Paws & Tales

Ned: Welcome to another episode of my personal podcast, Ned Knows! Tonight 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. Oh, 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, it’s 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? But 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.

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. Joe, stop tape!

Dave Carl: 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 adventures to be had there too.

CJ Brown: Come on, CJ, jump! It’s too far! It wasn't too far for me!

Insight for Living: Insight for Living Ministries is proud to present Paws & Tales.

Dave Carl: Howdy and welcome to Wildwood. It’s a good day, like today, when the sky is blue and the mountain air is cool and crisp. It’s also a good day, like today, when you're hiking with good friends way up in the trails of Wild Mountain.

But it is the very best kind of day, like today, when all of that is going on and you're on your way to the best fishing spot Papa Chuck has ever seen.

CJ Brown: What if the fish are giant trout? I just love giant trout. That's my favorite kind of trout. Small fish are fine, but giant trout are so much bigger. Dad, we're only going to catch the giant trout. I'm worried though that our frying pan won't be big enough for those giant trout.

Papa Chuck: Son, I think our pan will do a fine job of handling any size of fish you boys will catch today.

CJ Brown: Oh, you should have said giant trout instead of fish. We had a bit of a giant trout thing going on there. It's what we do.

Papa Chuck: They do that all the time.

CJ Brown: Yeah, Dad, we had a giant trout thing going.

Papa Chuck: I apologize for non-compliance of the giant trout thing.

Dave Carl: Theo Brown is a beloved fixture here in Wildwood. He's a lawyer by training, a bit of a philosopher as a hobby, and to tell the truth, a pretty mediocre fisherman. He's more widely known as the father of one, CJ Brown.

Papa Chuck: Fellas, I never said that trout were giant. I said they were—

CJ Brown: You said they are the biggest, fattest, most eager to get caught fish on the mountain. Quote-unquote.

Papa Chuck: Did I really say that?

CJ Brown: I heard it myself.

Dave Carl: So the one thing you need to know about fishermen—

CJ Brown: They lie all the time.

Ned: I've heard that about others, but Papa Chuck—

Papa Chuck: Well, lying is a big word.

CJ Brown: I think we can reasonably get our arms around this by saying that men who talk about big fish are commonly enlarging the truth.

Papa Chuck: Yeah, I like the sound of that. And it’s part of a time-honored tradition to listen to a truth-enlarging fisherman.

CJ Brown: A guy who lies.

Ned: Yep, I'm with you. And know up front that anything a fisherman says about a fish is—

CJ Brown: I like where your head is there. A lot. A lie!

Ned: What? Yep, a lie. Of course it’s a lie.

Papa Chuck: I'm not sure I can defend myself on this one, so I'm just going to be quiet and keep hiking.

Dave Carl: While the menfolk are headed off on their adventure, Mrs. Collins has invited Goose, Stacy, Marsha, and Goose's mom, Mrs. Gongoosler, over for a lovely and very frilly kind of lunch. This is the kind of thing Mrs. Collins loves to do and is so gifted at.

While the adult ladies prepare for lunch, the younger girls are doing their favorite thing while at the Collins Mansion. They're exploring the crates and artifacts in some random room in another wing of the house.

Marsha: Have we ever been in this room?

Stacy: I don't think we've ever been in here.

Goose: I don't think so. I would have remembered this. What a beautiful painting.

Stacy: Nope, I think this is our first time here.

Dave Carl: If you can remember from before, the club is not the only one interested in the treasures and artifacts of the Collins Mansion. There are two rats up there on the bookcase to the left and they're watching the activity below with the greatest of interest.

The larger rat is Rick. The smaller, older one is Madavi. He came to the Collins Mansion from the Middle East.

Rick: I can't believe they're finally in this room. As many times as we've tried to get them in here. And this time they just skipped in like they were drawn to it.

Madavi: Oh, it’s because the boys aren't here. They would have never come in here with all those floral paintings on the walls. They're only interested in weapons and arms.

Rick: Well, I wouldn't have said it like that, but yes, Madavi, you are absolutely correct. And here they are.

Dave Carl: As you can see, Madavi and Rick are not your typical rats. Your common rat is very uneducated. They only think about eating and stealing things to make a bed with. Madavi, on the other hand, is highly educated and even wise.

He and Mr. Collins were great friends and they both traveled back here to the Collins Mansion to create a wonderful museum of all these artifacts. That was before Mr. Collins suddenly passed away. Now Madavi has to hide in the walls and care for these treasures with the help of Rick, a local but also very unique rat of considerable ability.

