Week 7 Storytelling: Letter's of Draupadi

Author’s Note:

This week I decided to write a few letters between Draupadi and her mother. The parents are not involved in this epic and I wanted to allow for a mother and daughter to be talking about all of the crazy events to create a family dynamic. I wanted her mother to be apart from her daughter in some of the most important parts of her experiences in the Mahabharta. I decided to leave the swayamvara completely true with Arjuna coming out of the crowd and winning over Draupadi. I did however, change the fact the she had to be married to either all of them or Yudhishtira only. I found that this part of the epic was not very reasonable since Arjuna was the one who won her over. I decided to have Arjuna elope with Draupadi to show how much he truly cared for her, but I wasn’t quite sure if that was a good choice in my story so please let me know if you liked it or not! Also, I decided to change the war scenes with that of peace. I feel in a lot of these epics, greed is the killer. I did not want this to be the same end as every other story so instead of the Pandavas losing their sons, family, and cousins, I allowed no one to have to be killed.  

Source: Wilson, Richard. The Five Tall Sons of Pandu. 1914. 

Dear Mother,

Today is the day that I have dreaded for so long. I know I will be happy with whoever wins, but it doesn’t seem right. A woman should be able to pick their husband. One she loves and could spend the rest of her life with, not some random man that can shoot a bow or win a sword fight. Why do I have no choice Mother? Oh well, you have raised me to overcome anything. I can only hope the man who wins my swayamvara is someone I can love with all of my heart.

Love,

Draupadi

_________________________________________________________________

Dear Daughter of Mine,

I have heard the tales of your swayamvara. The great Arjuna came from the depths of the crowd as a brahmin and strung the mighty bow. I heard he shot and absolutely perfect bow! That is so awesome for you and him. I heard he is quite the looker too so that is always a plus. I am glad that the charioteer’s son was not able to win you. That would have been quite disappointing to have to marry a base-born. Anyways, I sure do miss you. It has been a hundred moons since you and I have last seen each other. I miss my daughter. I cannot wait to hear more of you and your new husband.

Love,

Your Mother

Source: Draupadi's Swayamvara

_________________________________________________________________

Dear Mother,

I am so glad that you approve of my new husband. Arjuna is the light to my world and I love him so very much. He is definitely a blessing and someone I could spend the rest of my life here on Earth with. I have learned that he is a true Pandavas brother and at first that was so cool. His brother, Kunti tried to make the eldest Yudhishthira be my wife instead of my love Arjuna. I knew I would not meet another man that I could love as much as my swayamvara, so we eloped into the forest. At first, Arjuna was happy of his decision, but he has been troubled lately. His brothers constantly send him letters about some war with their cousin Duryodhana. I hope my husband does not have to return and fight in battle. I do not know if I could take that. Anyways, I am happy Mother and cannot wait for you to meet my husband.

Love,

Draupadi

_________________________________________________________________

Dear Draupadi,

I am so sorry that you almost had to marry Yudhishthira. You should not have eloped away from such powerful men, but that is just my mother coming out in me. I feel for Arjuna. I know he must truly miss his brothers, but he must really love you for he has chosen you over them. I too have heard of this war. I hope that if it happens, you are as far away as possible. I will be praying for your Draupadi. I love you very much.

Love,

Your Mother

_________________________________________________________________

Dear Mother,

I am sure you have heard now, but the war has never happened! I am so ecstatic that Duryodhana changed his mind at the last second to make peace with his cousins. Balarama has convinced Duryodhana that making peace instead of war will ultimately bring happiness to everyone. I am so very pleased. We now sit around the kingdom and enjoy each other’s company. I love my new life with my new husband Arjuna. I will send for you mother. Arjuna has made a house for you right next to ours so you can be with us every day. I miss you and yearn for your arrival in the great city of Hastinapura.

Love,

Draupadi 

Week 6 Storytelling: Revenge is Poison

A continuation of my Week 6 Story:

Years had passed since Sugriva and Vali had battled at their school dance. Vali was nowhere to be found by the people, but Vali knew exactly where he would be. Vali knew Sugriva resided in the far away city of Kishkindha. Vali wanted his revenge, but he did not quite know how to defeat his younger brother.

At first, Vali tried to get this so called hero Rama to defeat his brother. The plan was perfect, Vali distracts Sugriva while the hiding Rama shoots his magical bow and arrow into Sugriva. The plan was flawless until Vali learned of what he would have to help Rama with.

