After disposing of eight of nine devils from the haunted hotel Brother Jim starts on his travels again.

After that, I wandered the world for a long time. I could tell you many more stories if I had the time. But I finally got old and began to think of my last day. So I went to a holy man known for his wisdom. I said to him, “I’m tired of wandering and want to see about getting into heaven.”

The holy man answered, “There are two paths. One is wide and pleasant and leads to hell; the other is rough and narrow and leads to heaven.”:

Then I’d be a fool, I thought, if I took the rough and narrow path. So I set out, walked the wide and pleasant path, and finally came to a big black gate. It was the gate of hell. I knocked, and the gatekeeper peered out to see who it might be.

But when he saw me he was afraid, for he happened to be the very ninth devil that had been inside the knapsack and got away with a black eye. He quickly locked the gate, ran off to the chief of devils, and said, “There’s a fellow outside with a knapsack who wants to come in. But if you value your life, don’t let him, or he’ll wish all of hell into his knapsack. He once had me horrible hammered in it.”

And so they called to me outside and told me to go away, I couldn’t come in.

If they don’t want me here, I thought, I’ll see if I can find accommodations in heaven. I’ve got to stay somewhere.

So I turned around and walked on until I came to the door of heaven and I knocked there too.

Thursday: In and Out the Pearly Gates

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The Adventures of Brother Jim based on the story “Brother Gaily” from The Juniper Tree and Other Tales from Grimm.