A rustling in the bushes along the lake shore startled Josh. Frightened, he jumped up and looked around. He could hear the rustling but couldn’t see anything. Mr. Kosidowski hadn’t said anything about there being wild animals near the lake, but then he hadn’t said there weren’t either. Whatever was rustling the bushes could be dangerous – maybe even dangerous enough to kill him. Cautiously, Josh concealed himself behind a large tree and watched. Instead of a wild beast, a strange old man stepped from the undergrowth into the opening where Josh has been sitting.

The old man was dressed in a cassock wildly streaked with color after color. The hem and sleeve cuffs of the long, flowing robe were trimmed in gold, as was the strange-looking hat he wore. At the tip of the hat was a small crystal globe that caught the sunlight and cast rainbows all around, just like the ones on the robe. The old man’s white hair stuck out from beneath the hat, and he had a long white beard. On his long, crooked nose sat a pair of black, horn-rimmed glasses. He noticed Joshua’s pack and examined its contents. Then he stood up and looked right at Josh, although from where Josh was hiding it was impossible for the man to see him.

“Ah, there you are,” the man said. “Come out, boy.”

Josh didn’t move.

“I say, don’t be afraid. I won’t harm you. Come out from behind that tree.”

Joshua peeked out and then hesitantly stepped from behind the tree.

“Hello, Joshua,” the man said.

“You know me?

The old man looked remarkably like Mr. Kosidowski, so much so Josh said, “Aren’t you …? You look just like … .”

“Vladamir Kosidowski?” the old man finished his sentence.

“Yeah.”

“No. I’m not him. My name is Ostenso, wizard of the Great Thor.”

“Thor?” Josh exclaimed. “You mean, like the Vikings’ Thor?”

“Precisely,” the wizard said. “Thor, ancient god of thunder.”

“So what’s with the funny coat and hat?”

“These,” Ostenso said and spun around so the light cascaded all around him like a rainbow inside a tornado. “These are the clothes a wizard of my rank wears.”

“Your rank? You mean there are different kinds of wizards?”

Ostenso stared over the top of his glasses at Joshua a moment. “Classes actually,” he explained. “I’m a first-class wizard ... the one, you see, who actually makes all of Thor’s lightning bolts.”

“Right,” Josh said sarcastically. “And I’m David Copperfield.”

“I doubt that,” Ostenso said. “As I remember, David walked through the Great Wall of China. You seem to have had a somewhat different experience.”

“You noticed.”

“Oh, yes,” Ostenso continued. “You were quite amusing actually bouncing off that wall. I do hope you didn’t hurt yourself.”

“I’m okay,’ Josh said. “Only I’m stuck here.”

“Are you now?”

“Yeah. My dumb brother somehow blocked out the picture, and I can’t get back into my house.”

“So that’s what happened when you ?”

“Yeah. Bounced off the wall, and got stuck here,” Josh insisted.

“But you’re not stuck here.”

“I’m not?”

“Of course not. You see this path?” Ostenso asked, pointing out a barely visible path that ran along the edge of the lake. “All you have to do is follow it.”

“Like the Yellow Brick Road,” Josh said.

“The what?”

“Never mind. This path will take me home?” Josh was happy the solution to his problem was so simple. He slung his pack on his back and turned to leave.

“Of course, you may find it a bit challenging,” Ostenso added.

“Like how?”

“You’ll soon see what I mean, Joshua. Joshua! Now there was a man. A hero on a challenging adventure.”

“You mean like Joshua at Jericho ... And the walls came tumbling down?”

“Exactly” Ostenso said. “You do remember him?”

“Sort of.”

“Well, then, keep him in mind as you walk along. Joshua and the others.”

“What others?” Josh inquired.

“Heroes of the past, young man. Men and women whose lives show us how we are to live.”

“Like David and Goliath?”

“Yes,” Ostenso agreed. “And Daniel in that lion’s den.”

“Lions?” Josh faltered. “You mean there may be wild animals?”

“No. No,” Ostenso laughed. “It’s quite safe ? but remember, Joshua, life always gives you the test first. Then it teaches you the lesson.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Oh, you soon will,” Ostenso said. “Along this path, you will be tested. Pass the tests and you will get what you need to unlock the secret to getting home.”