“Rama, if you complete this task I will forever be in your service. What do you wish of me once my evil brother is defeated”?

Rama replied with the only request Vali would not help with. “Vali, my beloved wife has been kidnapped by the ten-headed Ravana. Her name is Sita and I miss her beautiful face every day”.

Vali could not face his once true love. He was scared of what Sita would say once they saw each other. Especially if the avatar of Vishnu himself found out Vali loved his beloved wife. “Rama I am sorry but I cannot help you find Sita for reasons I will not tell.”

Source: Rama and Vali Meeting

With utter disappointment, Vali left Rama to find another way to gain revenge on his brother. As he swung back to his tree house, a celestial being appeared out of nowhere. With a mystical voice, the being told Vali the story of a magical pond.

“Vali, my friend. There once was a group of brothers that were princes. Their names were the Pandavas. These brothers were exiled from their kingdom and wondered the forest with their mother. All of the brothers were so thirsty one day that I, The Voice, tricked all of these brothers into drinking my poisonous water. I am who you need for your revenge. I will help you on one condition. You must come back every day and give me company for a single hour. If you do not do accompany me, you will face a deathly consequence.”

“I will do whatever you desire.” Vali replied to The Voice.

Source: Pandavas and the Poison Water

As soon as he agreed to the plan, the yaksha vanished. Meanwhile, Sugriva, in hiding, awoke from a slumber to a magical voice. The Voice spoke sweet words to lure Sugriva to the poisonous pond. As Sugriva reached the pond, he took the water into his hands and drank a quick drink of the refreshing water. The poison filled all of his veins. As Sugriva laid their dying in total shock of what had happened, Vali walked out of the bushes to look his brother in his face.

“Sugriva, my brother, you do not look very well. I told you that I would get revenge one day, and that day is today. Goobye Sugrvia.”

Vali had gotten his revenge with the help of The Voice. No longer would his brother walk the earth. With a bit of remorse, Vali quickly left the pond to head back home, completely forgetting about The Voices deal….

To be continued…..

Author’s Note: I mixed the two epics that we read this semester: The Mahabharata and The Ramayana. The timeline is changed from the original story because Vali had not gotten revenge against his brother until after the Pandavas have died. Also, I made all of the Panadvas brother dying instead of Yudishthira saving all of the brothers. Also, I included The Voice in my story because I felt he was key in the Mahabharata. The celestial being seems to like making deals with people, therefore I made Vali make a deal with him in order to kill his brother. The Voice ends up killing Sugriva by the poisonous pond instead of Rama killing him with his bow and arrow. I did not like the way Rama killed Sugriva so this allowed me to avoid these actions of Rama. Furthermore, I changed the fact that Vali did not fight Sugriva one on one, but however, hid inside the bushes until after he drank the poisonous water. I plan on continuing this story and finally have Vali meet up with Sita again, along with Rama. 

Bibliography: The prose is from Indian Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie (1913), and the verse is from Mahabharata, Epic of the Bharatas, by Romesh C. Dutt (1898). 

Weblink: The Mahabharata

Week 5 Storytelling: A Troll's Reign

There once was a town named Pawnee. This town was full of laughter, love, and happiness.  The citizen’s days consisted of church and family gatherings. All was well in this little town but a darkness loomed nearby. A troll with teeth as big as the citizens themselves was in a deep slumber. The terrible troll was named Baki. The citizens had heard of his rulings every thousand years, but it was all a distant worry. The distant worry would soon be a cruel, cruel reality…

Source: SodaHead

Baki stretched his long arms after waking from a thousand year slumber. He was very hungry with an appetite for flesh. He performed his ritual of sharpening his teeth and club. As he got ready for his upcoming reign, he spoke words that boomed across the lands. “I’m coming dear Pawnee. Be prepared.” The citizens shivered with fear for they were not expecting those words to be spoken so soon.

Baki swept through the town with his mouth as wide as the sea. He quickly went to the King and ate him with one swift bite. The livestock and the occasion citizen fell into the depths of his mouth. The people ran with fear locking their doors and turning off the lights. The attack continued for the next week until Baki’s belly was completely full. Once he was finished, he started his actual reign over Pawnee. The rule was for each family in the city to alternate each week on offering the troll either eight cows, twenty chickens, or one of the family members themselves. These were the rules, and they would not be altered. One of the local families had neither chickens nor cows, therefore they would have to sacrifice one of the children. This outraged the town of Pawnee and news spread quick.

