Paws & Tales

Ned: Welcome to another episode of my personal podcast, Ned Knows! Today, I'm talking to the creator of Paws & Tales, Dave Carl. Well, thanks for being with me today, Dave.

Dave Carl: It's a pleasure to be here, Ned.

Ned: So, because I'm me, I happen to know that you have written the first-ever Paws & Tales book. Tell me more about that.

Dave Carl: I'd love to. It's called *The Overcomers*, and reading this book will be like reading maybe five regular episodes. The club is in the middle of a big new adventure, and there are new characters we introduced.

Ned: That's fascinating, Dave. I have it, though, by good authority that this book centers around Ned and how he saves the day for everyone.

Dave Carl: Well, no, that's not what the book is about. It is significantly about the struggle against evil that lurks high up in Wild Mountain. If anything, I'd have to say it centers around Stacy.

Ned: What? I gave you really good notes when you were writing this. What happened to all my great ideas?

Dave Carl: Well, mostly I didn't read them. There was a lot of notes, Ned. In the book I did write, we meet Smidge, a badger who really wants to become someone who will make a difference. And he meets up with Crockett, a genuine overcomer who begins to teach him how to survive in the woods and how to take care of the miners digging for gold in the tunnels of Wild Mountain.

Ned: Ned knows what this book was supposed to be about. In those notes you did not read, Ned inherits a million dollars, but he does not let anyone know about it. And he sneaks around and secretly helps those in need and uses all kinds of really neat gadgets to fight crime.

Dave Carl: I did read that part of the notes, but in this first Paws & Tales book, *The Overcomers*, we follow the club as they begin a new adventure, and we see how Crockett battles bandits and the evil Minion in only the way an overcomer can.

Ned: Well, I did not know that you changed the whole book, Dave. This is a bitter disappointment. Well, this ends this episode of Ned Knows. Thanks for joining me, Dave Carl, who ignored all my notes. I'll see you all next time for another episode of Ned Knows. Joel, stop tape.

Insight for Living: Welcome to the world of Paws & Tales. Wild Mountain can be a pretty dangerous place. If you stay on the trails and stick with me, there's adventure to be had there, too.

Howdy, and welcome to Wildwood. You know how sometimes the world seems to move by so slowly that you're just sure nothing exciting will ever happen? That's the way the club's feeling.

Chancery James: Come on, C.J., jump!

Guest (Male): It's too far!

Chancery James: It wasn't too far for me!

Guest (Male): Hey guys, look! I see Hugh pouncing on someone. Dumb bear, he's pouncing on someone.

Chancery James: It's Snaggle. He was taking his lunch away. Get away from there, Hugh McClow!

Snaggle: Oh, over there! You two stand aside.

Chancery James: Whoa, where did that badger come from?

Guest (Male): Ha! He's got Hugh by the nape of the neck.

Snaggle: That's no way for two proper gentlemen to behave.

Chancery James: The badger saved the day! It's amazing. He's the amazing badger.

Guest (Male): I've never seen Hugh get caught red-handed like this before. I'm so happy I could cry.

Snaggle: Snaggle got his lunch back!

Chancery James: Hey mister, wait up!

Dr. Therin: Afternoon, kids.

Chancery James: That was great. Hugh, the cougar you just sent packing, he almost never gets caught like that.

Dr. Therin: Well, now, I just can't stand by and watch a wrong go unchallenged.

Chancery James: Hi, I'm C.J. I've heard that badgers could be mighty tough.

Dr. Therin: A pleasure to meet you, son. My name is Dr. Therin. I am a man of great hope, abounding in enthusiasm, but extremely low in food. I'm in dire need of someone to take me into town and guide me to a general store for provisions and a house of worship for a time of prayer.

Chancery James: Well, you're in luck, Dr. Therin. We can take you there.

Dr. Therin: Splendid! Well, give me a moment to bring my wagon around and we'll be off.

