Once upon a time, there was an old tinkerer who liked to work late into the night in his workshop. He loved to tinker with wood and stone, and metal and wire, building and carving and welding and snipping. One night, just past midnight, he was putting the finishing touches on five tiny bells and he hung them in the window to listen to them tinkle in the breeze.
Suddenly, a Fairy appeared at the window to admire the bells. The old man was transfixed. He dared not even breathe as he watched the fairy delight in his creation.
Then, even more startling, the Fairy turned and looked at him and spoke. “I see you have created a set of magical bells, old tinkerer. Their names are Yksi, Kaksi, Kolme, Neljä, and Viisi. You probably don’t even know their power.”
The old man was dumbstruck, and he stared slack-jawed as the Fairy continued. “The copper and zinc from which those bells were made came from the ore mines at the heart of the Beltane Forest, in the center of the oldest Fairy Ring in the whole kingdom. With the ringing of those bells, you have summoned me here.”
Finally, the old man was able to splutter, “But – whatever did you come for?”
“To grant you a wish, silly!” trilled the Fairy.
The old man blinked his eyes and ran his pocket kerchief across his forehead. “I don’t know what to say,” he finally muttered.
“What is it you want most in the world, old man?”
Staring at his hands, he eventually looked up at the Fairy and said, “I want to live happily here in my house, in good health, and be able to go on in peace, tinkering away in my shop. And then when my time has come, I want to die peacefully in my sleep.”
“That is indeed a noble wish. I can grant it for you, but there is a price to pay.”
The old man furrowed his eyes and stared questioningly at the Fairy. “What is the price?”
“You must give me the five bells,” replied the Fairy.
“You’ll destroy them?” asked the old man.
“Once made, they cannot be unmade. I will hide them in the forest. If anyone were to find them all and ring them, in the correct order, and at the right time of day, then I can be summoned again, and I will grant them a wish.”
The old man smiled and didn’t even have to think hard. “Take the bells,” he said, “and leave me to my tinkering.”
A Geocache Notification Form has been filed with the Marathon County Parks, Recreation, and Forestry Department.