I suppose, now I come to think about it, that this is a version of the parable we were told as Brownies.
I can't say that as a Brownie - or, frankly, at any point since - I was ever convinced of the delights of secret housework, but this story is much more satisfying than that. In this case the elves are helping a poor old couple who really need the help.
And the poor old couple, full of goodness as they are, repay the elves' kindness as soon as they can.
Makes you feel all warm inside, doesn't it.
Word To Use Today: elf. There have been elves in England pretty much forever. There's an Old English word ælf that's related to the Middle German alf which means incubus, and also to the Latin albus which means white.
I've always thought of this story as being about creativity. The fact that the elves work in secret is like our imaginations working away in secret. Once we start to examine where our ideas come from and the like, then the 'beautiful shoes' or beautiful books stop being there for us. That's what I have heard, anyway!
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