He was told of the sky falling. So they all ran to Foxy Woxy's den, but the foolish birds never came out again, and the King was never told that the sky was falling. They open up the human experience. Stories such as Henny Penny amuse us and catch our imagination. Part of the attraction of these old tales lies in their sharp edge of reality.
Children intuitively sense that there is a hardness to life.
Stories such as Henny Penny challenge children to be careful whom they follow and to check things out for themselves. They are cautioned that things can go wrong, and that sometimes the sky really does in a sense fall on the unwary. You and I are also challenged to look beyond our folk stories and myths. We are called to look with Christian realism upon the real world of harsh realities and eternal truths. When we realize that Christ has told us everything, we are ready to hear the message of Advent and to receive the gift of God's incarnate love.