David Svensson Author & Illustrator
o2e
ordinary to extraordinary in a heartbeat
"The Forgetful King" Artwork in Process
"The Forgetful King" (492 word Picture Book)
There once was a king who forgot everything. As king he'd forget what a king is and does.
On really bad days he'd forget who his was. He'd proclaim a new law, then forget what he said. The thoughts in his brain just slipped through his head. The king looked down at the world from his tower. He was afraid he would loose all his power.
"I have to remember," said the king with a frown. "If I always forget, I could loose my crown. The people will leave and find a new king, unless I undo this forgetfulness thing."
So he tied a string on a finger, pinned notes on his shirt, wore odd colored socks, and shoes full of dirt. He tied bows in his hair, hung bells from his neck, did all kinds of things so he wouldn't forget. When the king was quite sure he'd remember his name, wouldn't forget and wasn't insane, he set out on his way to rule in the land, with the crown on his head and the staff in his hand.
But when the people saw how the king was now dressed, they tried not to giggle, point fingers or jest. He made them all laugh with his funny new style. He was greeted with friendly warm gestures and smiles. The king then explained that the socks on his feet were there to remind him of when he should eat. "The bows that are colored both red and light blue, are there to remind me to tie my right shoe."
"The bells that hang around this gold chain, remind me to wear a coat in the rain. I wear notes here pinned all over my chest, string on my finger and dots on my vest. My shirt's inside out, and there's dirt in my shoe. All this is so I won't forget what to do."
The people then told the king one by one, how each one remembered the things to be done.
"I keep an egg here under my hat."
"And I tie a bow to the tail of my cat."
"I have notes pinned on my shirt too!"
"And I put rocks inside of my shoe!"
"We all have things we forget what to do. You're just like us, and we're just like you!"
"But what about those?" asked two little girls, pointing to flowers above the king's curls.
"Oh those," said the king, though he hadn't a clue, "I believe they're a gift for you and for you."
A miracle then happened right there in that place. A grin came over the grumpy king's face!
"Now I recall what I lost for a while, I almost forgot that I have a smile!"
And so they all danced and started to sing. The people had found a friend in the king.
We all seem to forget things once in a while, but let's never forget that we all have a smile!
"Heart Man Max" (Text)
When it came to make hearts every year Heart Man Max would work in high gear.
He made hearts out of clay, and some out of wood, he made others from red colored rocks if he could.
With a great deal of care and a little good luck, Max finished the hearts and loaded his truck.
He drove down the hill, which was often quite bumpy, to his first customer, Mr. Theodore Grumpy.
Mr. Grumpy complained that his heart was too small. He'd need one much bigger to be good at all.
But Max tried to keep from losing his cool when he saw Mr. Grumpy use his heart as a stool.
Miss Impatience was next, Max saw on his list, checking the time on the watch from his wrist.
"What took you so long?" she said with a shout. "And where's that new heart I've been hearing about?"
"I've waited too long, I'm ready to flip! And this tongue in my mouth is starting to slip!"
Max was indignant, but wouldn't let on. He left her the heart then quickly drove on.
Mr. Joe Meany was his very next stop. Max clung to the wheel and sipped on his pop.
"The last heart I got was soft to the feel. Don't you have hearts that are made out of steel?"
Joe Meany was not such a super nice guy. The heart of Joe Meany was a patch on Joe's eye.
"The stop for Miss Envy is always a treat," Max humored himself as he drove down the street.
"The hearts you give others are better than mine! Mine are so normal, but theirs are divine!"
"Give me a heart that's better than theirs, And give me no less than four or five pairs!"
Max thought Miss Envy was being quite rude, but to argue with her just wasn't his mood.
He gave her the hearts then left her alone, hoping that she wasn't accident prone.
Mr. McPride was one for the books, always self centered and stuck on his looks.
He bragged all about the size of his pad how rich that he was and the power he had.
Mr. McPride used the heart on the wheel of his great big oversized automobile.
"I'm in the wrong business," Max thought to himself. "I should never have taken these hearts off the shelf."
With one heart to go Max was just about done. His day up to then just hadn't been fun.
This last little heart was tiny indeed. So tiny in fact, it looked like a seed.
Max pulled on the string that hung from the bell attached to the door of Mary Heartwell.
Max was surprised she invited him in and asked him nice questions like "How have you been?"
