Sun

His last challenge was to bring the Sun back to adorn the King’s palace. When he cried that this was impossible, the old man pointed out a tree which, when climbed, would allow him to reach the foot of a cloud in the shape of a mountain. A man who climbed to the summit of the mountainous cloud would be able to reach the Sun as it passed the highest point of its path. “You will be higher than any man has ever been - but do not turn around to look at the world below!”

He climbed the tree and was able to step onto the cloud. All through the morning, he scaled the cold slope of the cloud. As he neared the summit, he remembered the old man’s words. He was higher than anyone had ever been before. He wasn’t scared at the thought of seeing the world, miles below and he couldn’t resist turning and admiring the view, just for a few minutes. He arrived at the summit just a few minutes after noon. But those few minutes meant that the Sun had just passed the point at which it was closest to the summit of the cloud. He stretched out and could feel the Sun’s heat but could not quite touch it.

He returned to earth empty-handed.