The Girl And The North Wind - First Visit

KARI High up in the mountains of Norway a girl lived with her mother.

MOTHER The girl's name was Kari and one day her mother asked her to fetch the flour to bake loaves and biscuits.

KARI Kari seized the scoop from the kitchen and ran willingly to the barn. She filled the scoop right to the top and hurried back across the yard when- whish-whoosh!- the North Wind swaggered around the corner and scattered all the flour away with one great puff.

Kari went back to the barn, re-filled the scoop, and hastened across the yard when- whish-whoosh!- up rushed the North Wind again and blew away all the flour.

(tries again) She scooped up all the flour that was left, and hugged it to her as she bolted across the yard. But- whish-whoosh!...

MOTHER It'll be gruel for the whole winter now! There'll be no bread and definitely no biscuits till next year!

KARI No biscuits? Well, I'm going to get the flour back! All that day Kari crunched through snow, skirted fjords and trudged up the highest mountains until at last she reached the place where the North Wind lived.

North Wind! Come out here! I want to talk to you! Now! North wind!

NORTH WIND What's all this banging and bawling? How can I have a decent kip with all this commotion?

KARI You stole our flour! You breezed up to our house- ehn, too, treh- three times today and blew away all our flour and now we won't have any bread all winter and we'll probably starve to death and it'll be All Your Fault!

NORTH WIND I do apologise. Sometimes I get completely carried away with blowing. I meant no harm, but it's impossible for me to get your flour back now. (He stares at her for a moment.) I can't give you your flour back, but I can give you something else.

(Hands her a table cloth) This cloth is magic. All you have to do is say, "Cloth, cloth, spread yourself and set out scrumptious scran," and you will have all the food and drink you can imagine.

KARI Kari thanked the North WInd, and set off homewards. It was getting dark, but Kari came to an Inn on the road and decided to stay the night there.