A nearby town heard of the terrible news. In the town resided a family of five sons that were in hiding from something that no one quite knew about. The youngest and strongest boy was named David. He thought of all the people that were being affected by this cruel creature and felt something needed to be done. He begged and begged his mother to let him go but she resisted. David did not care what she said. Pawnee needed a savior and he would be that for them. Later that night, David packed his sword, slingshot, and rocks before sneaking out to Pawnee.

Source: David

After a fortnight of traveling, David arrived in the middle of the city’s downtown. He stood firm with sword in hand and yelled out to the evil troll. “Baki you have taken your last human. Your last chicken. Your last cow. And especially your last breath.”

Baki jumped out of his makeshift thrown of cow bones. He quickly jolted towards David a swung his massive club, barely missing David’s head. As David ducked he took out his sword and attempted to stab the calf of the troll. The rough hide of the troll snapped the metal sword in two. Baki chuckled with a great laugh for he knew he had an easy win now.

“Ah young boy you are done for now. Give up now and I will make it quick.” Baki continued his laugh, his mouth being spread open. David saw his chance and took advantage of it. He took out the most rugged rock and placed it into the slingshot. David pulled back with all his might and let go of the rock, his last chance. As Baki chuckled, the rock went straight into his mouth and lodged into the troll’s throat. As Baki choked on the rock, David strolled up to him. “You have underestimated me my friend. People of Pawnee, you are forever safe from this monster. No more sacrifices, only happiness!” The citizens peaked out from behind their doors with smiles on their faces. As the town became full of people, they chanted for their new hero. Their new King.

Author’s Note: The inspiration for this story was that of the Mahabharata. The particular section in the Public Domain Edition was Bhima and Baka. Bhima, the son of Pandu, defeats an asura named Baka in a nearby town. This asura is reigning over the town. I chose to be similar to the Mahabharata in that the troll desired sacrifices of animals and if not available, humans. My inspiration for David was that of Bhima. I chose not to make him of a noble origin to being with because I wanted a rag to riches type of story. He differed greatly because at the end of the story Bhima was not chosen to be king. Also, a major difference in my story and that of the Mahabharata is that David’s (Bhima) mother wanted him to defeat the troll (asura). This is vital because defying his mother brings a certain dynamic to the story. I am glad that you read my take on the Mahabharata. Furthermore, David is sort of a take on David and Goliath.

Week 4 Storytelling: Revenge Will Soon Come

The story begins in the great town of Bihar where two monkey brothers attended the nearby school. The eldest, Vali, was the most popular monkey in the school with all the girls, except one. Her name was Sita and she was dating the younger brother Sugriva. The story begins on a brisk night where Vali simply could not take not having the beautiful Sita any more:

“Sugriva, get up from your nap now! We are going to be late to the dance” Vali screamed up the tree to his younger brother. Vali was irritated.

Sugriva had stayed up all night writing a letter Sita, singing out loud whatever he wrote. They had been dating for a year now and he could not wait to give her the carefully written letter before the school dance. He yelled back at his borther, “I am coming brother! What, did you wake up on the wrong side of the limb today?” Both of them quickly ate their bananas for dinner and swung as quickly as possible to school.

As the two arrived, Sugriva quickly went searching for his Sita while Vali went straight for the food. Sugriva finally saw Sita. “Sita my love! You look so beautiful!” Sita was wearing a long, bright blue dress that went all the way to the ground. The two embraced and Sugriva handed the letter to Sita. As she read the sweet words of her boyfriend tears rolled down her face. As she finished, she looked up and smiled at Sugriva. The two began dancing to the slow paced song that was being played. All was right in the world, except for Vali. He looked at the two with detest. He wanted Sita and he could not understand why she had no interest in him. As he drank a glass of fruit punch, rage poured into him more and more. All of a sudden he snapped.

“Sugriva! You do not deserve such a beautiful woman. I am the most handsome monkey in Bihar and I want what you have!” He quickly sprinted to Vali, hands tightly bound into fists.

Sugriva, in total shock, was not ready for what was happening. He dodged the punch of Vali just in time. The two brothers fought in the middle of the dance as the other students looked in horror. Sita cried out as Sugriva punched his brother and Vali punched back. Sita begged and begged for the two to stop, but all she got in return from Sugriva was, “Shut up Sita!”

