The Four Masters

A long, long time ago and far, far away in the North, there lived a poor farmer who had four wonderful sons - but no money. When they had grown up and they had all become strong young men, he called them over to him and said:

“I have grown old and tired, my sons, and I cannot keep feeding you anymore. You must all go out into the big, wide world and learn a good craft as an apprentice.”

The brothers loved and respected their father deeply, and didn’t want to be a burden to him. So they all packed their bags, filled with dried fish, an extra flannel shirt and prepared to travel.

The very next morning, as dawn rose, they said their sad goodbyes and set off to explore the world and learn worldly skills. They were also hoping for new adventures!

Soon, they came to a crossroad. It pointed in four different directions, with each road leading to the unknown. The eldest brother pounded his walking stick on the ground and said:

“My brothers! This is where we must go our separate ways. We will go forth and learn a new craft to the best of our abilities. In exactly four years to the day, we will return to this spot and meet each other once again.”

All of the brothers agreed, and they hugged one another with large tears in their eyes. Then wished each other luck, and each left on a different road.

After a while, the brown-haired eldest met a strange man standing by the side of the road, watching him.

“Where are you going?” asked the stranger. He was wearing very elegant bear furs.

“I want to learn a craft that I could make a living out of,” replied the eldest…