Retold By Harlow Berny
Centuries ago, in a long forgotten kingdom, God created all animals and chose the wolf to be his dog. God had forgotten, however, to create the goat. The devil saw this and began to create his own animals, among which was the goat that God had forgotten. He gave the goats long, bushy tails, but when they grazed in the pastures they caught in hedges. The devil grew tired of untangling his goats, so he herded them together and bit their tails down, leaving them with the stubs we see today.
After He knew they wouldn’t get caught again, He let his goats roam the fields alone, but soon God saw how they gnawed at fruit trees, chomped through hardy vines, and devoured blooming wildflowers. God became distressed and sent his wolves to stop the goats, and in doing so the goats were torn to pieces. The devil heard the cries of his goats and returned to find nothing but blood-stained grass and wolves. He went to God and screamed, “Why have your creatures destroyed mine!?”
“Why have you created things that do harm?” God responded.
“Damn you! My creations ate nothing but plants; yours are the ones that commit murder!”
“The goats had eaten trees, vines, and flowers instead of fruits and vegetables. They were hardly innocent creatures.”
“My thoughts and being run on chaos and disorder, and as such my creations can have no other nature. You owe me heavily for the herd you’ve killed,” said the devil.
“I will pay you as soon as the oak leaves fall. Come then and your money will be ready.”
The devil waited for Autumn, and once he heard the final leaf drop to the ground and crunch beneath a human’s foot, he went forth to God and demanded his due. However, once he arrived he was shocked by what he saw.
“As you can see, not all the oak leaves have fallen, devil,” God said gesturing to the old church behind the woods, which was surrounded by tall hollyoaks.
“Evergreens?!” the devil shouted. “You’ve tricked me, old man!”
“Not quite. I said when all the oak leaves fall, not when Autumn comes. You will have to wait until those trees decide that they’ve lived long enough, and are ready to rest.”
“Damn you! Damn you and all your creations!” The devil huffed out flames before leaving again with his goats. He pulled their eyes out and replaced them with his own, so that he may watch over them and alert them of danger. This is how goats got their short tails and devil eyes, and why the devil likes to assume their shape when walking upon the earth.
Editor: Makena Behnke
A Re-Telling of Grimm’s
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