Be it at home or away on a camping trip, sitting out under the stars near the fire is an excellent family activity! You can bond over s’mores, jokes, and slightly charred sausages!
There are few activities as fun or exciting to do around the campfire than tell stories, though! But, you may be a bit stuck as to what stories to tell?
These three unique campfire stories will delight, excite, and enthral! These twisty tales will have the kids on edge, holding their breath.
The Bewitching Grilled Cheese Sandwich
Once upon a time, there was a Princess who lived with her mother and father, the Queen and King, in their castle.
The Princess had everything she wanted – toys galore, a doll palace, her own tower, a wardrobe full of fancy dresses. Everything she could want, really!
In fact, she even had her own appointed royal dressmaker and toymaker to craft or sew whatever she wished at the drop of a hat! Now, how’s that for spoilt?
Pea-Culiar Eating Habits
Just like her toys, the Princesses diet was not limited, either! She could eat anything – yes, ice cream or cake for breakfast, suckling pigs, figs from the Middle East, there was no end!
Unfortunately, the Princess was very particular! If a pea were misshapen, she wouldn’t eat it! The same went for every other food. If there was something wrong with it, she just wouldn’t eat it.
And, trust me, she would always find something imperfect about it. Over time, the Princess started to shrivel much like a pea left on the plate, uneaten herself – getting thinner, bonier, and wrinklier as time passed.
In order to cure her nad eating habits, the King sent forth an urgent message to everyone in the land! It said, “Make a Dish Worthy of The Princess – A Handsome Reward to the Winner.”
A Creation from Every Nation!
On the day of the feast, hundreds of subjects showed up with their unique dishes! There were creations from every nation, from sweet to sour, elaborate to simple, and everything in-between.
The King and Queen were relieved, excited, and hopeful. With so many options, surely the Princess would choose one!
They signalled for the feast to begin, each subject coming up with their own unique creation! One by one, the Princess rejected them! Not even one dish got to her lips before getting the cut!
Finally, there were only three dishes left. At this point, the King and Queen had resigned to their fate – the Princess would continue to shrivel until nothing was left of her!
A Cheesy Rescue!
It was at this moment that a tall, dark figure emerged from the crowd, throwing off his cloak! In his hands balanced a single platter with what appeared to be a sliced, toasted piece of bread on it!
“Bread,” scoffed the King, Queen, and the Princess in unison, what an insult! Of course, that was one of the first things they’d tried to give the Princess. How would that change anything?
The man looked at them askance, “Bread? Why – this is no ordinary slice, I’ll tell you! This is a delicacy from the future! I am a time-traveller, and I’ve travelled back in time to save the Princess, the last of your bloodline!”
“This,” he said ominously, pausing momentarily for dramatic effect, “Is a grilled cheese sandwich!” he bellowed!
A Magical Sandwich
With that, the plate glowed, shooting out white light, and levitated directly to under the Princesses nose! All the court gasped while the royals stood white-faced in shock!
The Princess stared in silence, scrutinizing it for what seemed like an age. To the surprise of all, the Princess shot a glance at her parents, whispering, “Why, it’s perfect! I will eat it at once!”
The court rejoiced, and, from that day on, the Princess ate only grilled cheese sandwiches. To everyone’s surprise, she grew tall, healthy, and strong on this diet, never to shrivel again.”
Of course, the man was handsomely rewarded, living out his extraordinarily long days in the palace, where he insisted on preparing each sandwich to order, in private, no matter the time of day or night!
The Glamour of Perfection
Now, why would you do such a thing when you’d been given wealth enough never to work a day in your life, you may ask? Well, there was a very good reason!
You see, the man had a secret! His recipe was unique, yes, indeed! Instead of your typical grilled cheese sandwich ingredients, this one had a little something extra – a sprinkle of enchanting perfection powder.
This special powder had been passed down to the man by his parents, a powerful witch and warlock of the East! Unbeknownst to the King, Queen, Princess, and the entire royal court and Kingdom, his sandwiches were not what they appeared at all!
In fact, the wizard had been feeding the Princess broccoli, organ meat, Haggis, eggs, mushrooms, onions, pig’s blood, Brussel sprouts, garlic, and various other disgustingly repulsive healthy foods.
With just a sprinkle of enchanting powder, they were disguised as a delicious grilled cheese sandwich the entire time! It’s no wonder the Princess grew so strong and healthy! But who knew what they’d say if they ever found out! No, better to keep this a secret!
But, there is an important lesson in this tale – all that looks perfect on the surface may not be what it appears. And, most notably – remember to eat your veggies if you want to grow tall and strong!
The Missing Friday
Early one morning, Errol sullenly awoke to what he thought would be another gloomy Friday. He’d looked at the weather report, and rain was 100% on the cards. He vaguely remembered wishing the day would disappear – if only!
Aside from this, it was another school day, and his big project was due! He smacked the alarm button none-too-softly, almost in spite, to switch it off, and rolled out of bed with a protracted yawn bordering on a prolonged groan.
Moodily pushing open his bedroom curtains, he squinted and froze in surprise. What was this? The sun was out, and so were kids in the park, as were a surprising number of families having picnics and dogs taking walks! What trickery was this, he thought?