Source: Sugriva and Vail

Finally, the teachers ran to the two monkeys and broke up the fight. Both bloody, the two were pulled back from each other. Sita could not take what just happened. She did not want to date and love a monkey that was so quick to anger and disrespect to her. She ran up to Sugriva and spoke words that sliced through his heart.

“Sugriva, you were my love. However, your quick reaction to anger and rude comments to me does not make me desire your affections anymore. I am through.”  As tears ran down her face, she walked out of the dance. Never to be seen again by Sugriva.

Sugriva filled with rage! As the teachers let him go. He spoke these words of revenge to Vali. “I do not care what happens in this world, however I do know one thing. You will pay for this one day.” Sugriva walked out of the dance and swung away to a place far, far away to plot his revenge.

To be continued…

Author’s Note: I wrote this story in reaction to the Divine Archer I recently read this past week. I felt the story was very similar to the original Ramayana, therefore I wanted my own twist. I wanted to have more of a connection between the monkeys, Sugriva and Vali, and Sita. Allowing the two to be in love and them end due to Vali will make his revenge even greater when Rama needs help.  I felt that creating a story that connects all three of these characters early on in their lives would help explain why Sugriva even helps Rama get her back in the first place. I am wanting to continue my writing on this in order to apply my own twist to the Ramayna and Divine Archer. The desire to get Sita back from Ravana will be even more because Sugriva actually loves Sita. I plan on applying a major twist in the original story in my upcoming stories. 

Bibliography: The Divine Archer. F.J. Gould. 1911. http://iereadingguides.blogspot.com/2014/05/reading-guide-week-1-gould-divine-archer.html

Week 3 Storytelling: An Ant's Tale

The ant mound was in a total state of shock. The queen, the mighty Queen Ira, had been kidnapped. The crazy eight-eyed black widow spider, Rivana, had tricked her into coming out of her chamber. All the guards were told to go leave that night, the first time ever. The mound council called an immediate emergency meeting to plan the rescue. They knew the task would not be easy since the spider’s web was across the backyard. Many tribulations and obstacles would need to be passed to rescue the beautiful Queen Ira. The task could only be executed by one ant, and one ant only. It was the strong red fire ant Zane. They beckoned Zane. The rescue was on.

Rivana

Source: SpiderWorlds

Zane took his brother and other ants with him. This was more personal to him than anyone realized. Zane and Queen Ira had grown up in the same mound and had a past of friendship and passion. He was an ant on a mission. With weapons sharpened, the group started their trek to Rivana’s web knowing very well that he knew that they would be coming.

After marching halfway across the yard, Zane felt a chill run down all of his legs. He knew they were being watched by something, but he did not know by who. As he led the formation, he heard a large rumble behind him along with screams from his troop. The last ant in line was squirming around in the hands of the enormous praying mantis. The ants moved into attacking formation before launching wooden spears into the giant praying mantis. Spears broke as they hit the rough hide of the enemy. All seemed lost until Zane took out his secret weapon, a holy staple given to him from the mighty beetle Shimma. He slid under the legs of Khamton, jumped on its back, and cut off the mighty praying mantis’s head. Zane stood amidst his fallen enemy. Rivana, revengeful, jumped on his speedy dragonfly and flew into the battle with thousands of spiders at his hand.

Zane versus the mighty Khamton

Source: Metro

As Zane and the ants fought off all the spiders with his mighty staple, Rivana decided to counter the troop of ants. Zane sensed this with his antennas and turned around just as Rivana attacked. Rivana launched web, sticking Zane to the ground. His brother 

quickly cut the web, freeing Zane. Rivana nosed dived his dragonfly towards Zane trying to use the speed to defeat Zane. Zane, at the last second, jumped to the side and launched his staple into the side of Rivana. Rivana fell to the ground, dead.

With the eight eyed spider now dead, the Queen was now free. Zane freed the royal captive, looking deeply into the eyes of the beautiful queen. Zane spoke sweet words to his old love, “My queen, my love. You have been dearly missed. You are the light in my eye. Forever and ever I will serve you with love and affection”. Taken back, Queen Ira walked away from Zane with guards surrounding her. She knew of her responsibilities to the mound and that she could never marry the rugged Zane. Zane was heartbroken, but he understood her decision

As the years past, Queen Ira thought of Zane, and Zane though of Queen Ira. And as both took their last breaths, they slowly slipped into a dream of a wonderful land. They both were in heaven, together. At last, the two ants could spend eternity together. 

