T is for Trickster

         (My A to Z Blog Challenge theme this year is Beyond Pomegranate & Thorns, my brand-sparkly-new collection of short stories, poems, and art inspired by fairy tales, myths, and folklore.  All through the month I’m sharing excerpts, as well as some reflections on the power of the traditional stories that inspired me.)

        People all around the world and throughout history love tricksters.  Or at least, they love telling stories about tricksters – but they don’t generally love being on the receiving end of the tricks.  Tricksters serve an important role in shaking up the status quo, introducing change, unsettling the powerful, giving voice to the forbidden, and upending expectations… but they are not always admirable or likable.  They can be heroes or villains, and are often both at once.  My stories tend to have a strong moral sense and I like my heroes to be heroic (read a prior blog post about that here), but you really can’t write a trickster tale without at least a bit of moral ambiguity.  Even when they help others, tricksters always make sure there’s something in it for themselves, and even when they work toward noble ends, their means tend to be a little sketchy.  Nevertheless, I wanted to write a trickster tale with a trickster who was fun and not too reprehensible: a trickster who doesn’t have any grand ambitions of world domination or epic vengeance, but who just wants to enjoy a pleasant life…

        Tin the Trickster was not very popular with the people, who tended not to appreciate being tricked.  But Tin was tired of always being mistrusted while everyone adored The Strong One, so today they were wearing the appearance of a huge muscle-bound man, with golden armor covered in buttons and dials that certainly looked very impressive.

        “Let me put it to you this way,” they said to the gathered crowd, “Two men go to lift up a big rock.  One grunts and puffs and strains, and raises it up over his head with a cry of triumph.  The other simply picks it up, without any noise or fuss.  Which one is stronger?”

        The people glanced at each other warily, always prepared for some sort of trick, but the answer seemed straightforward enough.  “The one who doesn't need to make a lot of noise?”

        “Exactly!” Tin replied triumphantly, “And that's how you know my magic armor is so powerful.  No noise at all.”  When they were sure they had everyone's attention, they suddenly spun to the side, eyes narrowly focused on something in the distance, struck a pose on one knee, and punched out dramatically with an arm.  Sure enough, there was no noise.  The people nodded uncertainly, not sure whether to be impressed or suspicious.

        Tin stood and turned back with a broad, benevolent smile.  “So let's have no more of this nonsense about how wonderful The Strong One is, eh?  I think we can all see that I am just as mighty.  Probably even more so.”

        This was all well and good – some were convinced and some were not – until a breathless rider arrived, frantic with bad news: The Giant from Over There was on the rampage.  And now it became clear how deeply Tin had impressed the people with their magic armor.  After a hurried consultation, it was The Strong One's door on which the Elders knocked, anxious to recruit him in the people's defense.

        Of course it will be Tin the Trickster who saves the day, but how will they do it?  Read Beyond Pomegranate & Thorns to find out!  As for the illustration, this is a brown-headed cowbird, one of nature’s tricksters, who serves as a messenger for Tin in my story.  Cowbirds lay their eggs in other birds’ nests, leaving the unwitting host to hatch and raise the cowbird chicks, often to the detriment of their own brood.  You can consider cowbirds

“mean” or “lazy,” or you can appreciate that they’re just living their appointed niche in the natural world.  Either way, they seemed like appropriate sidekicks for a trickster figure.

        T is also for Tree of Life, and you can read a post about that (including my own artwork) from the 2024 A to Z Challenge: Magical Botany L.  And T is for Tarasque, a creature you can meet in my 2016 A to Z: Mythical T.  There are pieces in Beyond Pomegranate & Thorns relating to both the Tree of Life and the Tarasque.

        The moral of Tricksters is, I suppose, trust no one!  But also, remember the Boy Who Cried Wolf and consider that you won’t enjoy it when you’ve become the one whom no one trusts.

        From Anansi to Loki, Till Eulenspiegel to Coyote, Jacob to Bugs Bunny, and Sang Kancil to the team of the television series “Leverage,” we just love seeing cleverness and chutzpah in action, just as long as we’re not the victims.  Do you have a favorite trickster?  And how do you feel about practical jokes in real life?

[Picture: Trickster’s Familiar, rubber block print by AEGNydam, 2026 (Image from NydamPrints.com);

Tarasque, rubber block print with colored pencil by AEGNydam, 2026 (Image from NydamPrints.com).]