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.Now suppose for instance that we tell an imaginative story to a child of seven or eight.He does not need to understand all at once the pictures which the story contains; why that is I will describe later.All that matters is that the child takes delight in the story because it is presented with a certain grace and charm.Suppose I were to tell the following story: Once upon a time in a wood where the sun peeped through the branches there lived a violet, a very modest violet under a tree with big leaves.And the violet was able to look through an opening at the top of the tree.As she looked through this broad opening in the tree top the violet saw the blue sky.The little violet saw the blue sky for the first time on this morning, because she had only just blossomed.Now the violet was frightened when she saw the blue sky — indeed she was overcome with fear, but she did not yet know why she felt such great fear.Then a dog ran by, not a good dog, a rather bad snappy dog.And the violet said to the dog: “Tell me, what is that up there, that is blue like me?” For the sky also was blue just as the violet was.And the dog in his wickedness said: “Oh, that is a great giant violet like you and this great violet has grown so big that it can crush you.” Then the violet was more frightened than ever, because she believed that the violet up in the sky had got so big so that it could crush her.And the violet folded her little petals together and did not want to look up to the great big violet any more, but hid herself under a big leaf which a puff of wind had just blown down from the tree.There she stayed all day long, hiding in her fear from the great big sky-violet.When morning came the violet had not slept all night, for she had spent the night wondering what to think of the great blue sky-violet who was said to be coming to crush her.And every moment she was expecting the first blow to come.But it did not come.In the morning the little violet crept out, as she was not in the least tired, for all night long she had only been thinking, and she was fresh and not tired (violets are tired when they sleep, they are not tired when they don't sleep!) and the first thing that the little violet saw was the rising sun and the rosy dawn.And when the violet saw the rosy dawn she had no fear.It made her glad at heart and happy to see the dawn.As the dawn faded the pale blue sky gradually appeared again and became bluer and bluer all the time, and the little violet thought again of what the dog had said, that that was a great big violet which would come and crush her.At that moment a lamb came by and the little violet again felt she must ask what that thing above her could be.“What is that up there?” asked the violet, and the lamb said, “That is a great big violet, blue like yourself.” Then the violet began to be afraid again and thought she would only hear from the lamb what the wicked dog had told her.But the lamb was good and gentle, and because he had such good gentle eyes, the violet asked again: “Dear lamb, do tell me, will the great big violet up there come and crush me?” “Oh no,” answered the lamb, “it will not crush you, that is a great big violet, and his love is much greater than your own love, even as he is much more blue than you are in your little blue form.” And the violet understood at once that there was a great big violet who would not crush her, but who was so blue in order that he might have more love, and that the big violet would protect the little violet from everything in the world which might hurt her.Then the little violet felt so happy, because what she saw as blue in the great sky-violet appeared to her as Divine Love, which was streaming towards her from all sides.And the little violet looked up all the time as if she wished to pray to the God of the violets.Now if you tell the children a story of this kind they will most certainly listen, for they always listen to such things; but you must tell it in the right mood, so that when the children have heard the story they somehow feel the need to live with it and turn it over inwardly in their souls.This is very important, and it all depends on whether the teacher is able to keep discipline in the class through his own feeling.That is why when we speak of such things as I have just mentioned, we must also consider this question of keeping discipline.We once had a teacher in the Waldorf School, for instance, who could tell the most wonderful stories, but he did not make such an impression upon the children that they looked up to him with unquestioned love
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