Author Notes: I received inspiration for this tale from the Ramayana. It followed the parts B, C, and D. I utilized the story of Rama and Sita being in love. While the ten headed Ravana is portrayed by Rivana, the eight eyed spider. These two are very similar throughout the story. I, however, did not include the part where Lakshman hurts his sister. He kidnaps the beloved Sita from Rama, and Rama attacks the rakshasa to rescue her. This is exactly what I wanted to accomplish in my story with the ants and spider. Also, the praying mantis Khamton, resembled the giant Khumhakarna and his mighty battle with Rama (Zane). Khumhakarna was important in the original Ramayana because it was a great battle that showed Rama's strength. I thought about potentially making Zane and the Queen get together immediately unlike the original Ramayana. This would have made a better dynamic but I wanted to stay true to that part of the story. Overall, the story from when Sita was kidnapped on was very interesting to me and that is where I got my overall inspiration. Thanks for reading.

Bibliography: Ramayana, The Epic of Rama, Prince of India, condensed into English verse by Romesh Dutt (1899). 

Storytelling Week 2: The Tale of Two Princes

King Dakin slammed the tankard on the table in celebration.  He was the most powerful king in all the kingdoms and he had just heard news of his first boy being born. As King Dakin finished the warm red wine the rest of his council around him sang the kingdoms hymn with celebration for the future king. Once finished, Dakin walked up the stone staircase to his chamber to meet his exhausted wife, Kiya, holding a sweet little boy. With a quick swift of the king’s massive hands, the little prince was in the arms of his father. King Dakin looked down in awe at his new boy, and muttered, “Welcome to the world Khal”.

Source: Castle 

As the years past Khal grew into his large frame and became one of the strongest men in the kingdom, even rivaling his father. He quickly became an expert with the long blade sword, and even better with an eight food spear he could throw clear across the pasture.  All the boys in the kingdom envied his strength and swordsmanship. By the time he was eighteen, he had seven siblings, six sisters and one brother who was a thousand moons younger. His brother’s name was Kaydo. Now the brothers got along most of the time, however, Kaydo was consumed with the greed and envy of becoming the king instead of his brother. Furthermore, Queen Kiya favored the younger son due to his weaknesses compared to Khal. The Queen and Kaydo conspired a plan to kill the king and pin it on the eldest prince. They wrote the plans on a scroll in order to ensure their success. They would implement the plot against the king on his first hunt of the winter months.

Finally, on a cold winter night, the King went on a hunting trip with the two boys for sport. The men crept along the frozen stream, swords and spears in hand. Just about when they gave up, they heard a rumbling noise in the distance. Out of nowhere jumped a huge boar with tusks longer than the spear Khal possessed. As the boar attacked the king, Khal launched his spear with blistering speed into the side of the boar’s head. The boar let out a deafening cry as it took its last breath. The king, breathing heavily, grinned at Khal looking at their hunting feat. Just as Khal and King Dakin embraced in victory, Kaydo slid his sword into the back of the King, mortally wounding him. Khal yelled out in horror, seeing his father fall down and breathe his last breath. Kaydo then turned his attention towards Khal and tried to give him the same fate as the King. In disbelief, Khal picked up his spear out of the boar and in utter anger threw his spear into Kaydo. Kaydo was slowly dying as Khal peered down at him. Kaydo slowly realized the terrible mistake he has done by trying to take over the kingdom. As he laid their dying, he spoke to Khal.

“Khal, these actions I have done engulf the worst decision I have ever made. The crooked Queen Kiya, our mother, persuaded me and threatened me to commit these crimes. There is a scroll in my chamber that has written out the details of our plan. Goodbye my brother, I will miss thee.”

Source: Scroll

Khal, in despair, walked back to the kingdom directly to Kaydo’s room. He located the scroll before talking to anyone. As he entered the eating chamber, he looked right into Queen Kiya’s face he dropped the scroll onto the table. In utter disbelief that Khal had located the scroll, the Queen broke down crying for she knew of her fate. Khal, in his empathy for his mother, spoke the words, “you shall be banished to the forest for every moon until darkness”. As Kayo wept for what happened, he realized he was now the King. He had to be what everyone thought he was, a strong and intelligent King. As he walked out of his chamber to the balcony, he looked out at his new kingdom where his mother and father will no longer reside, ready for a new beginning.  

