The Saving of the Feast: A Fairy Tale

There once was a kingdom in a faraway land at the foot of a mountain. The King and Queen ruled wisely and well, and their people were happy. Each year a feast was held at midsummer. Preparations lasted a full week, and the festivities were a time of celebration for everyone in the kingdom.

One summer, the royal advisors were late in returning from overseas. The time of the feast drew nearer and nearer. The King was anxious. “What shall we do?” he asked the Queen. “Midsummer is only a week away, but nothing is ready. We need 50 workers for day and night shifts!”

The Queen frowned, deep in thought. Suddenly, she snapped her fingers. “I have heard of a council of wizards called ShiftCloud. They know about all of the temp agencies in the land.”

“Impossible!” laughed the King. “How could anyone know that?”

“Magic,” the Queen replied. “ShiftCloud uses magic to find all the agencies in our kingdom, and then those agencies bid on the job we create. We choose the best bid to provide the help we need.”

The King agreed that they should post a job on ShiftCloud. The Queen sat down at her computer. “All right,” she said, rolling up her sleeves. “Let’s get started.”

“How convenient!” the Queen exclaimed. “The Getting Started guide explains how to create a job.” In a few minutes, she had entered all of the information, specifying 15 workers for night shifts.

“Now,” the Queen said, “there are a lot of agencies who could help us. Let’s see… I shall share the job with all of them, and see what bids they send me.”

An hour later, bids were starting to come in. The Queen realized that she could create as many jobs as she wanted, each with different dates and specifications. She could see all the information in one place!

But that would come later, she reminded herself. For now, they needed a provider for the feast.

“Goodness,” the Queen declared. “Prince Charming? No, thank you… Hmm. Those woodcutters are cheap… but Snow White’s ratings are higher. I will accept her bid.”

* * *

The next day, the Queen checked Snow White’s employee assignments. Each worker had high ratings:

“Perfect,” the Queen said. “Let the preparations begin.”

And what a commotion! From morning till night, the castle buzzed with activity. Snow White’s workers scurried to and fro, mindful that people were arriving from all over the kingdom. Tents went up, fires were lit, children flew kites and chased butterflies; in the kitchens, royal cooks chopped and sliced and broiled and sautéed. The Queen and King could sleep easily, for they had as much help as they needed.

As the day of midsummer dawned, the royal couple took their places in the great hall. Each table was festooned with flowers. Delicious smells wafted from the kitchens. Caterers came forth, carrying silver platters piled high with meat, fish, and bread fresh from the oven. There were tureens of soup, robust green salads, sweet pies, and delicate pastries; huge wooden barrels of beer; carafes filled with fine red wine. The earliest risers gasped when they peeked into the hall: this would be a feast to remember! And later that day, there were races to look forward to, the horses’ decorations glinting in the sunlight, on the beautiful meadow at the foot of the mountain.

“I shall give a thumbs-up rating to Snow White,” said the Queen, “and each of her workers as well.”

“Thank you,” said the King. “ShiftCloud has done well by us. We can find workers there all year long. I no longer fear for our kingdom in times of short-staffing.”