Thinking something amiss, he rubbed his eyes and pinched himself, just double-checking that he was, in actual fact, awake. However, eyes reopened, and thigh pinched, he looked down upon the same scene!
A Welcome Delivery
No, no, he thought to himself, he must be confused. He slipped on his robe and slippers, padding down the stairs to explore further. The house was quiet, so where were mum and dad?
At this point, he clearly heard snoring from his parent’s room. Asleep? But, it was late; he’d already lost 10 minutes wandering around; they should have been up at least an hour ago!
All of a sudden, he noticed the newspaper jammed into the door slot. But wasn’t it only delivered on Saturdays? He slowly approached the door, giving himself another painful pinch for posterity.
In his hands, he held the weekly newspaper – it was unmistakable, the date clearly emblazoned at the top “Saturday, 1 June 2021.” It was at this point that he realized he’d mislaid Friday!!!
Yesterday is Not Even but a Memory!
How could it be? He had no memory of it, not a single thought, smell, regret, or embarrassing remembrance! Where had he gone, who had he seen? All these questions and more whirled through his head!
Most importantly, what had happened to his project? He quickly ran to the garage where he’d left it. Gone! It was gone. His heart skipped a beat. Hm, he had to find it; otherwise, he’d fail! But wasn’t it Saturday, so he’d already failed if he didn’t hand it in himself on time?
He slowly padded back to his room in disbelief and befuddlement. He had important work to do – he had to lay out a plan to find out what had happened to Friday and his all-important project!
First up, a room search. Then, he’d ask his parents to make him the same breakfast. Lastly, if all else failed, he’d need to quiz his friends without making them suspicious!
Now, Where Did I Put That Memory?
It was at this point that he noticed something very strange – a trail of silvery, slobbery slime! It stretched from the end of his bed to the door. Why hadn’t he noticed it before?
He bolted upright, quick as a fox, running to the door, where he spied the rest of the trail, leading right to the stairs of the attic!
Oh no, he said, why the attic, his least favourite, creepiest place to go. Oh well, this was no time for hesitance or cowardliness – Friday must be found!
He slowly climbed the stairs, creakily opening the door to the room. It was slightly dark, so it took some time for his eyes to adjust.
A Fondness for Memories!
Nothing could have prepared Errol for the scene he bore witness to as his eyes finally adjusted to the light, though! There, sitting perkily, if not regally, on an old, abandoned tattered, torn, and weathered chair, was a being unlike any he’d seen before!
It had big, fuzzy ears with curly hairs, twirling whiskers, and blue eyes that were cloudy and a bit lost, as if partially blind. A monster! At this point, the monster gleefully hummed and giggled to himself, seemingly very pleased about something!
Why thought Errol? It must be the curious object laid out in front of the monster on the table! What was it? It appeared to be a crystal ball, except kind of jiggly, wiggling around on a plate.
Inside the ball, Errol noticed a curious scene unfolding – a classroom. Why was that his project? It must be! Therefore, was that also his lost Friday? It had to be! A memory in the flesh, how peculiar! He gasped before he could think twice about it.
Who Are You?
Startled, the monster twisted his head, looking directly at Errol, who froze in fear. It seemed he had been lost in thought but was suddenly well aware of Errol. “Well, well,” he said, “if it isn’t the source of my memory lunch!”
“Lu-lu-l-lunch?” stammered Errol, “wh-what do you mean, lu-lu-lunch?”
The monster replied, “I am the memory monster! I eat memories for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, dessert – and just for fun sometimes, to be honest! I come and steal all the days and moments that kids wish they’d never experienced!”
“But, that’s my memory,” said Errol, gaining a bit of confidence now that the monster hadn’t immediately tried to eat him – “You can’t just take it without asking!”
To which the memory monster replied, “I’ll do as I please, speaking of which, I’m hungry!” With that and a peculiar cackle, he picked up a strange fork made of what appeared to be glass and reached forward, ready to spear and gobble up Friday!”
A Tussle with a Memory Monster!
At this point, Errol yelled, not even caring if he woke his parents. He couldn’t have it! The memory monster wouldn’t eat his Friday, no matter how gloomy it was!
He ran forwards, knocking the fork out of the monster’s hand, and grabbed the memory. All of a sudden, the attic started to fade, making way for another sight – Errol’s room! And, strangely, the sound of his alarm?
But wait, wasn’t it much later? He’d already switched off his alarm. At this point, he heard a welcome sound – rain, rain belting down onto the roof! He also heard the kettle and footsteps below. He sighed. His parents – they were up.
It must be Friday! Yes, he was right. And, thankfully, not a single memory monster in sight! What a relief. But, wait, one final test! He got up, shoved his slippers and robe on, and ran as quick as he could to the garage. His project, yes, it was right there where he’d left it. He sighed in relief!
From that day on, Errol never wished a day gone, no, not even a moment. Even if sad, gloomy, or difficult, he wanted to be present for all of it! And, make sure the memory monster never came a-knocking, of course!
Conclusion:
Whether scary, heartwarming, or curious, good campfire stories make for an excellent family activity! Enjoy these unique stories with a twist on your next camping night!