Mary enjoyed the hearts that Max made, and fondly admired his heart making trade.
"I won't need a heart, but don't get me wrong, the one you made last year is still beating strong."
"The heart has grown big, so large and so wide, now I'm making hearts in the field here outside."
Then Mary showed Max an incredible sight,. more hearts in her field than stars in the night.
And Mary told Max with the happiest grin that all of these hearts had come from within.
"Some hearts that you make just might go to waste, but look what one does when it's in the right place."
Then Max remembered the heart like a seed. But where would it go with no one in need?
With Mary Heartwell standing right there, something inside made Max aware.
"This tiny heart seed belongs to me."
"And we'll help it to grow, just like a tree."
And as they both looked across the land, Heart Man Max and Mary held hands.
"Heart for Courage"(Text)
A Heart Man Max Adventure
Heart Man Max had hardly finished hanging his sign when someone was calling on his telephone line. On the other end of the phone was a girl in soft tears who told Max she had struggles with fears. She was a surfer, who loved to compete, but was hindered by some sort of internal defeat. Her heart needed change, to help find her way. The thing she loved most was slipping away.
"Meet me at Mary's shop by the beach, what your heart really needs is well within reach."
The girl's name was Nikki, and Max sprung into gear. He'd make the kind of heart needed to overcome fear. What Nikki was feeling Max understood. He'd craft the heart needed from a rare piece of wood.
Max loaded the buggy that he called Unique, and headed towards Mary's Beach Hut Boutique.
When Max arrived, Mary and Nikki had met, and Nikki now shared how she felt caught in a net. A big wave had come crashing with a thunderous sound, held her beneath and tossed her around. Now Nikki was very much afraid of the sea, but she always loved surfing, how could this be?
"You need a heart full of courage, it would appear, to replenish your confidence and take away fear." Max brought out the very special wood, and explained its significance as best as he could.
"This tree fell when a strong wind blew, but up from its roots a new tree grew. What seems like the end of some things, might actually be life that's given new wings. What could've been the end was really a start. This branch even grew in the shape of a heart. That's what courage can be like for you, the end of one thing old, the start of some thing new. We'll use this wood to make a heart on a string, that you can hang 'round your neck and wear like a ring."
Mary said they should fill the heart with good things as well, like the peaceful sound inside a seashell. Mary held a conch shell up to Nikki's ear. The sound of the ocean is just what you hear.
"The sea can be harsh with its waves and the sand, but a powerful force can be held in your hand."
Mary suggested a spot on the beach where the waves bring things in and puts them in reach.
"Let's go see what the waves have brought in, to fill your heart with nice things within."
So Mary, Nikki and Max rode bikes on the strand, a narrow dirt path right next to the sand. They then walked through dunes with high wispy grass, to a place known for shells and polished sea glass.
Mary found a perfect little shell half buried in sand. All Max could find was a dumb rubber band! But Nikki found glass in a heartwarming hue, in the shape of a heart in a deep color blue. What could be better for a heart full of light than to inlay a heart made of glass blue and bright?
Then Max pointed toward a beautiful sight, just beyond birds who were hovered in flight. Dolphins where playing in the waves just offshore. They were riding waves once, then riding once more.
"It looks like surfing is what they like to do! They were born for the surf! And surfing, like you!"
Nikki was amazed, seeing them have so much fun. The ocean was calling, Nikki was stunned.
Back at the shop, they all did their part to put all the pieces into Nikki's new heart. Max hollowed a place inside for the shell, and inlaid the blue polished sea glass as well.
"As a reminder, we'll also include a small piece of sand. Big things come from small things that are held in your hand."
"You know," said Nikki, "Maybe even that dumb rubber band. It'll help me be flexible when things don''t go as planned."
This made them laugh so hard it hurt to smile, a laughter that Nikki hadn't had in a while.
Mary had a note on a little small scroll. She tucked it inside, like a tiny note roll: "Be strong and courageous, you always can know, the Lord God is with you wherever you go."
Nikki dipped the heart in resin, from a can made of tin, and hung the heart in the window for the sun to shine in.
"Let's get back to when the ocean was fun, we'll climb on my long-board and all go as one."
