0:00

Have you ever had a bad

0:02

day? When we're having a

0:04

bad day, it can be

0:07

helpful if we talk

0:09

about it. If we sit

0:11

down with someone we trust

0:14

and share how we're feeling,

0:16

we're about to meet a

0:19

character who isn't just having

0:21

a bad day, he's having

0:23

a bad summer. And when

0:26

he talks about it with

0:28

a complete stranger, things go

0:30

from tragic to magic.

0:32

I'm Rebecca Shear and

0:35

welcome to circle around, where

0:37

story time happens all

0:39

the time. Today our

0:41

story is called Crocus,

0:43

Pocus. You'll find versions

0:45

of this tale from

0:47

the southern Italian island

0:49

of Sicily, the largest

0:52

island in the Mediterranean

0:54

Sea. Some

0:56

really great people came together to

0:58

bring you our version of this

1:00

folk tale, including Jacob LaVall and

1:02

Amanda Warren. Jacob LaVall has appeared

1:05

in such TV shows and movies

1:07

as Sesame Street, John Malaney and

1:09

the Sack Lunch Bunch, the plot

1:11

against America and 8-bit Christmas. His

1:13

newest film, The Unbreakable Boy, is

1:15

in theaters now. Amanda Warren is

1:17

known for her roles in East

1:19

New York, Dickinson, The Leftovers, The

1:21

Burial, and The Night Agent, now

1:23

in its second season on Netflix.

1:25

So circle around everyone

1:28

for crocus pocus.

1:30

Have you ever

1:32

seen the little

1:35

cup-shaped flower

1:37

known as the

1:39

crocus? Most crocuses originally

1:42

come from Asia and

1:45

North Africa. but there's

1:47

one type of crocus,

1:50

the pale purple long-flowered

1:52

crocus, that comes from

1:55

Europe, more specifically from the

1:57

Italian island of Sicily. And

2:00

according to legend, it was

2:02

all thanks to a young

2:04

grape grower named Nicola. Ah,

2:06

time to wake up and

2:08

get to work in the

2:10

vineyard. The vineyard had been

2:12

in Nicola's family for generations.

2:15

He recently inherited it from

2:17

his parents. A pair of

2:19

hardworking grape growers who taught

2:21

Nicola everything they knew before

2:23

they passed away. Now that

2:25

they were gone, the vineyard

2:27

was Nicholas responsibility. And though

2:29

he was still rather young,

2:31

he was determined to keep

2:33

the family business thriving. So

2:36

day after day, he woke

2:38

up early, went to bed

2:40

late, and spent every hour

2:42

in between, tending the vineyard.

2:44

But then, in the middle

2:46

of summer, everything went wrong.

2:48

First, heavy clouds rolled in,

2:50

and stretched across the sky

2:52

like a thick gray blanket.

2:54

Good grief. The grapes need

2:57

six hours of sun a

2:59

day to wipe them properly.

3:01

These cloudy skies won't do

3:03

it all. But the cloudy

3:05

skies just got cloudier, growing

3:07

thicker, and grayer, before unleashing

3:09

a non-stop torrent of rain.

3:11

Good gracious, if the grapes

3:13

get too much water, they'll

3:16

swell, then split, then not.

3:18

This ring is definitely not

3:20

helping things. The rain eventually

3:22

subsided, but Nicola's troubles didn't,

3:24

because then the vineyard was

3:26

infested by caterpillars. Good golly,

3:28

those pesti pair sets are

3:30

nibbling up the vines and

3:32

fruits. Come harvest time, I'll

3:34

hardly have her harvest at

3:37

all. As it turns out,

3:39

Nicola was right. Come autumn,

3:41

when it was time to

3:43

pick the grapes, there were

3:45

barely any grapes to pick.

3:47

Good gravy! I've been walking

3:49

up these rows of vines

3:51

for hours, and while I've

3:53

managed to pick some sweet

3:55

purple grapes... The whole crop

3:58

barely feels is one basket.