Chancery James: Where do you think he's from? He doesn't talk like he's from around here. Don't you think he's amazing? Look at that wagon. Dr. Therin's Elixir of—I can't read any of those words. This guy must be really smart.

Dr. Therin: Well, now, lead on, my intrepid guides.

Chancery James: What'd he call us?

Guest (Male): I think it was a good thing.

Insight for Living: Well, they led Dr. Therin down the road to Main Street. C.J. took him around and introduced him to Stag Williams, Officer Hunt, and as many folks as he could find, including Papa Chuck.

Papa Chuck: That's quite a wagon you've got there.

Dr. Therin: Well, it's been my home for some time. I've been searching for a place to make a real home, you know? Wildwood just might be it.

Chancery James: Wouldn't that be great?

Papa Chuck: Your wagon says that you are a pharmacist, a philanthropist, an alchemist, and a phrenologist.

Dr. Therin: Since I was young, I've made it my quest to find any and every way possible to help my fellows in need.

Papa Chuck: So, what is it exactly that you do for your fellows in need?

Dr. Therin: Truly? I use my knowledge and experience to discover what people need. I then guide them to what can satisfy their need. What is it that you do for the good creatures of Wildwood?

Papa Chuck: I'm a handyman.

Chancery James: There's nothing Papa Chuck can't fix. He's teaching me how to, too. I can do lots of stuff.

Dr. Therin: I believe you can. It's been a pleasure to meet you, Papa Chuck. I must get back. Mrs. Merryweather, she's invited me over for supper. C.J., let's be off now.

Papa Chuck: Goodnight, Dr. Therin.

Chancery James: See you later, Papa Chuck.

Dr. Therin: C.J., my boy, you are the perfect host. Thank you for making those introductions.

Chancery James: Happy to.

Dr. Therin: C.J., do you mind me asking what C.J. stands for?

Chancery James: I sort of do mind. In my family, we name our cubs after relatives even if they have really dumb names. It's a bad tradition.

Dr. Therin: I see. It's just that I believe you have a special something about you. And historically, great men use their given names, not just their initials. But if it makes you uncomfortable, I will respect your privacy.

Chancery James: Thanks.

Dr. Therin: C.J., I am a man with a mission. All great men have one, and mine is to meet the needs of those around me. I have a bottle of miracles: Dr. Therin's Extract of Rattlesnake Elixir. With what's in this bottle, we together can give people what they lack.

Chancery James: You and me?

Dr. Therin: All I need to heal the wounds of this town is one person, one who hears the call, one who is ready for greatness to touch him. Do you want to be great, C.J.?

Chancery James: Well, yeah.

Dr. Therin: Are you ready to answer the call, C.J.?

Chancery James: What call is that?

Dr. Therin: The call to use the gifts and abilities you have. And truly, my boy, though they are rough and unmined, you have them.

Chancery James: You really think so?

Dr. Therin: I do. Great men don't just happen, C.J. They achieve because of choices they have made. It is time for you to choose.

Chancery James: Chancellor!

Dr. Therin: Excuse me?

Chancery James: I'm ready. And my name is Chancery James.

Ned: I'm Ned the beaver, star of Paws & Tales. Now, I want to surprise Papa Chuck with some photos of you. So, parents, take a photo of your kids listening to Paws & Tales. They can be funny photos, kooky pictures, snuggled into the pillows, wherever your child listens. And I will have them posted on the wall of the clubhouse for all to see. Don't you want to be a part of the clubhouse wall? Of course you do! So just go to pawsandtales.org and send in those pictures.

Insight for Living: Dr. Therin gave C.J. instructions and got his mind so full of dreams, the poor cub could hardly sleep. As per Dr. Therin's instructions, they met in the town square early that Saturday morning.

Dr. Therin: Saturday is a day of commerce. People want something special in their lives.

Chancery James: I never thought about it like that.