Marsha: The stuff in here is so much more feminine than all the stuff we usually find.

Goose: I like it! I wonder who owned all of this. A queen or something. Whoever she was, she was tall. Look at this beautiful robe. It is so long.

Stacy: I think that is just supposed to drag behind you when you walk. I think they call it a train.

Goose: Ooh, I want to have a robe with a train.

CJ Brown: So what's the trick to catch a fish? Move the bait around or let it sit still on the bottom?

Papa Chuck: It actually has lots to do with how you hold your mouth.

CJ Brown: Your mouth?

Papa Chuck: For sure. If you squish your mouth up and to the left, that's good for bringing in the timid ones. Let your tongue stick out just a bit like this. And now you're getting the big ones that are too smart to bite the hook of some guy with a straight face.

CJ Brown: So no straight face while fishing.

Ned: Dad, everyone knows that.

CJ Brown: Where did you hear all this rubbish?

Ned: From Papa Chuck.

CJ Brown: Of course you did. I feel like I'm getting into a lot of trouble today for some reason. Please, help me!

Papa Chuck: Was that you? I thought it was you. He's over here! He's been beaten badly.

CJ Brown: Bandits?

Ned: Maybe. Maybe we should leave now.

Papa Chuck: We're here to help. He's choking! Around his neck, there's something choking him. It's too tight to cut off with my knife.

Ned: Oh no, it’s an amulet!

CJ Brown: What does that mean?

Papa Chuck: Heavenly Father, we need Your help. How do we free him? Help us, Lord.

Ned: We really need to get out of here.

Dave Carl: While Papa Chuck was praying out loud, Theo was praying silently. Papa Chuck set this poor choking man upright and grabbed the amulet, trying to give the man some space to get some air in. The very moment he held the amulet—

Papa Chuck: It just came off. The whole thing came off by itself.

Ned: No, they don't do that. What are you talking about? How do you know anything about this?

Mendel: Thank you. My leg.

Papa Chuck: I'd guess his leg is broke.

Mendel: A couple of fingers, and I'm guessing some ribs are broke too. Oh yeah, I think they about cracked my skull like an egg. I wouldn't have made it without you. Thank you so much. My name is Mendel. Do you have water?

Ned: I'm on it. Here, drink a bit. Slowly at first. Bandits down this far is unusual.

Mendel: Not bandits. I caused this.

CJ Brown: Well then, who did this?

Mendel: My friends did it. It was my friends.

Goose: Here it is! The best treasure in the world.

Marsha: What?

Stacy: Show me, show me!

Goose: Goblets! Two amazingly gorgeous goblets!

Marsha: Underwhelmed. I'm lots of underwhelmed right now.

Stacy: They're pretty, but I think you overdid it with the best treasure stuff.

Goose: Do you know what you can do with gorgeous goblets? Oh, you can—

Stacy: Drink from them?

Marsha: Put really short flowers in them?

Goose: Good, Marsha. You could make a gorgeous ice cream sundae in them.

Stacy: Ah, good for you. You could keep all of your spare change in them.

Goose: I want to go drag it out so she can find it.

Rick: They're good for drinking milk.

Madavi: No, too dangerous. If they see you, they may never come back in this room. Just wait and pray. This is a time for prayer. Heavenly Father, lead her to it. Help us all today. Lead her to it, Lord.

Goose: I suppose you'd be more interested in something like this old thing.

Marsha: Dagger? You found a dagger? On a bejeweled belt!

Goose: You found a beautiful bejeweled belt with a dagger on it! Let me see it, let me see it!

Madavi: God be praised. I didn't think—thank You, Lord. They have it. So it has begun. I think this means it has actually begun. God be praised.

Dave Carl: Hey there everyone, Dave Carl here. We want to put your kid on an episode of Paws & Tales with the question, "If I could spend a day with..." Fill in your favorite Paws & Tales character. "I'd want to..." and we have some suggestions on the clubhouse wall or you can make up your own.

Keep them short but make them fun and have them refer back to an episode. Maybe something like this: "Hi, I'm Henry from North Carolina. If I could spend a day with CJ, I'd want to build a treehouse together." We can't wait to hear what you all come up with. Send them in and we'll broadcast them to the world! Joel, I was hoping for some echo there. To the world! Joel, come on man! Real cute, Joel. Real cute.

Ned: Where did you get that amulet? What terrible thing did you do?

Papa Chuck: Ned, what are you doing?