4:00

Still, Nicola was on his

4:02

own now, and just like

4:04

his parents before him, he

4:06

knew he must make a

4:08

living. Or do my best

4:10

to make a living. I'll

4:12

take this basket of grapes

4:14

to the marketplace and see

4:16

what I can sell. The

4:19

marketplace was buzzing with shoppers

4:21

shopping and vendors vending when

4:23

Nicola arrived. Weaving his way

4:25

through the crowd, he passed

4:27

the olive grower, whose kiosk

4:29

was bursting with plump shiny

4:31

olives. He saw the nut

4:33

cellar, whose stall was filled

4:35

with glossy brown omens and

4:37

chestnuts. The orchardist had plenty

4:40

of apples. The beekeeper had

4:42

plenty of honey. Every vendor

4:44

seemed to have had a

4:46

bountiful harvest. Except for me.

4:49

Still, I've got to sell

4:51

his basket of grapes. Otherwise,

4:53

it'll be a long hungry

4:55

winter. Nicola held up his

4:57

basket and did his best

5:00

to drum up business. Grapes

5:02

for sale. Flump, bright grapes

5:04

for sale. Their number may

5:06

be small, but their flavor

5:08

is mighty. Unfortunately, the

5:11

shoppers paid him no mind.

5:13

They just bustled past their

5:15

arms loaded with boxes and

5:17

bags of other vendors' wares.

5:19

Good grief. Nobody wants to

5:22

buy my grapes. I wanted

5:24

to make my parents proud,

5:26

but even though I love

5:28

the family vineyard, maybe I'm

5:30

too young to grow grapes

5:32

on my own. Maybe I

5:35

should just throw in the

5:37

towel and quit. Nikola hung

5:39

his head and turned to

5:41

leave. But just then... Oh,

5:43

I'm so sorry. Nikola looked

5:45

up and realized he had

5:48

bumped into an old woman.

5:50

That's all right, young man.

5:52

No need to apologize. You

5:54

seem like you're distracted. Like

5:56

your head is in the

5:58

clouds. The woman's long hair

6:01

was white. as sugar and

6:03

her weathered face was criss-crossed

6:05

with wrinkles. Her hunched back

6:07

was curved like a question

6:09

mark and her ragged dress

6:11

was patched and torn. Actually,

6:14

my head is in the

6:16

clouds, but they're not the

6:18

pretty white puffy clouds. They're

6:20

the heavy gray stormy ones.

6:22

Oh? Tell me more. Well,

6:24

after I lost my parents

6:26

this year, I inherited their

6:29

vinegured. And... The summer was

6:31

brutal on the harvest. I

6:33

worked my tail off, but

6:35

all I have to show

6:37

for it was this measly

6:39

basket of grapes. I'm awfully

6:42

sorry to hear that young

6:44

man, and I'm awfully sorry

6:46

about your parents. I don't

6:48

wish to add to your

6:50

troubles, but I've fallen on

6:52

hard times, and I haven't

6:55

a penny to feed myself.