Dr. Therin: Well, you should from now on. Chancery, that's a name that fairly demands greatness from its owner. Your parents were wise to challenge you with it.

Chancery James: Thanks.

Dr. Therin: It's almost 9:00. It's time to begin.

Chancery James: Begin what?

Dr. Therin: Why, the show, my boy! The show of needs! Stand back and watch. Stand back, son, stand back and observe.

Insight for Living: The town of Wildwood had never heard fireworks like that in the broad daylight. Within a few short minutes, the majority of the town had gathered around Dr. Therin's miracle wagon, which now looked more like a stage for a play.

Dr. Therin: Welcome, good citizens. Thank you for coming. Though we have met individually, I wanted to address you as a family. That is what you remind me of, one large family. I've traveled so long and lonesome most of my life. I've seen beauty and I've seen strife, and of all the places I've seen, not one can compare to this town of Wildwood most fair.

Now, that's a fact. But in this place of pastoral seascapes and collegial community, I've looked up close, I've looked from afar, and I've discovered snakes in the grass right where you are! No, not the kind of snakes that slither and take breath. No, no, no, for if there were, we would fear nothing except for death.

And afraid you should be. What I've discovered in this dear place, I see so clear. It's not disease or famine; it is fear! Not standing here, not walking there, but behind closed doors, it seeps in at night through your windowsills and cracks in your floors. Where would you go? What would you give? What would you do to escape those venomous fears that follow you?

And that's why I'm here. That's why I've come to you. Are you ready to face those fears and stand up tall, or would you rather live in the misery of it all? Good people, it's true, you all have jobs and homes in this place so fair. But what consolation is any of that when you're losing your hair? And why should you care when you're losing your hair? Oh, were that the only fear on your communal plate. There is another: you're gaining weight!

To speak of things like this, it brings me pains. But there is another: your clothes have stains! Thus my arrival to this town and my dedication to rid you of these threatening things. It's my vocation. I'll not rest until you are free from all the pains of thinning hair, of mounting weight, and those ghastly stains!

If the cure were on the highest mountain, would you climb it? If the cure were across the wide, wide ocean, would you swim it? I have good news, my friends. The cure is here in this bottle of Dr. Therin's snake elixir! It'll grow a head of hair on a bowling ball. It'll melt the pounds off and that's not all. It can wash out ink stains from your Sunday best, and just two drops will do it all at night while you rest.

Officer Hunt: Excuse me. Break it up. Everyone, break it up. You, Dr. Therin, you've got them all eating out of the palm of your hand. If you stand there and try to sell these little bottles for a small fortune, I will sure as shooting throw you and your fancy wagon and run you out of town before you know which way is up.

Guest (Male): Leave him alone, Hunt! I want one of those bottles.

Officer Hunt: You will do nothing of the sort, Officer Hunt. The quickest way for you to lose the next election is to lay one paw on Dr. Therin here.

Dr. Therin: Please, good people, please. Officer Hunt is only trying to protect you from charlatans and thieves, of which I am neither. I've seen you big-talking fellows come breezing through town and ride off in the night with half the town's money. It's not going to happen on my watch. My friends, what a fine and noble defender you have in this mighty wolf. And to prove that I am not what you fear I am, I will now do what I decided to do when I was so warmly welcomed into this fine town. I will not sell a single bottle of my Dr. Therin's rattlesnake elixir.

No, no, no, dear friends, please listen. I will not sell a single bottle. I will give one to each and every family without cost, for free! Officer Hunt, what crime can I commit when I'm merely giving it to my friends?

Officer Hunt: None that I can think of.

Dr. Therin: Please, if you'll just line up to the side of the wagon, my able assistant, Chancery, will take care of each and every one of you.

Chancery James: I'm exhausted.

Dr. Therin: It was a good day's work, my boy. I'm wondering if you're going to ask the question.

Chancery James: What question?

Dr. Therin: The only question that a bright young up-and-coming captain of his own destiny would ask at a time like this. Ask it, Chancery.

