Crocus-Pocus
20:10 Share

WBUR Podcasts, Boston. Have you ever had a bad day? When we're having a bad day, it can be helpful if we talk about it. If we sit down with someone we trust and share how we're feeling. We're about to meet a character who isn't just having a bad day, he's having a bad summer. And when he talks about it with a complete stranger, things go from tragic to magic. Woo-hoo!

I'm Rebecca Shear, and welcome to Circle Round, where storytime happens all the time. Today our story is called Crocus Pocus. You'll find versions of this tale from the southern Italian island of Sicily, the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. ♪

Some really great people came together to bring you our version of this folktale, including Jacob LaValle and Amanda Warren. Jacob LaValle has appeared in such TV shows and movies as Sesame Street, John Mulaney and the Sack Lunch Bunch, The Plot Against America, and 8-Bit Christmas. His newest film, The Unbreakable Boy, is in theaters now. Amanda Warren is known for her roles in East New York, Dickinson, The Leftovers, The Burial, and The Night Agent, now in its second season on Netflix.

So circle around, everyone, for Crocus Pocus. Have you ever seen the little cup-shaped flower known as the crocus?

Most crocuses originally come from Asia and North Africa. But there's one type of crocus, the pale purple long-flowered crocus, that comes from Europe. More specifically, from the Italian island of Sicily. And according to legend, it was all thanks to a young grape grower named Nicola. Time to wake up and get to work in the vineyard.

The vineyard had been in Nicola's family for generations. He recently inherited it from his parents, a pair of hard-working grape growers who taught Nicola everything they knew before they passed away.

Now that they were gone, the vineyard was Nikola's responsibility. And though he was still rather young, he was determined to keep the family business thriving. So, day after day, he woke up early, went to bed late, and spent every hour in between tending the vineyard. But then, in the middle of summer, everything went wrong. First, heavy clouds rolled in and stretched across the sky like a thick gray blanket.

Good grief! The grapes need six hours of sun a day to ripen properly. These cloudy skies won't do at all. But the cloudy skies just got cloudier, growing thicker and grayer before unleashing a non-stop torrent of rain. Good gracious! If the grapes get too much water, they'll swell, then split, then rot. This rain is definitely not helping things.

The rain eventually subsided, but Nicola's troubles didn't, because then the vineyard was infested by cure-pillars. Good golly, those pesky parasites are nibbling up the vines and fruits. Come harvest time, I'll hardly have a harvest at all. As it turns out, Nicola was right. Come autumn, when it was time to pick the grapes, there were barely any grapes to pick today.

Good gravy! I've been walking up these rows of vines for hours, and while I've managed to pick some sweet purple grapes, the whole crop barely fills one basket. Still, Niccolo was on his own now, and just like his parents before him, he knew he must make a living. Or do my best to make a living. I'll take this basket of grapes to the marketplace and see what I can sell.

The marketplace was buzzing with shoppers shopping and vendors vending when Nicola arrived. Weaving his way through the crowd, he passed the olive grower, whose kiosk was bursting with plump, shiny olives. He saw the nut seller, whose stall was filled with glossy brown almonds and chestnuts. The orchardist had plenty of apples. The beekeeper had plenty of honey. Every vendor seemed to have had a bountiful harvest. Except for me.

Still, I've got to sell this bastard of grapes. Otherwise, it'll be a long, hungry winter. Nicola held up his basket and did his best to drum up business. Grapes for sale! Plump, ripe grapes for sale! Their number may be small, but their flavor is mighty. Unfortunately, the shoppers paid him no mind. They just bustled past, their arms loaded with boxes and bags of other vendors' wares.

Good grief. Nobody wants to buy my grapes. I wanted to make my parents proud, but even though I love the family vineyard, maybe I'm too young to grow grapes on my own. Maybe I should just throw in the towel and quit. Nicola hung his head and turned to leave. But just then...

Oh, I'm so sorry. Nicola looked up and realized he had bumped into an old woman. That's all right, young man. No need to apologize. You seem like you're distracted, like your head is in the clouds. The woman's long hair was white as sugar, and her weathered face was crisscrossed with wrinkles. Her hunched back was curved like a question mark, and her ragged dress was patched and torn.

Actually, my head is in the clouds, but they're not the pretty white puffy clouds. They're the heavy gray stormy ones. Oh? Tell me more. Well, after I lost my parents this year, I inherited their vineyard, and the summer was brutal on the harvest. I worked my tail off, but all I have to show for it is this measly basket of grapes.

I'm awfully sorry to hear that, young man. And I'm awfully sorry about your parents. I don't wish to add to your troubles, but I've fallen on hard times and I haven't a penny to feed myself. I've been wandering around this marketplace asking for help, but everyone has either ignored me or turned me away. So I wonder...