6:57

I've been wandering around this

6:59

marketplace asking for help, but

7:01

everyone has either ignored me

7:03

or turned me away, so

7:05

I wonder, might you spare

7:08

some of your grapes? Nicola

7:10

looked down at his basket,

7:12

with so few grapes to

7:14

sell, he couldn't afford to

7:16

give any away, but when

7:18

he looked up at the

7:21

old woman, he felt his

7:23

heart soften. You're more than

7:25

welcome to eat some of

7:27

my grapes madam. As many

7:29

as you'd like. Are you

7:31

certain? Don't you need to

7:34

sell these grapes? So you

7:36

can make a living? Nicholas

7:38

shrugged. I guess I'd rather

7:40

make someone else's day, by

7:42

helping them in their time

7:44

of need. So please, help

7:46

yourself. The woman's face crinkled

7:49

into a grin. She reached

7:51

a weathered hand into the

7:53

basket. plucked out a bunch

7:55

of purple grapes and began

7:57

to eat. Oh,

8:00

so tasty. Nicola watched

8:03

the woman devour the

8:05

grapes, and with every

8:07

piece of fruit she

8:10

ate, something began to

8:12

happen. Something so surprising,

8:15

so unexpected, and so

8:17

utterly impossible, that Nicola

8:20

could hardly believe his

8:22

eyes. What

8:27

do you think happened

8:29

as the old woman

8:31

ate the grapes? We'll

8:34

find out after a

8:36

quick break. The reviews

8:39

are in and Superfans

8:41

like you are loving

8:43

the Circle Round Club,

8:46

an exciting opportunity to

8:48

support public radio and

8:50

get cool stuff, including

8:53

ad-free episodes and a

8:55

personalized birthday message from

8:57

me. What I like

9:00

about the Circle Round

9:02

Club is that Rebecca

9:04

Shear sends extra messages

9:07

and it supports the

9:09

show and there are

9:12

no odds. Grownups support

9:14

the public radio and

9:16

sign up today at

9:18

w-b-u-r.org/Circle Round Club. Today

9:21

our story is called

9:23

crocus pocus. Before the

9:25

break, a young grape

9:27

grower named Nicola inherited

9:29

his parents' vineyard. During

9:31

his first season in

9:33

charge, everything went wrong.

9:35

And come harvest time,

9:38

all he had to

9:40

sell at the marketplace

9:42

was one basket of

9:44

grapes. which he generously

9:46

offered to a poor

9:48

old woman. And as

9:50

she devoured the fruit,

9:52

do you know what

9:55

happened? long white hair

9:57

grew dark. Her curved

9:59

back grew straight and

10:01

the patches and tears

10:03

in her dress disappeared.

10:05

Before Nicola knew it,

10:07

standing tall and radiant

10:09

before him was a

10:12

young woman. Her hair

10:14

as black as midnight,

10:16

her beautiful gown dripping

10:18

with lace. Nicola, by

10:20

giving your very last

10:22

grapes to a soul

10:24

in need. You've proven

10:26

that you are a

10:29

truly compassionate and generous

10:31

young man. Nicola thought

10:33

to find his voice.

10:35

I was just doing

10:37

the right thing, ma'am.

10:39

It's what my parents

10:41

would have done. But

10:43

wait, how did you

10:46

know my name? That

10:48

matters not, Nicola. But

10:50

now that you've done

10:52

something for me. I

10:54

wish to do something

10:56

for you. The

10:58

woman motioned toward the basket

11:01

of grapes. Somehow it was

11:03

every bit as full as

11:05

it was before, as if

11:07

no fruit had been eaten.

11:09

Go back to your vineyard,

11:12

Nicola. Then, take the grapes

11:14

in this basket and plant

11:16

them in the ground. After

11:18

that, enjoy your reward. With

11:21

that, there was a flash

11:23

of light. And the woman

11:25

was gone. Great heavens that

11:27

was wild! Nicholas glanced around

11:29

the marketplace. He assumed a

11:32

crowd would come scurrying over,

11:34

peppering him with questions about

11:36

the miraculous event that just

11:38

took place. But everyone continued

11:41

about their business, as if

11:43

nothing out of the ordinary

11:45

had occurred. Okay, so the

11:47

woman said I should take

11:49

my grapes and plant them.

11:52

But let's get real. One

11:54

of the first things my

11:56

parents taught me. is that

11:58

you can't grow a grapevine

12:00

from a whole grape. You

12:03

sniff- and cutting from an

12:05

existing vine and then you

12:07

plant that. Planting a grape

12:09

and expecting results is preposterous.

12:12

But then, so is meeting

12:14

an old woman who magically

12:16

transforms into a young woman

12:18

before vanishing into thin air.

12:20

Nicola took his basket and

12:23

returned to his vineyard. Then,

12:25

very carefully, he planted each

12:27

purple grape in the ground.

12:29

The next morning, when he

12:32

woke up and came outside,

12:34

his jaw dropped so low

12:36

he nearly tripped over it.

12:38

Goodness gracious! For every purple

12:40

grape I planted yesterday, there

12:43

now grows a purple flower.