Author's Note: My inspiration for the Prince Khal is of Rama and his excellent wielding of weapons, along with his strength and knowledge. The King Dakin and Queen Kiya have a first-born son that is destined to be the king. They soon have a son a thousand moons (a little over three years younger) younger who will never be king because of age. The Queen favors the youngest son Kaydo, therefore they plot to kill both the King and Khal. The three men go on a hunting trip, which I received inspiration from Game of Thrones when Robery Baratheon dies. Kaydo kills the King and tries to kill Khal. This fails and he is then mortally stabbed by Khal. Kaydo, in remorse for what he has done, tells of a scroll that has written the plans of Kiya and him. Khal returns from hunting to face his mother, a murderer. Instead of executing his mother for her crimes, he has empathy and only banishes her. This is inspired from Rama himself  because he is a very forgiving and empathetic king. This was great to implement into my story because I feel that empathy is one of the best characteristics of a king. Khal is now the king of all these kingdoms as he watches his mother be exiled. Also, the Queen trying to make her son a king is inspiration from the Ramayana section, "Kaikeyi and Dasharatha".

Bibliography: Mackenzie, Donald, "Kaikeyi and Dasharatha". Indian Myths and Legend. Warwick Globe. (1913). Web Source: Project Gutenberg

Week 1 Storytelling

Source: Cabin in the Woods/Paradise

The “Sold” sign slowly disappeared as my parents and I drove off. We were moving again, of course.  This was the third time this year and all I could think about was how many more times will I have to be thrown into another school. A new place, new friends, and a whole new beginning, again. My parents said this move will be different though, they called the new cabin an oasis in the middle of a secluded forest.

As I looked out of the window at the foggy landscape, I could feel my eyes yearning for sleep. I did not want to miss any of the drive so I fought with all my might to stay awake. Just then I heard the blinker on the car turn on and we exited off the highway onto Eerie Forest Road. We were driving on the bouncy road as huge oak trees consumed the sky above me. All of a sudden the car jerked forward as the car came to a complete stop. My dad revved the engine, trying to free us from whatever had stopped our car. As I looked out to see what it was, I could feel the car slowly sinking into the mushy ground beneath us. It dawned on me. I quickly unbuckled and yelled to my parents, “Quicksand!”. We jumped out of the car just in time as the quicksand completely engulfed the car until all we could see was the antenna poking out. We all stood in shock staring at the ground, trying to figure out what actually just happened. We knew that the best way to fix this crazy event was to head towards the new cabin and call for help, so we started walking.

We walked for what seemed like forever when my dad decided he needed to go to the restroom. With my dad gone, my mom and I heard a murmur coming from the distance. As we waited and waited the murmur got louder and louder. All of a sudden, my dad came running towards us, screaming, with a large swarm of killer bees following closely. As I turned to run, I noticed a stream of water. We all were able to make it to the water and to escape the deadly stings of the bees. Just in time.

              As we continued walking, we finally made it to where the cabin was in sight. Just as we let out a sigh of relief, we heard a chopping sound near the cabin. From behind the house walked a crazy axeman screaming at us to get off his land. As the man ran after us, we hid behind a large oak tree, breathing ever so softly. As the axeman searched for us, I accidently moved my foot, causing the axeman to hear where we were. He started chopping down tree we were behind. With the cabin nearby, I went around the left side of the oak and yelled “Over here!”. As the axeman quickly looked my way, my dad came out from behind the tree and tackled the axeman, sending his axe flying away. We all sprinted as fast as we could to the cabin, with the axeman right behind us. He quickly caught up to me, and as he lunged forward to grab me, I woke up to my mom holding my arm as we arrived at our new cabin. It was all a dream, nothing but a dream.

Author note: Written from the inspiration from Tom Gauld's Map of the Area Surrounding our Holiday Home. I started from the South, worked Northeast, and finally arrived at the cabin where the axeman was located. 

Map of the Area Surrounding our Holiday Home, a cartoon by Tom Gauld from his book ROBOTS, MONSTERS Etc., 2006. http://onlinecourselady.pbworks.com/w/page/12763863/week1storytelling