Chancery James: How are we, you, going to make any money?

Dr. Therin: I knew you had it in you. Good, very good.

Chancery James: If you've given it all away, how—

Dr. Therin: Tomorrow, tomorrow. Enough for one day. Son, I would like you to think of yourself as my apprentice.

Chancery James: An apprentice? What is that?

Dr. Therin: Think of me as your guide, your teacher. You have abilities that I need. I have much to teach you, Chancery. You have everything you need to become like me. Now, this is the part of the show where I fade away. I'll see you tomorrow at the next show, at Sunday services. Good day, partner.

Insight for Living: Chancery James had a bit of trouble sleeping that night, but what with all those visions of riches dancing through his head. Chancery thought things were all in a tussle now. Oh, that was nothing next to the way they took off after Sunday services.

Guest (Female): Dr. Therin! Dr. Therin! I want to tell you that your elixir is a wonder. I have not been able to get into this dress for over a year, and it happened overnight. I must have lost five pounds or more.

Guest (Male): Yo, Dr. Therin! I can feel hair right here. Look for yourself. You were as bald as a billiard ball yesterday and you're just as bald today. Oh, I can feel the blood coursing through, feeding those thirsty follicles.

Guest (Female): I ran out completely. I followed the directions and my bottle is empty. How much for another? If I'm going to keep this hair growing, I need more elixir.

Dr. Therin: Dear people of Wildwood! There would be no greater source of pleasure for me than to sell you more elixir. I charge only three cents per bottle, and that's just to cover my cost.

Guest (Female): Three cents? That's a steal!

Dr. Therin: Yes, it is. However, I am forlorn.

Chancery James: That's not good, is it? Being forlorned?

Dr. Therin: Chancery, my boy, please look in the store boxes and tell me how many bottles we have left.

Chancery James: All I can find is this one bottle left.

Dr. Therin: Hold it up, my boy. It looks like this is the last one. Say it louder, Chancery. Say it to them.

Chancery James: This, good people, is the only bottle left!

Dr. Therin: Alas, my dear friends of Wildwood! My heart is breaking as are yours. But I will prevail. I will journey back into the scorching sands of the desert, capture a thousand venomous rattlesnakes, and brew you more elixir. So dangerous to be sure. I will do it for you, good folks of Wildwood.

Guest (Male): How long will it take?

Dr. Therin: Yes, there is the question I feared would be posed. The journey, the hunt, the brewing, and the return trip will take no more than six or seven months.

Guest (Female): Months? I need more now! I didn't even use mine, but I need more now.

Dr. Therin: To be the source of such distress is unbearable. I will leave before dawn. I'll neither tarry nor rest until I have returned with a wagonload of Dr. Therin's snake oil elixir. Good day, my friends! Good day!

Stacy: Hey everyone, Stacy here from Paws & Tales. We've had kids from all over the country send in their announcer recordings, and they are heard every day on the program. But we haven't heard one from you.

Ned: Yeah, really good, Stace, but this time with a little more pathos, please.

Stacy: Oh, Ned. Just head on over to pawsandtales.org and pop into the clubhouse to get one of the announcer scripts.

Ned: That's a good start, Stace, but I need some more sparkle, please. Give me more sparkle.

Stacy: I don't even know what that means. Record yourself on your parent's phone and send it into us so we can get your voice heard around the world. That's pawsandtales.org. This is so exciting!

Ned: Well, let's think about your motivation on this.

Guest (Male): Stacy, good job. Stopping tape.

Ned: Wait, I'm directing this! Do not stop tape, Joel! Do not stop that tape!

Insight for Living: There had never been such commotion in Wildwood. Now it was clear to anyone who would just stop and look around that nobody had lost any weight, grown any hair, or removed any stains. But one of the peculiar things about folks is that sometimes they want something so bad that their thinking gets all cluttered up.

