This sestina appears in my book, The Leaf Catcher, and it describes how Corliss came in possession of the Traveling Box:
“I happened upon
a minstrel, his health looking poor;
‘twas a stormy
night and I took him in when no one else would.
He was very
thankful and bestowed upon me a box,
assuring me
‘twas no ordinary container; it was magical.
‘Put into it
what you do not possess
and it will be
given back to you in kind.’
He said there
was no other like it of its kind.
I asked him why
he did not sell it since he was so poor.
And he replied
that no greater gift may one possess
than the gift
one receives when giving; that whosoever would
understand this
would benefit most from the box’s magic.
Otherwise it was nothing more than a mere box.
I graciously
accepted, and asked how I was to use the box.
He foretold
‘twould be revealed to me by another who was kind,
and then he
disappeared like magic.
Over and over
the riddle did I pore,
but try as hard
as I would,
the knowledge of
how to use it, I could not possess.
I wondered at
the mystery it possessed.
It truly seemed
like a common box,
nine inches
square and made of cedar wood,
no different
than any other box of its kind,
except for one
thing; whenever I tried to pour
anything into
it, it was denied by its magic.
What was the
point of this magic?
Why would anyone
wish to possess
such a container
that you could not pour
anything into?
There must be some purpose to this box.
I’ve been waiting for the prophesied one to
tell me what kind
of contents
could be placed within its wood.
Years went by
and I began to wonder if anyone would
ever appear to reveal the secret of its magic.
The minstrel had
said ‘twould be one who is kind,
yet I have since
met with many good people and none possessed
the answer to
the secret of the box.
Over many
ancient books have I pored,
but nothing of
its kind was mentioned, nor would
it seem possible
I could ever pour anything past the magic
that possesses
the box.”
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