Floating together on Max's surfboard, they laughed and told stories of things the adored. Nikki felt comfort and wasn't afraid, she felt the presence of friends, new ones just made. But when at the shore and about to get out, the still of the day suddenly broke with a shout. A boy cried for help in a terrible plight. A tide pulled him in, and then out of sight. The lifeguards were there, but not close enough. The waves had been calm, but now they were rough. Nikki's fear of the waves came all rushing back, like a fierce animal in a vicious attack. But she didn't have time to think or to waste, she had to push fear aside and jump in with haste.
She paddled out to where the boy had last been, attached her leg to the leash, and then she dove in. People watched wide-eyed, holding their breath, when suddenly Nikki popped up from the depth. She helped the boy climb up out of the sea, then paddled to shore as safe as can be. This could've had a very different end, but the boy ran arms open to his family and friend. Nikki realized she had passed through her fears when she witnessed the joy, celebration and cheers. The embraces and hugs brought all kinds of looks. This was the pure kind of love that you read of in books.
The new heart now ready glowed in the light, courage and faith put fear onto flight. And on the day when the surf event came, Nikki now felt it was a whole different game. She realized that courage begins and it ends, with support of each other, like family and friends. She found Mary and Max to be quite a pair. In all that they did they showed that they cared. They filled her new heart with hope and great love, the real kind of love that comes from above. This is what gave her steps a new stride and pushed all her fears of the waves to the side. She tucked the heart in and zipped herself up, then ran to the waves in the Surfer's Beach Cup.
Then Mary and Max watched with incredible pride as they saw Nikki make a sensational ride. The crowd and the judges all knew it was good, no one could sit, everyone stood! She rode the wave with skillful finesse. It would be come to known as her wave to success. Nikki had never been so strong or so sure. The change from within was a change that was pure. She triumphed that day with courage and grace when the new heart she had looked fear in the face.
"A Heart for Christmas" (Text)
A Heart Man Max Adventure
The Christmas season was here, and Heart Man Max was spreading good cheer. With the last heart delivered, he could be on his way, wrap it all up and call it a day.
But before he was home where he’d kick up his feet, a heart caught his eye as he drove down the street. Someone had trashed it right there in plain sight, not far from the tree to be lit up that night.
Max rescued the heart and brushed off the dirt.
“Whoever did this must really be hurt.”
He turned his head to look left and right. From what he could tell, there was no one in sight.
“Only broken hearts get thrown away, but hearts can fixed, and I know the way.”
Sure enough this heart had a crack, so Max took up his tools from the truck in the back.
“I can fix this heart with really good glue, squeeze it real tight and make it brand new.”
When Max set out on his way his feelings were mixed. Would he be able to find the one whose heart he had fixed?
Max saw some singers, so that’s where he’d start.
“Have any of you, by chance, lost your heart?”
The group smiled warmly and simply said, “No.”
“We sing songs of our Savior, our hearts are aglow.”
Max left a little something to help cover their cost. He had work ahead to restore what was lost. He had to act, and he had to act soon, and these song birds were on there next tune.
He came across a mom and her girl. Max clutched the heart like a precious lost pearl. You couldn’t help notice the smile on each face. Turns out the mother called herself Grace.
“We’re celebrating the birth of our Lord!”
You could see in their eyes he’s the one they adored.
“So your heart is not lost, you’re trying to say. Well I have to find who lost one, and there must be a way.”
Max looked to the sky and the stars up above.
“Can you help me find this one who needs love?”
Then Max heard a familiar faint sound, and someone’s soft steps approach on the ground.
“Max!” said Mary, with her signature grin. “What brings you here, and how have you been?”
“Mary!” said Max, with his arms held apart. “I’m looking for someone with a lost broken heart.”
“I’m looking for someone who lost something too. I found a letter unopened on the path by my shoe.”
“To Miss Molly Spring,” Max read the name. “The Spring family customer! The address is the same!”
Max had delivered them hearts long ago.
“How long had it been? How long I don’t know.
Molly must have been a young girl back then. Maybe three years?,” he wasn’t sure when.
“Do you think she has a broken heart now?”
“Well I fixed it,” said Max, and told her just how.
Walking together, Max explained the whole thing. How he had met all the people who knew Christ as king.
“We have to find Molly to give the heart and the letter. With hope and a prayer these will make her feel better.”
Then Max and Mary met a man of the street, who barely had more than the shoes on his feet.
“Have you seen a young girl without a smile? We’ve been looking for her for quite a while.”
“The girl who was clearly missing her heart? I made he one of my pieces of art.