12:45

It was true, sprouting up

12:47

all over the fields was

12:49

the little cup-shaped flower known

12:51

as the crocus. Nicola knelt

12:54

down to get a closer

12:56

view. Look at that. The

12:58

stigma of each flower, the

13:00

sticky part in the middle

13:03

of the collect's pollen, is

13:05

bright red. And it smells

13:07

so sweet. He dipped his

13:09

nose inside a flower and

13:11

took a whiff. The stigma

13:14

brushed against his lips and

13:16

suddenly his mouth was bursting

13:18

with a remarkable flavor. Mmm,

13:20

it tastes sweet, like hungy.

13:23

And fresh, like flowers and

13:25

newly mo hey. I'll bet

13:27

they get a whole bunch

13:29

of stigmas. and let them

13:31

dry? I could sell a

13:34

pretty amazing spice. Nicola got

13:36

to work picking crocuses and

13:38

drying their stigmas. After a

13:40

few days, he returned to

13:42

the marketplace. Once again, he

13:45

passed the olive grower, the

13:47

nut cellar, the orchardist, and

13:49

beekeeper. Only this time, he

13:51

was bearing more than a

13:54

basket of grapes. He was

13:56

carrying dozens of tiny bottles.

13:58

Each one filled with his

14:00

brand new spice. Spice for

14:02

sale. Exotic spice for sale.

14:05

Sweet. faster than anything you've

14:07

ever tasted. Within moments, Nicola

14:09

was surrounded by a gaggle

14:11

of curious customers. Just one

14:14

sniff of the spice, and

14:16

all of them reached into

14:18

their purses and wallets, and

14:20

began showering Nicola with coins.

14:22

Thank you for your purchase,

14:25

sir. Pleasure doing business with

14:27

you, ma'am. Hope you enjoy

14:29

the spice, miss. By day's

14:31

end, Nicola was out of

14:33

bottles. and flush with coins.

14:36

Because as it turns out,

14:38

the crocuses he had grown

14:40

were long-flowered crocuses, the species

14:42

that produces saffron, a highly

14:45

prized spice that's become famous

14:47

for its use in foods,

14:49

drinks, medicines, and dies. But

14:51

saffron isn't just legendary for

14:53

its uses. It's legendary for

14:56

its price. saffron is the

14:58

most expensive spice in the

15:00

world. So as you can

15:02

imagine, our young Nicola suddenly

15:05

found himself set for life.

15:07

Still, he continued working hard,

15:09

growing his purple crocuses and

15:11

purple grapes, and he never

15:13

knew want again. Which just

15:16

goes to show you. Amazing

15:18

things can happen when you

15:20

let compassion, kindness, and generosity

15:22

take root inside your heart

15:24

and bloom. Now

15:33

it's your turn. What are some

15:35

small ways you can show kindness

15:37

to others? Brainstorm a short or

15:40

a long list. Then find some

15:42

paper and draw a picture of

15:44

a flower garden. Inside each flower

15:46

write the words, I can, followed

15:48

by an act of kindness from

15:51

your list. Show your kindness garden

15:53

to someone you have fun with.

15:55

And if you'd like, show it

15:57

to us. Ask a grown-up to

15:59

snap a photo of you and

16:02

your garden and email it to

16:04

circle round. W.B.R.org. With your permission,

16:06

we may feature you in The

16:08

Lions Roar, the monthly newsletter of

16:10

the Circle Round Club. More on

16:13

this Superfund Club for Superfans Like

16:15

You in a moment, but first...

16:17

This week's episode, Crocus Pocus, was

16:19

adapted by me, Rebecca Shear. It

16:22

was edited by Dean Russell. Our

16:24

original music and sound design is

16:26

by Eric Shim Maloneus. Eric's featured

16:28

instrument this week was the mandolin.

16:30

You can learn more about this

16:33

member of the Lute family and

16:35

see a photo of Eric playing

16:37

one on our website. w-b-u-r.org/circle round.

16:39

Circle round's artist is Sabina Hahn.

16:41

Sabina has created a black and

16:44

white coloring page for all of

16:46

our circle round stories and you

16:48

can print them out and color

16:50

them in. Grownups, visit our website

16:52

w-b-u-r.org/circle round and click on coloring

16:55

pages. Special thanks to this week's

16:57

actors Amanda Warren and Jacob LaVall.

