"You were going to tell us a story last night, Grandfather. We talked so much there was not time. Would you tell us the story first, tonight? We can talk after the story." Ardath suggested when everything was in order for the ‘good-night hour'.

"We'll do that, Ardath." Grandfather began his story at once.

"A Knight, you know, is a good, honest, just and truthful man. He is loyal to the laws of God and never goes any place or undertakes any work unless he asks God to direct him, guide him and protect him in his pursuits or actions.

"A lady may be the wife of a Knight or the daughter of a Knight. Whichever she is, she also is good, noble and loves the good, the true and the beautiful.

"Hundreds of years ago in England - it might have been five hundred years ago or it might have been none hundred years ago, no one knows exactly, but it was in the time of the great, good King Arthur and his Court at Camelot, that our story took place.

"There ware Castles all over the British Isles, where England now is. In these castles lived Knights and ladies and many people who worked in the castle. If one worked in a certain castle, it meant he was obedient to the orders of the Knight and Lady who lived there.

"If the Knight and Lady in the castle were devoted to God, the other people in the Castle tried to be like them. These Castles, besides being the home of the Knight and Lady who owned it were also fortresses, that is, they protected the people in the Castle against enemies on the outside or from enemies in other castles. Other Knights lived in the castle, and helped to protect it.

"Sometimes the Knights of one castle were friendly with the Knights of another castle and sometimes they were enemies and would attack a Castle. No one ever felt quite safe from attack. But, when King Arthur ruled England, he taught all the Knights in his court how to be good and obey the laws of God. Then they rode out to meet other Knights and told them what King Arthur had taught them. In this way there were fewer and fewer enemies in the land. There was not so much fighting, so there was more time for games.

"Horses were very important in those days. There were no trains, automobiles, airplanes, trolley cars or even comfortable carriages for people to travel about. They all rode horseback, even Ladies. So growing and selecting fine, strong horses was a good business. To test the strength of horses and their speed, they had contests of pulling and racing.

"They also had tournaments. That was the favorite sport of Knights. They would have a big field like our football fields or bigger, cleared of trees. That was one of the kinds of work men did who resided in Castles - cut down trees for gardens and tournament fields. In a tournament, one Knight would try to throw another Knight of his horse. They would try to see who could stay on his horse the longest. When a horse was fast it helped the Knight who rode him or who owned him, to win the tournament, sometimes. The Knights needed strong bodies, too, to carry big iron shields to protect themselves against the spears of the other Knights in the tournament.

"The Queen and the Ladies of the Court sat on long balconies to watch the tournaments. They were built along the Castle walls or against special buildings where horses were kept. These balconies were shaded by tapestries to keep the Ladies comfortable. If a Knight was not married to one of the Ladies, he selected a lady to wear his kerchief. That was a little bit of silk he kept as a good fortune sign.

"When a tournament was going to be held, a messenger rode out from the Castle where it was to be held, to tell the nights in other Castles to join in the games. There was an announcement that there would be three days of jousting. Messengers went out from many Castles to make the announcement because everyone in all of England was invited. Of course, they knew not everyone could be there because travelling was by horseback and only the wealthy persons had horses.

"There had never been a tournament like it in all England. The prize being offered to the Knight who would overthrow all other Knights was a brightly polished shield. The strongest and bravest Knights of all England were at the tournament and ready for the jousts on the day it was to begin.

"One after another, all the Knights were thrown form their horses. Some were hurt and others were just ashamed of themselves because they could be thrown from their horses. There were only two Knights left to joust with the unconquerable Knight who held and protected the prized shield. The tournament lasted three whole days.

"On this third day, everyone was excited about the two Knights who had not been thrown by any other Knights who had jousted with them. One was a very popular Knight in the Court. He was loyal to King Arthur and he tried to be good and noble, but he had a grave fault. He liked to be praised for his victories. He always wanted someone to watch him when he played games or for any fete of skill he performed. He was strong and handsome. Everyone expected him to win. He had given his scarf to the Queen as a sign of good fortune.

