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Giggle Book Two
The Shoemaker and the Sandals
At the edge of town sat a small shoe shop. The shop was filled with piles of shoes that people had thrown away. The shoemaker repaired and resold them, but most of the time he gave them away. The windowsills of the shop were covered with shoes he had repaired. People from all walks of life came from all around to his shop to get shoes. Samuel, the shoemaker who lived there, was a very wise old man. He had long, wavy, white hair tucked about his shoulders and a warm smile that stretched under his mustache. His eyes grew big and sparkled when he talked about his shoes. His laugh was a belly buster that ended with a soft giggle. Samuel had been making and repairing shoes for years. Everyone said he was the best around. The smell of leather filled the air of his shop. Even though it was scattered with old shoes, boots and slippers of all kinds, it didn’t hinder Samuel. He was a master of shoe making. Samuel worked from the wee hours of the morning into the late hours of the night making and repairing shoes. He loved his work; it was his life, his joy and it was a way for him to help others. It had been a very busy day when he sat down to rest a bit and a stranger came in. He was a tall, friendly and kind man. The stranger’s face had a peaceful glow and there was a deep-set twinkle in his eyes.
“Sir,” he softly spoke, “would you repair these old sandals for a friend of mine?”
As Samuel rose to his feet, he reached out to take the sandals from the stranger. Samuel examined them from top to bottom.
“Well, I don’t know, sir,” replied Samuel. “These sandals are badly worn and I really don’t see much need to fix them. They are really not worthy of my time.”
But the stranger insisted that the sandals would be fine if Samuel repaired them. He knew he could get a lot more wear out of them.
The shoemaker looked them over again, turned to the stranger and said, “I’ll see what I can do. I’ll try my best,” promised Samuel.
Samuel was a very wise man. He had worked with shoes so much in his life that he could pretty much tell by the shoe what type of person wore them. He was sharp enough that he could tell what type of job they had. He was also clever enough to know if they were rich or poor. But, these sandals were not like any other shoes he had seen before. They are different, he thought. But, I just don’t know in what way? He carefully looked them over and eyed them even closer.
“Sir, these sandals have gone many miles. I’d say by looking at the wear and tear that the man who walks in these sandals has a special calling and it has put a heavy burden upon him,” he told the stranger.
The stranger stood quietly and listened as Samuel hummed a little tune while he examined the sandals even closer. Samuel looked over his glasses at the stranger and rubbed his chin.
“I’ll see what I can do, but it will take a little time,” he said.
“That will be fine,” replied the stranger. “I will be back to pick them up.”
As the stranger turned to leave, Samuel asked him, “By the way, sir, whose sandals are these?”
“A carpenter’s son,” replied the stranger.
After the stranger left, Samuel set the sandals off to the side and went on with his work. As he cut and tied leather straps to repair the other shoes, he couldn’t help but look over at the sandals, from time to time, and wonder. He’d work a while, then go over, pick up the sandals, examine them some more and put them back down. These sandals are different from the others, he thought. He had a special feeling about them. He figured they belonged to a king or prince. But after taking a closer look at the torn straps and the worn soles, he decided there was no way the sandals belonged to a king; they had to belong to a very poor man. Samuel returned to his work but kept thinking about the sandals. What is so special about these shoes? he wondered.
As the day ended and night fell, tired and worn out from his long day, he got ready for bed. Samuel tried to go to sleep, but he couldn’t get his mind off the sandals. He tossed and tumbled; eventually he got up out of bed and paced the floor. There is something about those sandals, he said to himself. Well, I can’t sleep, he thought. I guess I will work on the sandals. All night the shoemaker cut, sewed and tied leather straps. He worked continuously throughout the night. Samuel wanted the sandals to be just right. It was early the next morning, at sunrise, when the shoemaker finished the sandals. Samuel waited all day for the stranger to return. But, he never came.
Days passed and the stranger still hadn’t returned. By then, the shoemaker had gotten restless and worried. I must go and find the stranger, he thought to himself. The carpenter’s son might need his sandals. Samuel took the sandals, ran out the door and down the street. He hurried through the crowded street with the sandals in his hand. He looked everywhere for the stranger. He stopped here and there to ask if anyone had seen him; no one had. He could not find the stranger anywhere.
Samuel stopped a man on the street and asked, “Would you, sir, know of the stranger I seek? Would you know of the one to whom these sandals belong? I believe they belong to a carpenter’s son and I must find him.”
“No, sir,” replied the man. “I don’t know him. But, it might be one of the three they crucified yesterday. It might be one of them you seek.”
“Where can I find these three? It just might be one of them that I seek,” cried Samuel.
“They were crucified yesterday on the hill outside the city,” cried the man.
The shoemaker ran down the street toward the hill outside the city. When he arrived, he saw nothing but three empty crosses lying on the ground. The only person there was a Roman soldier standing near one of the crosses.
“Sir,” cried Samuel. “Where are the three who died here yesterday? Where have they laid them?”
The soldier replied, “They have been taken away.”
“Where may I find them?” asked Samuel.
The soldier pointed down the hill and said, “You can’t do anything for them now.”
The shoemaker quickly left and headed down the hill. He went to one tomb, then the other and that’s when he saw the tomb sealed with a big stone. As he stood there, Samuel once again had the feeling that this man was special. Was it the carpenter’s son? he wondered. It had to be. This was the one to whom the sandals belonged. He knew it in his heart. But, like the soldier had said, it was too late. There was nothing else to be done so Samuel left for home.
That night he tossed and turned in his bed. He couldn’t stop thinking about the sandals. He knew the man who wore them was a special and gifted man; a man of love that suffered greatly for others. Samuel was sure of that. But, he still didn’t know who he was.
“Who was this man,” cried the shoemaker, “and where is the stranger? I must find him!”
As the morning son arose, Samuel grabbed the sandals and went back to the tomb; he hoped the stranger would return. When he arrived, the stone had been rolled away and the tomb was empty. There was no one around. As Samuel walked toward home, he heard a woman talking to some men. They called her Mary.
“Are you sure he has risen from the dead?” asked one of the men.
“He is alive! I have seen him,” said Mary.
The shoemaker spoke up and said, “Please tell me who it is that you speak of.”
Mary replied, “Jesus Christ, the son of God is alive.”
Someone in the crowd yelled, “It can’t be for Jesus was a carpenter’s son. I knew Joseph, his daddy.”
The shoemaker immediately realized why the sandals were so special. He had heard of this man named Jesus and knew of his goodness.
The shoemaker bowed his head and prayed, “Dear Jesus, my Lord, although I have never met you I feel like I have always known you. You have now become a part of me and my life. You are truly special. Amen.”
Samuel returned home with the sandals and placed them in a special place, in his shop. He tells the story of the sandals to
everyone, every chance he gets.
But, when he is asked about the stranger, he tells them it’s still a mystery. Samuel tells that to everyone who asks. Sometimes he tells them that we entertain angels unaware.
John 14:1-6: Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my
Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.