Mendel: He's right. I came from Frontera with my friends. We were on a mission from my master, the one who gave me the amulet.

Ned: Guys, we got to get home. It’s not safe here. I'm telling you.

Papa Chuck: I'm going to make a stretcher and we're going to carry you back to town. I'd just carry you, but you're in no shape to be thrown over a shoulder.

Mendel: Thank you. I can't thank you enough. I would have died out here. They wanted me to die.

Ned: So what kind of friends want you dead? What is this all about?

Mendel: If I tell you, do you promise to help me anyway?

Papa Chuck: Of course we will. What happened?

Mendel: My master is pure evil. He hates everyone in Wildwood with a passion. He made me promise to carry a small barrel of poison and pour it into the Salmon River just before it flows into town.

CJ Brown: That's our water source. We all drink from that water.

Mendel: I know. It was going to kill many people and the rest, well, they were going to wish they were dead. I couldn't do it. I snuck off last night and hid it, buried it so no one can find it. I just couldn't do it.

So they beat me nearly to death. After they left me in the dirt, the amulet began to get tighter and tighter, slowly killing me inches at a time. That was my punishment for disobeying my master.

Papa Chuck: Why would he want to poison a whole town? Why?

Mendel: He wanted to kill the one.

Papa Chuck: The one?

Mendel: We don't know who he is. So my master wanted to try to kill him by killing most of the town.

Ned: Insanity! This is insane.

Papa Chuck: Okay, Mendel, stop. Just rest. It’s empty. Ned, give him your canteen.

Ned: But it’s new! I just got it! Okay, okay.

Papa Chuck: I'm going to go get some good branches for the stretcher and do some scouting around. Be back soon.

CJ Brown: Ned, how do you know about this amulet?

Ned: Well, it’s a funny story, and you're so going to laugh when you hear it.

Mrs. Collins: Daisy, it is just so lovely of you to do this for us.

Mrs. Gongoosler: Well, it’s a pleasure to have you over. I just love it when the kids are here and now to have you too, it’s the highlight of my week. Your little Goose is just the most precious special thing. I just love her.

Mrs. Collins: You're sweet. We love her too. I was wanting to tell you a bit of our weekly get-togethers. A few of us gather to do some little bit of Bible study and sharing.

Goose: Goblets! We have gorgeous, gorgeous goblets! I'm going to wash out the goblets so we can drink milk out of them. Be back in a jiffy!

Mrs. Gongoosler: Goose, don't be so familiar.

Goose: Oh, Mrs. Collins lets us do this kind of thing all the time. It’s okay, isn't it, Mrs. Collins?

Mrs. Collins: Of course, sweetheart. Go ahead.

Goose: Dagger with the belt! Dagger and with it a belt! Belt with a dagger! Oh, I love it. Bejeweled.

Stacy: Look! Bejeweled.

Mrs. Gongoosler: Oh, girls, that looks priceless. Put that back.

Mrs. Collins: It’s fine. They're always very careful with those things. That is a very interesting piece, though. Come along, Goose. Now remember, young ladies, your very best manners.

Stacy: Yes, ma'am.

Goose: It would be my pleasure, Mrs. Collins. Best manners, ladies! Your very best!

Mrs. Gongoosler: Well, this is very impressive. You have somehow taught them manners. Dinner at our house is more like a piranha pit than a fine table like this.

Goose: Manners are fun here, Mom.

Mrs. Gongoosler: Well, my compliments, Daisy.

Stacy: I want to wear the dagger belt. Can I, Marsha?

Marsha: Of course. It doesn't go with my blouse today anyway. Be my guest.

Goose: Wow, Stacy, you look so good and powerful in that. Looks like it was made for you.

Dave Carl: Papa Chuck took a couple of small trees and snapped them off at the ground like twigs. He and Theo were working on turning these into a stretcher they could lay Mendel in.

Papa Chuck: I scouted the area and it looks like Mendel's friends are halfway to Frontera by now. I think we're safe for a while.

CJ Brown: Glad to hear that. You seem to know more about all this than I do. What's going on out there?

Papa Chuck: There's an awful lot to tell, but to make it short, there's a place called Shadow Valley.

CJ Brown: I've heard the stories since I was a kid, but no one believes they're true. Thousands of people trapped there. It’s the stuff of campfire stories.

Papa Chuck: I heard them too as a kid. But then I found myself trapped in there. It is sadly, terrifyingly all too real.

Dave Carl: High up in the mountain in a dark and disgusting cave, the second-rate demon Minion is informing several new recruits on how things work on Wild Mountain.