Chancery James: I am still wondering how this all works.

Dr. Therin: Our work is now done, my boy. The town's want is at this very moment turning into need.

Chancery James: How far do you have to go? In the desert, I mean.

Dr. Therin: Chancery, I have never, nor do I ever intend on going into the desert.

Chancery James: You told everyone that's where you got the elixir.

Dr. Therin: Quite dramatic, don't you think? It's the third act, Chancery. Stay close and learn. You've come to the fork in the road of your life. Why, Mrs. Merryweather! Whatever can I do for you, my dear?

Guest (Female): Dr. Therin, I have never been able to lose weight and I need more elixir. How much would you sell me that last bottle for?

Dr. Therin: Oh, my dear Mrs. Merryweather, certainly you know that if I had the elixir to sell, I would sell it to you. But if I sell you the last bottle, would I not be showing special favoritism to you? Why, the rest of the town would be enraged.

Guest (Female): I would never put you in that kind of difficult situation, doctor. You can rest assured that no one will ever know that you sold me the last bottle. What will you take for it? A dollar? Five dollars?

Dr. Therin: Sweet lady, it's not about the money. It's about—

Guest (Female): I've got ten dollars here! Will you take ten? It's all I've got, please.

Dr. Therin: How can I say no to you? Now, our agreement is no one can know.

Guest (Female): Thank you! You can count on me.

Dr. Therin: When I return, you'll have to come to me. I fear you'll be so thin that I won't recognize you. Goodnight, my dear. You see now, my boy? Three cents per bottle doesn't even pay for the cough syrup to mix it with. Ten dollars now, there's worth the time and the effort.

Chancery James: You mix cough syrup in with the snake oil?

Dr. Therin: I thought you would have got this all by now. I'll need you to get in the wagon and start filling up the bottles with half cough syrup and half water.

Chancery James: Water?

Dr. Therin: Yes, stream water's best. A little dirt in the bottom of the bottle is even better. We'll need a lot if I'm guessing correctly.

Chancery James: That wasn't your last bottle?

Dr. Therin: Oh, I can see the light is coming on now. I expect to sell the last bottle perhaps a hundred times tonight.

Chancery James: But I looked, and there was just the one bottle left.

Dr. Therin: Yes, there was. But if you'll lift the floorboards in the back of the wagon, you'll find several cases of bottles. More than enough for tonight. Now, head on back and get to filling those bottles. If all goes as I think it will, you will make a hundred dollars before bedtime. Just jump into the back of the wagon and start filling the bottles. I'm on! Now get to it.

Chancery James: You were lying. The whole time you were lying to the town.

Dr. Therin: Yes, yes. Now, I've got a customer. Go! Use up all the bottles now. This is going to be a big afternoon.

Chancery James: To everyone! You lied to us all!

Insight for Living: Chancery James jumped right out of the back of that wagon and high-tailed it straight into town. He was mad, he was embarrassed, and he was scared.

Chancery James: Why would he do that? Papa Chuck! He lied. Dr. Therin is a crook.

Papa Chuck: Yeah, I know. I've been watching. He'd get every nickel out of this town if he could.

Chancery James: We gotta stop it!

Papa Chuck: We will. Officer Hunt is heading over there now. He's called a telegraph to every town for a hundred miles about this crook. Dr. Therin is going to spend a good deal of time in jail. He's been cheating folks for years.

Chancery James: He told me I was going to be great, that I had gifts. He wanted me to be his apprentice. He said I needed to choose, to answer the call.

Papa Chuck: He was calling you to become a crook.

Chancery James: Yeah, I guess.

Papa Chuck: The only reason you didn't fall into his trap and end up cheating other folks yourself is that you listened to God whispering to you. You got out because you're not an apprentice of some crook. You acted like an apprentice of Jesus. They used to call them disciples.

Chancery James: I thought that was just the 12 guys in the Bible.