Might you spare some of your grapes? Nicola looked down at his basket. With so few grapes to sell, he couldn't afford to give any away. But when he looked up at the old woman, he felt his heart soften. You're more than welcome to eat some of my grapes, madam. As many as you'd like. Are you certain? Don't you need to sell these grapes so you can make a living? Nicola shrugged.

I guess I'd rather make someone else's day by helping them in their time of need. So please, help yourself. The woman's face crinkled into a grin. She reached a weathered hand into the basket, plucked out a bunch of purple grapes, and began to eat. Oh, so tasty. Nicola watched the woman devour the grapes, and with every piece of fruit she ate, something began to happen.

Something so surprising, so unexpected, and so utterly impossible that Nicola could hardly believe his eyes. What do you think happened as the old woman ate the grapes? We'll find out after a quick break.

Support for Circle Round comes from Indeed. You just realized that your business needed to hire someone yesterday. How can you find amazing candidates fast? Easy. Just use Indeed. There's no need to wait. You can speed up your hiring with Indeed.

And Circle Round listeners will get a $75 sponsored job credit to get your jobs more visibility at Indeed.com slash Circle Round. Just go to Indeed.com slash Circle Round right now and support the show by saying you heard about Indeed on this podcast. Indeed.com slash Circle Round. Terms and conditions apply. Hiring? Indeed is all you need.

The reviews are in, and super fans like you are loving the Circle Round Club, an exciting opportunity to support public radio and get cool stuff, including ad-free episodes and a personalized birthday message from me. What I like about the Circle Round Club is that Rebecca Shear sends extra messages, and it supports the show, and there are no ads. ♪

Grownups, support public radio and sign up today at wbur.org slash Circle Round Club. Welcome back to Circle Round. I'm Rebecca Shear. Today, our story is called Crocus Pocus.

Before the break, a young grape grower named Nikola inherited his parents' vineyard. During his first season in charge, everything went wrong. And come harvest time, all he had to sell at the marketplace was one basket of grapes, which he generously offered to a poor old woman. And as she devoured the fruit, do you know what happened? Her long white hair grew dark.

Her curved back grew straight, and the patches and tears in her dress disappeared. Before Nicola knew it, standing tall and radiant before him was a young woman. Her hair as black as midnight, her beautiful gown dripping with lace. Nicola, by giving your very last grapes to a soul in need, you've proven that you are a truly compassionate woman.

And generous young man, Nicola thought to find his voice. I was just doing the right thing, ma'am. It's what my parents would have done. But wait, how did you know my name? That matters not, Nicola. But now that you've done something for me, I wish to do something for you.

The woman motioned toward the basket of grapes. Somehow, it was every bit as full as it was before, as if no fruit had been eaten. "Go back to your vineyard, Nicola. Then take the grapes in this basket and plant them in the ground. After that, enjoy your reward." With that, there was a flash of light, and the woman was gone. Great heavens! That was wild!

Nicola glanced around the marketplace. He assumed a crowd would come scurrying over, peppering him with questions about the miraculous event that just took place. Everyone continued about their business, as if nothing out of the ordinary had occurred. Okay, so the woman said I should take my grapes and plant them. But let's get real. One of the first things my parents taught me is that you can't grow a grape vine from a whole grape.

You snip a cutting from an existing vine, and then you plant that. Planting a grape and expecting results is preposterous. But then, so is meeting an old woman who magically transforms into a young woman before vanishing into thin air. Nikolai took his basket and returned to his vineyard. Then, very carefully, he planted each purple grape in the ground.

The next morning, when he woke up and came outside, his jaw dropped so low he nearly tripped over it. Goodness gracious! For every purple grape I planted yesterday, there now grows a purple flower. It was true. Sprouting up all over the field was the little cup-shaped flower known as the crocus. Nicola knelt down to get a closer view. Look at that.

The stigma of each flower, the sticky part in the middle that collects pollen, is bright red. And it smells so sweet. He dipped his nose inside a flower and took a whiff. The stigma brushed against his lips and suddenly his mouth was bursting with a remarkable flavor. Mmm, it tastes sweet, like honey, and fresh like flowers in newly mown hay. I'll bet that if I picked a whole bunch of stigmas and let them dry...

I could sell a pretty amazing spice. Nicola got to work picking crocuses and drying their stigmas. After a few days, he returned to the marketplace.

Once again, he passed the olive grower, the nut seller, the orchardist, and beekeeper. Only this time, he was bearing more than a basket of grapes. He was carrying dozens of tiny bottles, each one filled with his brand new spice. Spice for sale. Exotic spice for sale. Sweeter and fresher than anything you've ever tasted.

