The Sheriff, out hunting with the town notables, wishes John were with them. The bugle calls, and back at the castle, John awakens. He thinks of his compadres over in Sherwood– the green men, and sees how he’s grown fat in the six Fall and Winter months with the Sheriff. He goes to the pantry and asks the Steward for some meat and bread, and the fat man, envious of John’s closeness to the Sheriff, says it’s too late for breakfast. John stomps over to it and breaks into the larder and starts to partake, and knocks the guard out when he intervenes.

The cook, spit in hand, runs over at the commotion. The Steward bribes him to stop John, and he draws his sword and the Steward flees. John reasons with the cook– one of us might go to Heaven by the end of the day, how about doing so on a full belly? They size each other up respectfully as they fill up on pie and sack.

Time to fight: they draw and withdraw to a large corridor, but after an hour no one has gotten the better of the other. Leaning on their weapons, they reason that they’re the strongest of the lot of the place, and John tempts the cook with the promise of camaraderie with the Green Men, so they abscond with the Sheriff’s food and silver.

Back in Sherwood, the men are merry at John’s rejoining them. But Robin Hood’s face is grave: the Sheriff has not done wrong and does not deserve this recompense. John moves to rectify his error and goes out to the Sheriff, drawing him to the group with promise of a herd of jumpy game. The Sheriff despondently drinks with Hood and is sent back to the town bigwigs with a big lumpy sack of silver. And that is the tale of how Little John ended his tenure with the Sheriff of Nottingham.

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For the full video episode:

https://youtu.be/CwFVbACPD0s
Audio episode:

https://benomtad.podbean.com/e/howard-pyle-s-robin-hood-little-john-lives-with-the-sheriff/
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About our guest:

Ian Reclusado is currently off exploring the poetic wilds of psychology, neuroscience, and spirituality.

He also offers guidance services for those interested in delving into their own inner wilderness.

You can find his weekly dispatches at www.thekindknife.com or follow him on Instagram: @ian_reclusado

I plan to conduct more interviews with various guests, so please check back later for those.