Papa Chuck: No, a disciple is anyone who chooses to follow Jesus. There's a lot of Christians, but not all of them are disciples. A disciple has chosen to become like Jesus, to do the things He did, to believe the things He believed.

Chancery James: You do that. You're a disciple.

Papa Chuck: Yes, I am. You can be, too.

Chancery James: A few minutes ago, I wanted to be just like a crook. I'll just mess up.

Papa Chuck: You will mess up, but you'll learn from your mistakes and you'll grow. You'll read the Bible and you'll grow.

Insight for Living: Dr. Therin's wagon came rambling around the bend, but this time it was being driven by Officer Hunt. And right beside him sat Dr. Therin, handcuffed to the armrest. The great Dr. Therin was just a common crook on his way to jail. What a waste.

Chancery James: Papa Chuck, I want to be like you, a disciple of Jesus. Feels weird saying that.

Papa Chuck: There's folks who live their whole lives and never make a decision like that. I'm proud of you, son. Let's get you home. Your folks will want to hear about this.

Dr. Therin: I'm a master of deception. I'm an expert at half-truths. Misdirection, I'm perfection. Yes, believe me because it's true. And I think to be a man like me would be your heart's desire.

Chancery James: But it sounds as though you're saying I should want to be a liar.

Dr. Therin: No, no, no, that's not it at all. I'm merely saying one should try to take all that you can get in life and forget the hows and whys.

Chancery James: So what you're saying is that I should want to cheat?

Dr. Therin: No, no, persuade! If you learn a little hokum, then you're going to have it made. It's just a different point of view. But hey, it's up to you. What kind of boy do you want to be? That's the question, that's the key. One who's always fair and square or one who's skilled in trickery? You either follow all the rules, schmules, or have it all for free. The question here is just what kind of boy you want to be.

I can tell you're a tough sell. I'm going to have to use the good stuff. Let me put it another way for you. Boy, don't you want to be important? Don't you want to be thought brave? Don't you want to hear the crowd applaud when you pontificate? If that prospect sounds exciting, you're in luck, lad, can't you see? Because I could turn a boy like you into a man like me.

Chancery James: What kind of boy do I want to be? That's the question, that's the key. Straight and narrow or slightly bent with every treasure A to Z? You'll be wealthy, you'll be lonely. Oh, that's nothing, don't mind me. It's you who must decide what kind of boy you want to be. I'd like to be the kind who never has a thing to hide, the sort of boy whose words and actions always coincide.

Dr. Therin: But everyone will love you if you convince them you're a star.

Chancery James: But it's better when they like you for who you really are. I gotta be honest, a life of tricks and double-dealing, I don't think that sounds appealing. In fact, the more I think about it, the more I get a funny feeling.

Dr. Therin: Oh, we can fix that. That's your conscience. I lost mine years ago.

Chancery James: Well, actually, it's what helped me choose, and now I sure know what kind of boy I want to be, the kind that God expects of me. I want to be a boy who's trusted because he's got integrity, someone honest, fair, and fine at every opportunity. So I know you're quite a talker, and this may come as a shocker, but this boy wants to become the man that God wants him to be. That's the kind of boy I want to be!

Dr. Therin: You're good. Wait, you're not bluffing? You surely must be bluffing. Oh, this is really unbelievable. You've got such sincerity.

Chancery James: I want to be a boy of character.

Dr. Therin: Well, I've been called a character. I mean, I tell the truth when I absolutely have to. Like now: you're stepping on my foot, boy. Get off my foot. So, what do you mean you're not convinced?

Insight for Living: To get a copy of today's program, Snake Oil, you can place your order online at pawsandtales.org. Snake Oil was written and directed by Dave Carl. Our script supervisor was Phil Lawler. The song "What Kind of Boy?" was written by Sandy Howell and Nick Brown. Music was by Tim Hosman, and our sound designer was Eric Basil. Paws & Tales is an Insight for Living production.