Minion: Once the prisoners are captured and transported into Shadow Valley, what happens to them? That they will one day blindly do whatever you ask. Too many questions for your first day, if you ask me.

The Master: No, I will respond. The longer they stay in the valley, the weaker their will becomes. They lose hope, and when that is completely drained from them, they will believe any lie I tell.

When I give them permission to release them, they will swarm like locusts over these mountains, destroying, devouring everything they find. Then I will be able to rebuild this mountain the way I envision.

Minion: And me! Don't forget your promise to me.

The Master: Yes, of course I remember. When it is all done, I will have a kingdom of fire! Ready! Aim! Fire!

Minion: Nicely done everyone. Ready again! And what happens if the prisoners in Shadow Valley are rescued before you release them? I've heard stories as a child.

The Master: Silence! That will not happen because you will find the one and make certain that none of them are ever released! Ready! Aim! Fire!

Stacy: Hey, 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.

Dave Carl: Good job, Stacy. Stop tape.

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

Papa Chuck: I escaped Shadow Valley only by a miracle. I can't find it again, though I've tried. If I did get in again, I have no confidence that I could find my way out. There is a rumor, a prophecy, that the one will release them, save them from this terrible curse. If they are released before the swarm—

CJ Brown: Then they can wander back to their homes and families. I heard that in third grade. So you're telling me now it’s all true? It’s all real?

Papa Chuck: I am. Here, hold this while I tie it off. Well, that's a lot to take in in one afternoon. All the wicked people and evil things in these mountains desperately want to find the one and kill him. Stop him if they can't kill him.

They'll do anything to keep him from releasing the prisoners. The biggest problem for them is that they don't know who he is. So they keep looking, trying anything. Clearly, they would happily poison most of the town to kill him by chance if they can. They'll keep searching. It’s been going on for decades that I know of.

CJ Brown: Well, it’s you, right? It’s got to be you.

Papa Chuck: It’s not me. In many ways, I wish it were. It would make things much simpler. But it’s not me. Hold these together. I've had my run-ins with this kind of evil many times in the past.

But not for a long time now. Something seems to have changed. They seem stronger now. Makes me nervous. Power is moving in my direction. I want this strength eliminated. Many have tried and failed. Even with the poison, they have failed.

Recruits, attention! We've been building an army for years, sending them in every direction to find the one. We have been thwarted every time and in every way. There are powerful forces protecting him. They are called the Warriors.

This is no band of stragglers. These Warriors wield power that is unimaginable. They seem to know where we all are and where we're going. They protect Wildwood, encircle it so that only a rare few can enter. Yes, I am one of these few.

I am recruiting only those who will not fail me in battle with the Warriors and anyone else in my way. I will grant those whom I choose great power. I am looking for a few who will never stop until victory is ours. The taking of this mountain will only be the beginning.

Minion: Master, I will find this Warrior that stands in your way. I will do whatever it takes. If I have to burn this mountain to ashes, I will. We'll find the one and bring him to an early end. I promise you.

CJ Brown: Well, we need to tell Officer Hunt. The authorities. They need to prepare for this.

Papa Chuck: It’s not that kind of fight, exactly. I have more to tell you. It won't be easy to hear. There are physical fights ahead, for sure. There are emotional battles to face, I suppose. And there are spiritual battles too.

CJ Brown: How do you mean?

Papa Chuck: If a wagon breaks its axle, it’s a physical problem. Smartest thing to do is physically jack it up and fix it. If I'm grieving a terrible loss and it’s hard to get through the day, it is just smart to sit down and talk with some wise person to help me make sense of it all.

CJ Brown: Agreed.

Papa Chuck: If there's a spiritual problem, if evil has found its way into my life or the life of someone dear to me, it would be foolish to go fix the wagon axle and expect the issue to be solved. If there's a spiritual problem, only spiritual tools will have any effect. This problem we are looking at here, coming into Wildwood, it’s a whole bunch of all three. I'm sorry to tell you that you're right in the middle of the whole thing.

CJ Brown: Well, you have my attention. What does this all mean and what role am I going to have in it?

Papa Chuck: Theo, I'm pretty sure the one is CJ.

Insight for Living: To order a copy of today's program, The Warriors, Part 1, just visit us online at pawsandtales.org. The Warriors was written and directed by Dave Carl. The song, I'm a Warrior, was written by Sandy Howell and Nick Brown. Music was by Tim Hosman and our sound designer was Eric Bazilian. Paws & Tales is an Insight for Living Ministries production.