tiny one-room house.
When everyone in his family saw the goats, his wife, his four children, his mother, his father, They were all very confused, especially his youngest child.
Why are the goats inside the house? The man smiled.
Just wait and see. It will make more sense in the morning.
Honestly, the man wasn't sure why the goats were in the house, but at this point he was willing to try anything.
That night, after everyone settled into bed, the man, his wife, his four children, his mother, and his father, It was extra noisy in the tiny one-room house.
What with the goats bleating and jumping on the furniture, No one could get a wink of sleep.
The next morning, the tired man trudged back through the snow to the wise old woman.
The wind whipped his ears as he walked. When he reached her cottage once again, he sat down across from her and looked into her twinkling blue eyes.
Oh, wise elder. I did what you said, but last night was terrible.
I mean... Seriously bad. The goats were so noisy and they jumped on all the furniture.
The house felt even tinier than before. What should we do?
Do you have any advice? The wise old woman leaned forward in her creaky old chair.
My dear friend, do you have any chickens?
Why, yes I do. In fact, I have six beautiful chickens, all different colors.
There's Matilda, and Bertie, and Sam, and Ramona.
Then do as I say. Take those six beautiful chickens and bring them into your house too.
And keep the goats? The chickens and the goats?
Of course. And that's going to help? Oh, yes.
At this point, the man was really very confused.
But he did as the wise old woman said. He trudged back through the snow, and as soon as he got home, he rounded up his six chickens from the coop and brought them into the house.
When everyone in his family saw the chickens, his wife, his four children, his mother, his father...
They were even more confused than before, especially his youngest child.
Why are the goats and now the chickens inside the house?
The man shrugged his shoulders. Just wait and see.
It will make more sense in the morning, I think.
That night, after everyone settled into bed, the man, his wife, his four children, his mother and his father...
The goats started bleating and jumping on the furniture, and the chickens started squawking and pecking at the floors.
No one could get any rest. And oh, what a stench!
The tiny one-room house smelled terrible.
Terrible. The next morning, the exhausted man trudged once more through the snow.
The wind was so biting it stung his nose.
When he reached the old woman's cottage...
He sat down across from her and again, he looked into her sparkling blue eyes.
Dear wise old woman, I did everything you said.
My goats are living inside the house with us, and now the chickens are too, but now the house is so, so... crowded.
My family is so, so unhappy. Please help me. the wise old woman slowly rose from her creaky old chair.
She lifted her soft, wrinkled hands and placed them on the man's shoulders.
My son, tell me, do you have a cow? The man dropped his head in frustration.
Why, yes, I have the cow. One brown cow.
She's a good girl. We call her... Then do as I say.
Take that brown cow and bring it here. Into your house, too.
And keep the... Of course. And that's coming too.
Yes, it will help. The man couldn't believe his bad luck, but he did as the wise old woman said.
He trudged back home in the snow, with the wild wind nearly taking his breath away.
He went to the barn and got his cow, gently leading it through the front door of his tiny one-room house.
When everyone in his family saw the cow, his wife, his four children, his mother, his father, They were more confused than ever, especially his youngest child.
Why are the goats and the chickens And now the cow inside the house.
The poor man sighed. Just wait and see. It will make more sense in the morning.
I hope. That night, after everyone settled into bed, the man, his wife, his four children, his mother and his father, The tiny one-room house was noisier than ever.
Bleeding goats, squawking chickens, mooing cows.
Not to mention the vicious wind whipping outside.
The next morning, the man could barely keep his eyes open.
Once more he trudged through the snow toward the wise old woman's cottage.
The wind was especially cold, and the snow was especially deep.
The man stumbled through the old woman's door and stared into her glittering blue eyes.
Dear wise old woman, my family and I cannot take it any longer.
The house is so crowded and noisy and smelly.
I don't know what else to do. How will we ever find some peace?
We have done everything you asked, but please, I beg you.
Tell me you have some other ideas. The woman sat in her creaky old chair and raised a mug of steaming hot tea to her weathered lips.
My dear man, go home and take all of your animals The two goats, the six chickens, and the one brown cow? and put them in the barn.
Now turn around and do as I say. The man turned around and trudged back home through the snow.
He immediately went into his house and guided all the animals into the barn.
First the brown cow, then the two goats, and then the six chickens.
That night, after dinner, the family settled into their beds.
Only this time, it was so quiet. So peaceful.
No bleeding, no squawking, no mooing. Even the wild winds seemed to have gone away.
The next morning, the man trudged through the snow to visit the wise old woman.
Only this time he sang a little song to himself instead of grunting into the wind.
Dear wise old woman, you are a genius! I did what you asked and my house is so spacious, so peaceful, so comfortable. we could all fit around the table at dinnertime.
It was so much easier to sleep life He's such a pleasure again.
How do I begin to thank you? The wise old woman leaned back in her creaky old chair her blue eyes shimmering more brightly than ever.
And she smiled. Woo-hoo! ¶¶ That was It Could Always Get Worse, an old folk tale that's been shared for many, many years.
Now that we've told you a story, we'd love to hear what stories you might have.
Have you ever come across a problem you didn't know how to solve?
Or maybe you helped someone who couldn't figure something out?
Share your story with someone you know, and ask a grown-up if they have any stories to share.
When was the last time they didn't know how to solve a problem?
And what did they do about it? If you want, you can share your stories and discoveries with us.
Ask an adult if you can record your story on a smartphone Then send it our way.
And tell that adult our email address is circleround at wbur.org.
We're also on Twitter at Come Circle Round.
Today's story, It Could Always Get Worse, was adapted from the Yiddish folktale by Jessica Alpert and me, Rebecca Shear.
Our music and sound design is by Eric Shimalonis.
Our executive producer is Jessica Alpert.
Special thanks to our actors, Naomi Jacobson, Natalia Lewis, and Jason Alexander.
Circle Round is a production of WBUR, Boston's NPR news station.
Make sure you subscribe to Circle Round on iTunes, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.
That way, you won't miss anything when we officially launch later this summer and bring you all sorts of stories from all over the world.
I'm Rebecca Shear. Thanks for circling around with us.