16:59

Grown-ups you can see Amanda Warren

17:01

in a bevy of movies and

17:03

television shows, including three billboards outside

17:06

Ebbing, Missouri, Roman J. Israel, the

17:08

Beryl, the Leftovers, East New York,

17:10

Dickinson, and the Night Agent. Now

17:12

in its second season on Netflix.

17:14

Jacob LaValle has appeared in such

17:17

TV shows and movies as Sesame

17:19

Street, John Malaney, and the Sack

17:21

Lunch Bunch, a plot against America,

17:23

and 8-bit Christmas. His newest film,

17:25

The Unbreakable Boy, is in theaters

17:28

now. And fun fact, this is

17:30

Jacob's second appearance on Circle Round.

17:32

You can find his first episode,

17:34

Orcupine's Plan, wherever you listen, to

17:36

Circle Round. Love Circle Round and

17:39

want to Circle Round with us

17:41

in even more ways, while also

17:43

supporting public radio. Join the Circle

17:45

Round Club and get ad-free episodes,

17:47

bonus bedtime stories, music education videos,

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super fun swag, a monthly newsletter,

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and early access to our live

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events. You can also add on

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cool perks like our snugly Circle

17:58

Round lion, our handy dandy tote

18:01

bag, and a personalized birthday message

18:03

from me. Sign up today at

18:05

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18:07

if you have a moment, please

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leave us a five-star rating or

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review on whatever podcast app you're

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using right now. It helps other

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listeners find the show so we

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can make the circle round circle

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even bigger. Circle round is a

18:23

production of W-B-U-R, Boston's NPR News

18:25

Station. I'm Rebecca Shear. Thanks for

18:27

circling round with us. Now

18:29

that you've made it to the

18:32

end of this circle round episode,

18:34

we want to know, what's your

18:36

favorite circle round story? Thousands of

18:38

fans, just like you, have been

18:41

telling us about the circle round

18:43

stories they like best. Take a

18:45

listen. Maybe one of their favorites

18:48

is one of yours, too. Hi,

18:50

my name is Audrey. I live

18:52

in Dubai. My favorite circle in

18:54

the story is the Bachelors. I

18:57

like where I tell you I

18:59

say, oh Bachelors. Oh Bachelors. I

19:01

go still your treasures. Hi, my

19:03

name is Dorothy. I live in

19:06

Dubai. My favorite chochoran story is

19:08

the Basserisk stair. My favorite part

19:10

is winds. Natalia says, sis, sis,

19:12

oh, sis, I've come to see

19:15

your treasure. My name is Nevis.

19:17

I'm from Arlington, that's it. My

19:19

favorite story is Unselfish Shelf, and

19:22

I hope Will. romance is, help

19:24

me! Please, help me! My name

19:26

is Coco. I live in Virginia.

19:28

My favorite circle out story is

19:31

the Wine's Whisker because I like

19:33

the part one, Hawaiian gives the

19:35

little girl and the boy a

19:37

whisker. My name is Charles and

19:40

I live in Farmington, Utah, and

19:42

my favorite episode is Stella and

19:44

the Dragon and I like the

19:47

part when Stella. walks

19:49

out of her

19:51

house and she sees 100

19:53

kids. name is my

19:56

name is calling from

19:58

Atlanta, Georgia and

20:00

my favorite story

20:02

is the -legged pot.

20:05

I like the

20:07

part where the

20:09

pot goes. the part

20:11

goes. My name name

20:14

is live in I

20:16

live in Pittsburgh,

20:18

California. My favorite around story

20:20

is the most fabulous for a all.

20:23

My My favorite part is when

20:25

the rabbit the fur then the

20:27

friends give it back to the

20:29

new friend. Did Did someone mention

20:31

a story you've missed? Not

20:33

to worry. worry. Grown-ups, you can find

20:35

all of our our round stories

20:38

plus links to the links to the

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Circle Round Club, pages books, so much

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more on our oh so much more on our

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-U -R dot w-b-u-r.org round. Round.