Within moments, Nicola was surrounded by a gaggle of curious customers. Just one sniff of the spice and all of them reached into their purses and wallets and began showering Nicola with coins. Thank you for your purchase, sir. Pleasure doing business with you, ma'am. Hope you enjoy the spice, miss.

By day's end, Nicola was out of bottles and flush with coins. Because, as it turns out, the crocuses he had grown were long-flowered crocuses, the species that produces saffron, a highly prized spice that's become famous for its use in foods, drinks, medicines, and dyes. But saffron isn't just legendary for its uses. It's legendary for its price.

Saffron is the most expensive spice in the world. So, as you can imagine, our young Nikola suddenly found himself set for life. Still, he continued working hard, growing his purple crocuses and purple grapes. And he never knew want again. Which just goes to show you, amazing things can happen when you let compassion, kindness, and generosity take root inside your heart.

And bloom. Now it's your turn. What are some small ways you can show kindness to others? Brainstorm a short or long list. Then find some paper and draw a picture of a flower garden. Inside each flower, write the words, I can, followed by an act of kindness from your list.

Show your kindness, garden, to someone you have fun with. And if you'd like, show it to us. Ask a grown-up to snap a photo of you and your garden and email it to circleround at wbur.org. With your permission, we may feature you in The Lion's Roar, the monthly newsletter of the Circle Round Club. More on this super fun club for super fans like you in a moment, but first...

This week's episode, Crocus Pocus, was adapted by me, Rebecca Shear. It was edited by Dean Russell. Our original music and sound design is by Eric Shimilonis. Eric's featured instrument this week was the mandolin. You can learn more about this member of the Lute family and see a photo of Eric playing one on our website, wbur.org slash circleround.

Circle Round's artist is Sabina Han. Sabina has created a black and white coloring page for all of our Circle Round stories, and you can print them out and color them in. Grown-ups, visit our website, wbur.org slash circleround, and click on Coloring Pages.

Special thanks to this week's actors, Amanda Warren and Jacob LaValle. Grown-ups, you can see Amanda Warren in a bevy of movies and television shows, including Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Roman J. Israel, The Burial, The Leftovers, East New York, Dickinson, and The Night Agent, now in its second season on Netflix.

Jacob Laval has appeared in such TV shows and movies as Sesame Street, John Mulaney and the Sack Lunch Bunch, The Plot Against America, and 8-Bit Christmas. His newest film, The Unbreakable Boy, is in theaters now. And fun fact, this is Jacob's second appearance on Circle Round. You can find his first episode, Porcupine's Plan, wherever you listen to Circle Round. ♪

Love Circle Round and want to circle round with us in even more ways while also supporting public radio? Join the Circle Round Club and get ad-free episodes, bonus bedtime stories, music education videos, super fun swag, a monthly newsletter, and early access to our live events. You can also add on cool perks like our snuggly Circle Round lion, our handy dandy tote bag, and a personalized birthday message from me. Sign up today at wbur.org slash circle round.

Grownups, if you have a moment, please leave us a five-star rating or review on whatever podcast app you're using right now. It helps other listeners find the show so we can make the Circle Round circle even bigger. Circle Round is a production of WBUR, Boston's NPR news station. I'm Rebecca Shearer. Thanks for circling round with us.

Now that you've made it to the end of this Circle Round episode, we want to know, what's your favorite Circle Round story? Thousands of fans just like you have been telling us about the Circle Round stories they like best. Take a listen. Maybe one of their favorites is one of yours, too. Hi, my name is Audrey. I live in Dubai. My favorite Circle Round story is the Basilisk Stairs. I like when Victoria says, oh.

Oh Basilisk, oh Basilisk, I can steal your treasures. Hi, my name is Dorothy. I live in Dubai. My favorite Chakran story is the Basilisk's Stare. My favorite part is when Natalia says, Basilisk, oh Basilisk, I've come to steal your treasure.

My name is Mavis. I'm from Arlington, Mass. And my favorite Circle Round story is "Unselfish Shelf." I like the part where the man says, "Help me! Please help me!" My name is Coco. I live in Virginia. My favorite Circle Round story is "The Lion's Whisker," because I like the part when the lion gives the little girl and the little boy a whisker.

My name is Charles and I live in Farmington, Utah. And my favorite episode is Stella and the Dragon. And I like the part when Stella walks out of her house and she sees 100 kids. Hi, my name is Sully and I'm calling from Atlanta, Georgia. And my favorite story is the three-legged pot. I like the part where the pot goes. My name is Lauren. I live in Pittsburgh,

Did someone mention a story you've missed? Not to worry. Grown-ups, you can find all of our Circle Round stories, plus links to the Circle Round Club, picture books, coloring pages, and oh so much more on our website, wbur.org slash circleround.