"The other Knight was apparently younger. He was not well known in the Court. The Lady who wore his scarf around her arm had been in the Court only a few months. In the jousts on previous days, the young Knight had surprised everyone with his skill. In those days, strength and skill were associated with goodness and justice. While everyone wanted to be good, not everyone tried hard as was necessary to be good. The Ladies on the balcony whispered among themselves that he must be good or he could not have won all the jousts.

"Late in the afternoon on the third day of the tournaments, the popular Knight of the Court rose to meet the Knight who protected the shining shield. There was great excitement. As many expected, the popular Knight stayed on through many assaults on the protecting Knight. But then something unexpected happened. The popular Knight became over confident. He said to himself, "I will take the bright shield this time. The Queen will be proud of me. The King will make me his most honored Knight."He rode around the tournament field bowing and waving to the Ladies on the balcony. He stopped in front of the Queen a few seconds to honor her and she waved his scarf at him and smiled to show that she would be glad to have him win.

"As the popular Knight rode back to the field he thought of the honors he would receive in addition to the bright shield. But a terrible thing happened. The protective Knight threw him off his horse. His horse galloped away leaving him in the middle of the field. Many of the Ladies said "Ah-hhs" and "Oh-hhs"; some worried about him being hurt. It was not at all the way they had expected the bout to end

"The popular Knight was very much ashamed of himself. He realized that he had thought too much of the personal honors he would get from the bout, rather than what the shining shield meant. It was a symbol of goodness and truth to the Court that offered it. The Knight of the Court that won it would bring honor to his Court, his King and his Queen, but this Knight had not honored his Court because he thought only of honoring himself.

"There was only one Knight left for the contest. When the young Knight rode to the middle of the field, his Lady waved and prayed that he would be able to prove his true worth which she knew to be great. He did not look toward his Lady, but he felt in his heart that she had said a prayer for him to win.

"He went prayerfully toward the Knight protecting the shining shield. To God, he dedicated his strength as he did whenever he entered a contest or went on a mission of importance: "All my powers are Thine, O God, guide me for their right use."

"He rode forward, hopefully and prayerfully. When he met the protective Knight, no one knew exactly what happened. There was a cloud of dust, a clash of armor and a flame of light. When the dust settled, the young Knight sat erectly on his horse in the middle of the field. He was alone. The Protective Knight had ridden away when no one was looking. The young Knight held the bright and shining shield. It had become even more shining than it had been before the joust.

"Trumpets sounded to show that the tournament was ended. The King and his Knights came to the field to honor the young Knight. They knew he was a good Knight or he could not have received the bright and shining shield.

"The young Knight rode to his Lady, bowed and kissed her hand. There was love in her heart for him which meant more to him than the love of any other woman."

When the story was ended, Ardath let out a big sigh, but she did not ask any questions, nor did Arthur. Grandfather said it had been a long story and they could talk about it another time.

The children said their prayers, then Grandfather added his prayer. "Guide us Heavenly Father, so we may be Knights in constant search of the most noble ideals known to man and all that is good, true and beautiful. Grant us endurance so we may never cease our efforts toward perfection. Amen."

When Grandfather finished his special prayer, Ardath asked abruptly "Are you a Knight, Grandfather?"

"In the broadest sense of the word, a Knight is a man of honor. He learns the laws of nature and of God and tries to obey them. All men who adhere to these ideals, are Knights." Grandfather explained, but he did not say that he was a Knight. Ardath knew that he was one.

"I'm going to be a Knight when I grow up." Arthur prophesied.

"I'm going to be a Queen." Ardath announced. She seemed to have no doubts about her future. "I will never smile at a Knight unless he is a good Knight.' she added with definite assurance.

"May it be so," Grandfather sealed the thought as he kissed each child on the forehead and whispered a silent blessing.
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