he Fortune Teller and the Guitarist

ome time ago Baron Von Lodge was the head of a small country near Switzerland known as Lilliland.

The center of town is a popular spot in Lilliland because of the many shops that people can visit. There are many fine cafes and restaurants with magnificent views of the mountains and the lake.

Entertainers often set up a temporary spot in the shopping center to interest and entertain tourists. In one spot there sat a fortune-teller who everyone seemed to ignore. On another side of the shopping center was a guitarist who played and sang to anyone who walked by. Unfortunately, when they heard him playing and singing, they usually walked more quickly to get away from him.

Neither the fortune-teller nor the guitarist was bad at their trade. In fact, they were both polite and likeable people.

The two finally met while having a cup of coffee at a sidewalk café. They both admitted that business was not very good due to lack of interest among the tourists.

Then an idea struck them. Why not combine their talents and have people stop to have their fortunes read. Then the fortune-teller would not tell the person his or her fortune, but tell it to the guitarist and have him sing the information to the person. It was something that had never been done before but what did they have to lose since business could not get any worse?

After a few tries, it began to catch on and visitors began bringing their friends back with them. A person in the group would have his fortune read and the fortune-teller would whisper the information to the guitarist who quickly made up a tune and sang the predictions. Naturally, the fortune-teller found that business was better if the guitarist sang of the good fortune that lay ahead of the person.

Their business location was just a few steps away from a café and the owner invited them to perform inside the café because it was very entertaining and good for business.

When the fortune-teller got to know the guitarist better they learned that they were both orphans from the same orphanage in Switzerland. They each also had a ring with the same family crest on it. They could be somehow related. Maybe someday they would go back to visit the orphanage to see if they were related to each other.