The Well’s Restoration

Write a story using five random words. Legendary, gold, courage, well, crash.

The water well in the middle of town was legendary for its stories of wish granting. Travelers from across the globe were said to have come and visit. Their gold coins they tossed contained the magic of their deepest desires. Quite a number of these wishes were granted according to legend. That was until an earthquake made the well crumble into itself. When word got out that the well was no longer standing the travelers stopped coming. Because of that the market in the town crashed and most residents were forced to move to be able to make a living.

Williams family was one of a thousand to stay in their homes and travel for work. But that was two hundred years ago and now the town has bounced back some. It’s not the tourist hub that it was in the stories, but businesses came back and so did residents. William was fascinated with the history of the town and after he finished school, he wanted to try to restore the old well. Even if it never provided water again it would be a unique focal point that would make the town stand out. William had a full-time job already so he wouldn’t have much time for fundraising. But he was determined no matter how long it took to restore the well.

William made a presentation of all the research he had done into the town’s histories and its legends. At the next town hall, he presented his idea and his proposal for funds needed to complete the project. Unfortunately, the town would not have the income to provide support for his plan. But they did agree to allow him to raise the funds privately and restore the landmark himself. Though that meant fundraising would take longer than expected he was determined to get it done as fast as possible.

He started off as simple as he could think of. At the town fair he set up a booth with photos of the town and the legends he had found. He set out a donation jar. He also set out a suggestion box for more fundraisers the community would like to see or volunteer for. This gave him an idea of who would help him as well.

Over the next five years with a lot of hard work and dedication from the community. William got enough money raised for demolition and materials. They would need to raise more to hire the brick layer needed for the job, but he was confident they could get started while waiting for the next fundraiser. So, the next weekend he had off he organized the demolition and clean-up of the site of the well. By the end of the day on Sunday the hole was revealed, the old material was on its way to being recycled and there were temporary barricades up to warn of the danger of falling in.

The next weekend after a very successful cream your teacher fundraiser at the school fair, William couldn’t help but make his was back to the site of the well. He couldn’t believe after all this time they were so close to making his dream a reality. For health and safety reasons, he and the builder had decided to cover the hole before building the well. They didn’t want to be responsible for anyone getting sick from drinking the water out of it since they hadn’t conducted any tests. They also didn’t want any children or animals leaning in to far and falling deep into the ground.

There was this one nagging thought in the back of his mind though. If travelers had been throwing gold coins in the well for years maybe there was a chance of the gold still being at the bottom of the well. Unfortunately, William did not have the courage or the skill set to even try to make it down to the bottom of the well. And his research to determine the amount of funds needed, hiring someone was going to at least double the amount of money that was needed. So, all these years he never brought it up to anyone. Maybe one day someone will want to try but William would not be the one to suggest it.

One year later William was standing at the completed well for the official unveiling. Willaim was beaming all day long. The city did step up in the last year and donated funds for a plaque that told the history of the well. They also agreed that if any coins were dropped in the well, they would be donated to a scholarship fund for seniors in William’s name. William was so grateful for the opportunity to make the town better by restoring its history.