“I make art then give it away. I hope to brighten up everyone’s day. I paint on my easel, so Easel’s my name. The easel I paint on and my name are the same. The art I made her was a little spring flower, with the words ‘Take heart. You were made for this hour.’”
“I’m sure she was touched by these kind words of yours. We have a heart and a card that we think that are hers.”
“She went away, into the night, around that last bend and then out of sight.”
Easel was thanked, and they went on their way. He was a breath of fresh air and a glowing sun ray.
“Max!” said Mary, as she looked up ahead, pointing to where the boulevard led. A short distance away was the infamous bridge that stretched from the town to the neighboring ridge.
Mary saw Molly’s dark silhouette, and called out her name though they never had met. Molly was stunned to hear her name called, and stopped in her tracks like a car that had stalled.
When Mary and Max and Molly did meet, it was close to the bridge, not more than five feet.
“What do you want?” Molly then said, struggling with all the sad thoughts in her head.
“I found the heart that you threw away. I fixed it myself, I knew just the way.”
“And I found a card you dropped on the ground. It still is unopened, was lost and is found.”
“The heart that was broken was mended for you, so you can find hope in all that you do.”
“The heart I threw out was broken in two. The letter means nothing. What could I do?”
“Perhaps there’s a message that you need to hear, and maybe this note will make it all clear.”
“The card is from grandma, as sweet as peach pie, but I couldn’t bear reading, you give it a try.”
Then Mary read Molly what grandmother wrote. It was a quaint Christmas card and a nice little note.
Dear Molly,
You are so precious to me. Just look at the lights on a bright Christmas tree. They sparkle with joy and inspire delight, of our dear Savior’s birth on the first Christmas night. Just open the door, that’s doing your part, of asking him in to live in your heart. There’s always a place for you in his arms, He’ll always be there and never do harm. He loves you much more than I ever could do, but always remember…
I always love you!
Grandma
By now Molly wiped wet tears from her face. She felt touched by God right there in that place. Max then gave her the fixed broken heart, in hopes that its mending would make a new start. Molly clutched the heart with her might, when suddenly above shone a bright Christmas light.
“The tree!” Max said, pointing up at the sight. “They’ve lit it all up with bright Christmas lights! Come on! Let’s go!” he shouted with joy. Max was excited like a young happy boy!
Mary took Molly by the hand as they ran. “Let’s run to the tree as fast as we can!” They ran and they skipped their way to the tree. Max and Mary were happy, and Molly! All three!
They were in awe when the tree was in sight. It glistened in brilliant, dazzling light.
“It’s gorgeous,” said Molly as they looked from afar. “My grandma was right, just look at that star! It signals the way to Jesus’ birth, when he came as our savior to save the whole earth.”
Then someone again called Molly by name, and people were running, her whole family came!
“Molly! Where were you? We looked all around. Wherever we looked you couldn’t be found!”
They hugged her and kissed her and wouldn’t let go. They loved her more dearly than she ever did know.
“I’m not sure what happened, or even know how. My heart was all broken, but is all better now.”
And as the embraced and led her away, Mary and Max had no more to say. A miracle took place in the shape of a heart, when mended and fixed from what tore it apart.
Then Max and Mary placed a heart made of fleece, as a symbol of joy, hope, love and peace.
Merry Christmas!
Buttons, Evan, School Bus, & Skelly the Skeleton
About David Svensson
Bio
- I am a native Californian. I grew up in Orinda just over the hill from Berkeley. I am the youngest of six kids and was always an artist at heart. I graduated from the UCLA School of Motion Picture/Television and have worked for years in the entertainment industry as a Propmaker. Propmakers build the sets you see in film and TV shows. Heart Man Max was the first book I wrote during one of the handful of down-times I have had in my life. Sometimes art is created through pain, and I understand that. My hope is that my work will inspire and instill joy. Joy is what gives us strength. When I'm not writing books or illustrating I am most often doing carpentry work. I like to build things. I most particularly enjoy perfecting things that are broken. I want this to show in my artwork and storytelling as well. When you don't find me behind the scenes of a movie set you might find me behind the drums. I started playing drums when I was eight and still enjoy groove drumming to soul, funk, and ambient vibes. To date I have written and illustrated four books and am always formulating new ideas. I currently reside with my wife, two kids and our double-doodle in Los Angeles.