Tin Man

by Bob Johnson

"A heart?" said the Wizard to the Tin Man, "You want a heart? My boy, you don't know how lucky you are not to have one! You should never have to suffer the pain that comes when one gets broken!"

"But Great Wizard", said the Tin Man, "if I have no heart then how may I know the joy that comes when one is full of love?"

"Oh, my boy," said the Wizard to the Tin Man, "The happiness of Love is indeed a wonderful thing, and nothing is more beautiful to be sure." "But the pain of a broken heart is so very terrible to endure, and the only thing that can heal it is a love much greater than that which broke it."

The Tin Man sat still for a minute, considering the Wizard's words, for he was sure they held more meaning than it seemed. But finally, after a while, The Tin Man answered:

"But still, I want one."

... And so the Wizard gave the Tin Man a heart, one strong and new and ready to love. And the Wizard also gave the Tin Man some advice...

"My boy, I give you a heart, but let me tell you some things you should know before you use it, things that I wish I had been told many, many years ago when my own heart was young and strong and new."

"Great Wizard", said the Tin Man, "please tell your advice. I've never had a heart before, and I have no wish to break it by not knowing how to use it!"

The Wizard looked at the Tin Man, thinking carefully before he spoke. Finally, he said to the Tin Man, "Be careful of who you love! Don't give your love too easily or too fast. But when you find the one who will accept your love, and who you feel you can trust with it, give her all of your love, hold nothing back! Do not use it as a weapon to hurt with, nor as a reward to please with. Just give it freely and simply, wholly and completely!"

The Tin Man thought for a moment, and then asked the Wizard, "How will I know when I have found the right one?"

"Oh, my boy! That's no problem. You will know it when you find her! But before you give her your heart, make very sure that you are also the right one for her! Make sure her love for you is greater than any she's had before. And then, my boy, you will know the happiness of loving, and the even greater joy of being loved by another!"

"Thank you, O Great Wizard!" said the Tin Man. "You words are truly wise! I cannot imagine how a man can know these things so well!"

The Wizard said, "My boy, I have lived a long, long life and have learned of many things. My hope is that you can learn these things from me, without the need and pain of learning them for yourself."

The Tin Man thanked the Wizard, and left on his quest to find love. The Wizard watched as the Tin Man became smaller in the distance, and the Emerald City was reflected in the tears that grew in his eyes. "Good luck, Tin Man," whispered the Wizard to himself. "I hope my words will guide you well, but I know and fear that to truly understand them, you will finally have to learn them for yourself."

And then the Wizard closed the door to the Palace of Oz.

The Tin Man was happy as he followed the Yellow Brick Road. The birds singing in the trees filled his heart with joy, and he thought "If something so simple can make one's heart feel so good, then love must surely be a wondrous thing! This thought made him more eager than ever to continue his search...

After a while he stopped along the path and sat down near a fence, beneath a tree. As he sat there enjoying the day, he looked at the heart the Wizard had given him. It was indeed strong and new, and it shined brightly in the sun. A beautiful gold chain held it near the middle of his chest, right where a heart was supposed to be! He held it tightly in his hands, closed his eyes and smiled.

As he sat there, he fell asleep and dreamed of love...

When he awoke, he was startled to see a rabbit, a very LARGE rabbit, sitting nearby and watching him intently. It was a very beautiful large rabbit, about 4 feet tall, with silky golden fur, a white tail, and pink eyes that seemed to hold more intelligence than a rabbit should have. And the Tin Man was even more surprised when the Rabbit spoke:

"You're awake!"

"Yes, well, I guess I am!" said the Tin Man, "But I'm not really sure...I don't often have conversations with rabbits!"

"Well, maybe you should try it more often," said the Rabbit, "you might learn something!"

"That's possible," said the Tin Man, "but I couldn't say. What could a rabbit talk about besides carrots and other rabbit-type things?"

"Well," said the Rabbit, that depends on what kind of a rabbit you are talking too!"

"Oh, I see. I never thought of it like that before. So, Giant Rabbit, what kind of rabbit are you?"

"I'm a Giant Rabbit..." came the rabbit's answer.

"Gee thanks, I never would have guessed..." began the Tin Man...

"...from Finland!" continued the Rabbit.

"From Finland!" exclaimed the ever more surprised Tin Man, "Aren't you a long way from home?"

"No. I said I am from Finland, that doesn't mean I live there!"

The Tin Man, while quite amazed with the overall situation, what with a giant talking rabbit and all, was getting a bit irritated with the rabbit's attitude, but something made him go on... "Oh, okay then, what do giant, talking, Finnish rabbits know?"

"That all depends. What do you want to know?"

"Tell me about love," came the Tin Man's reply.

"Sorry, you're on your own about that!" said the Rabbit, "But you tell me, why would a Tin Man want to know about love?"

"Well, because now I have new heart!" said the Tin Man with pride as he showed it to the Rabbit, "And now I am out looking for love! Maybe you know where to find some?"

The rabbit admired the heart, obviously strong and new, and he felt that he should try to help the Tin Man if he could.

He said, "Sorry again. If I knew where to find love, I'd be there myself right now! But I can tell you this: You won't find love, at least not a good one, if you're out looking for it! Usually, it finds you when you don't expect it. You should just go back to the city, get a job, and see what happens! You know what they say, 'a watched pot never boils!', and if you spend all your time looking for love, you may never find it and then you'll have wasted your fine new heart and all of your life looking for something and never even knowing what it was you were looking for! Just live and enjoy your life, and when the time is right love will find you!"

"Are you sure?" asked the Tin Man skeptically.

"Sure, I'm sure! Rabbits never speak unless we're sure!" said the Rabbit. And then he turned and hopped away into the forest.

The Tin Man sat beneath the tree for a while longer, thinking about what the rabbit had said.

Finally, he seemed to make a decision, and a mix of disappointment and hopeful expectation came to his eyes.

He stood up, looked around, and began walking once again, his heart swaying gently on it's chain with his steady gait.

"From Finland!" he said to himself, "They have Giant Rabbits in Finland! Amazing!"

and later "...I wonder where this Finland is?"