Welcome to Sleep Whispers.

I'm Harris, and I created this podcast to help you too de-stress, relax, and sleep.

So go ahead, lean back, put up your feet, and settle into my world of whispers.

I hope this episode distracts and relaxes your overactive brain squirrels.

All right, tonight's story is titled The Wonderful Pump, and it's by El Frank Baum.

And this is the eighth short story,

now done by the author of The Wizard of Oz.

And I guess it's just that he writes creative, fun stories that are just a perfect length as a podcast episode. Here is the summary of the story, so that way you kind of get an idea of what's happening

while you drift in and out of sleep.

The story is about a poor farmer and his wife who live on a farm,

and the farm doesn't produce a lot of food, and it also has a dry well.

One day the farmer's wife sees a large beetle, but it's stuck on its back, and so she helps the beetle to ride itself.

And the beetle speaks and thanks her, which surprises her, of course.

The beetle then gives her a tip of where to dig a new well and install a water pump.

The new pump doesn't produce water, but gold coins instead.

All that free gold leads to some ethical concerns from their minister and some trouble from some people who live in the town.

The story will of course be that money doesn't always buy happiness.

The story will have a happy ending because sometimes losing money can help you to discover what truly brings you happiness.

Time for a quick break.

Would you like to relax with curious stories about history?

If so, then try my other podcast called Calm History.

You can find it by searching your podcast player for Com History.

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