The Legend of the Milky Harp

Once upon a time, in a far away land, Rapunzel had settled into a simple life, where she lived in a small cottage with just herself and her beloved harp - given to her by her mother. Her days were well spent - visiting local markets, farms, and playing her harp. She loved the townspeople and took great delight in watching the cows graze in the fields for hours.

 Her harp was her first passion, but she also felt connected to the simple nature of the lovely cows she would visit every day. In fact, they brought her so much delight that she decided to ask her good friend, Farmer Jim if he would allow her to come to work for him on his farm. He agreed and gave her a job delivering milk 4 mornings a week. It was not as close to the cows as she had hoped but she decided she would work hard and use her patience - knowing, in time, she would be the best milkmaid in the land.

She did the best job she could do as a delivery girl. The customers on her route would wait to greet her in the mornings because she was so kind. It was not long before word got back to Farmer Jim about the good work she was doing on her route. He was so pleased that he asked Repunzle if she would like to work weekends as a milkmaid in training. This was her moment! Her patient-waiting had paid off. She had only one request for Farmer Jim; she wanted to bring her harp along. He agreed.

On her first day, Farmer Jim showed her where everything was she would need. He showed her how to milk and requested that she get one full bucket from each cow. She was confident she could do better, but never told him that. As she took her seat and began milking her first cow, milk flowed and she felt confident. “I knew I could do it!” she thought to herself! Just then, the cow kicked and the bucket flipped, milk went flying, her stool slipped out from under her, she landed on the ground and the bucket landed on her head! She stood up, white haired, wet, and in a huff. She needed to take a break.

She began playing her harp. To her surprise, the cows slowly gathered around as she played the soothing sounds. Their tails began to sway as her fingers glided across the strings. The cow she was struggling with took its position over the bucket without her prompting. She was sure something magical was taking place. Without hesitation, she returned to her stool. Took a deep breath and began to milk. She was astonished as she swapped out the first full bucket without fumble. Something had taken place in that barn but she was not going to question it. When the farmer returned to the barn to check her progress, he stood still. Two full buckets from each cow. Rapunzel was brushing out the last cow as she said, “will that do?” with a smile on her face. “That’ll do!” Farmer Jim responded.  

As the days passed, the milk steadily increased. Farmer Jim had so much milk that he began to give it away for free. Word of the farm’s great fortune traveled quickly. Local farmers and townspeople would come to the farm just to watch the “magic milkmaid” do her thing. However, there was one farmer who was not very thrilled about the upswing of production. Farmer Maxwell. He was a stoic man with sharp eyebrows and a wiry mustache. One day, Rapunzel was in the barn when she saw Farmer Maxwell and Farmer Jim having what looked to be a serious conversation. It looked like Farmer Jim was upset but she wasn't sure. She knew Farmer Jim had it under control so she returned to her work.

Many nights after finishing up her milking she would brush the cows and lay in the hay while she played her harp before heading home for the night. The long hours were welcomed by Rapunel because she loved her work so dearly. One night as she lay in the hay playing her harp for the cows, she drifted off to sleep. The cold woke her in the middle of the night. Startled, she began to gather her things to head home when she realized she could not find her harp. It was missing. She ran to the house to tell Farmer Jim. “Farmer Jim! My harp! It’s missing!” Farmer Jim responded with one word, “Maxwell!” as he slipped his boots on. He reassured Rapunzel that he would get it back and asked her to head home. She was heartbroken.