Legends of Arconia | Inspirational and thought-provoking stories

23 mars, 2015

The Iron Spine

Most of my memories of my grandfather were happy ones. I always felt welcome in his presence and he gave the warmest smiles and hugs of everyone I knew. One day just a few weeks before his passing, he suddenly told me he wanted to tell me a story of his youth. Perhaps he already then felt his breaths shortening and knew that it was time to pass on something important to me. He often talked great lengths about the youth of my dad (especially the awkward bits that made my dad blush and tell him to stop), but never before had I heard neither him or my dad telling anything of granddads own youth. Needless to say, I got when very curious when he told me the following:

My dear grandson, you might think I have always been the grandfather you know me to be, but if you ask your uncle or aunt, you will probably hear a very different story.

When I was young and about your own age, I had moved with my family to a new town and changed school. In my new class I found myself feeling very alone as most of the kids there had different interests and hobbies. Often did I sit alone in schools hallway during the breaks, reading the books I loved but feeling increasingly alienated. It didn’t help much that the sport freaks in the class had decided to tease me by taking my books or disturbing me with mean comments.

Despite getting encouragement from my teacher and my parents, I was not taking the episode well and felt like the world had done me a huge injustice. As a result, my teenage years created in me a sort of armor against this hard world, a cold attitude and tightness that I carried within. Not wanting to get close to others for the risk of getting hurt, through thoughts I repeatedly told myself that I was best of on my own..

You, teased in school and having a cold attitude? Wow granddad, I really have a hard time imagining you like that! He smiled as I interrupted him and leaned a bit closer towards me.
Haha, I understand it might be hard to believe but ask your uncle, he if someone knows this past, he chuckled, and then looked very serious all of a sudden.

As you hear, my outlook at that time hardly seemed like a good beginning to enter adult life. But somehow, as if struck by lightning and winning the lottery at the same time, I had a tremendous blessing coming into my life. It was my first wife, long before meeting your grandmother. We met through our passion for books, but besides from books, she was ever as much an opposite of me as was possible. Where I was secluded, cold and introverted, she was outgoing, kind and with the warmest heart. Together with her, I had two kids, your uncle and aunt, and..

Wait, hold on! You had another wife before Grandma? And my uncle and aunt are her children? The shock made me unable to stop myself from interrupting granddad.
Yes, I’m sorry I never told you this before but somehow it never seemed like there was a good moment for it. But after postponing it for many, many years I realized the moment is only as good as you make it, so this is why I am telling you now. Granddads tone had now changed to an even more serious one and his words had a certain unusual weight to them.

Our marriage was a good one, but I was not a good father to your uncle and aunt I’m sorry to say. I was overly strict and harsh, often I yelled at them for the smallest things only to regret it later. Luckily their mother would always find the right words to comfort them and as they grew older I guess some of her magic spilled on to me and our relationships improved, until that day.

Hearing my grandpa’s voice softening, I looked up into his eyes and saw tears almost forming.

I had just gotten home from work, when I got a call from someone speaking in a very serious manner. They asked me if I was at home and then explained how they were terribly sorry to bring me this message. Granddad paused a short moment and his face strained as if preparing himself for a tremendous challenge. He then uttered the words:
My wife had died in an accident at work. Shocked, I dropped the phone and as the crackling voice repeated hello, hello, I stared into nothingness.

When their mother died, it was saddest day in my life, and the shock slammed shut a door within me that had just begun to open, if ever so slightly. I never quite understood what she saw in me as who I was back then but thanked the world for every day I had with her. However, just as she was ripped away from us, it was like her passing ripped away the little softness I had left in my heart, and I became even colder and stricter than before, which made times hard for all of us remaining in the family.

With your aunt and uncle now in their teenage years, our previous disputes seemed like a light breeze compared to the stormy winds that often echoed through the house. Your uncle, taking up on my harsh temper often shouted back while your aunt instead cried and tried to make peace between us. Somehow I had mostly managed to forget my own hard times in school and seemed to do everything that would make them be socially restricted as well. I put strict times that they would be home in the evenings and forbade them from being out late in the weekends going to parties with their friends.

The idea of my kids having sex was a deeply disturbing one and as such I did everything in my powers to try and prevent the inevitable, and with that only increasing the distance between us. The more rules I put on your aunt and uncle, the more opportunities they had to go against my will.

I’ll remember this when I get to that age, I thought to myself and smiled within

Continuing to speak, my grandad changed his posture and straightened out his back. At these times, together with the hardships in relating to my children, came a hardship in my body. I began to feel sharp pains in my back. First only in the early mornings, but later on it persisted throughout the day and made me more miserable than ever.

I had an old habit back then, that I still keep with me, a habit from growing up with my father, your grand grandfather. Once every week he used to take me up on a hill nearby where we could overlook the entire valley we lived in. When I asked him why, he usually didn’t give me any answer but one time he told me that grand views was good to get grand thoughts on hard matters.

I hadn’t done the walk up the hill in many months because of my back pains, but after a strong conflict with your uncle, I felt I was sorely in need of some grand thoughts.

When I sat down on the hill, looking out on the great clash between sky and land, I almost immediately began to notice the sharp pains in my back. Struggling with the pain, trying to block it of the best I could I also was pestered by harsh thoughts about your uncle’s rebellious behavior. In the midst of all these struggles, I suddenly remembered a sentence my deceased wife used to hum.

Putting iron against water and it will surely rust
Keep your head full of thoughts about what you should and must
Will slowly turn your blood into dry dust
Instead let the streams run wild and just
Trust

As I heard the final words in my inner dialogue, the sun glimpsed forth behind some clouds and warm rays hit my body. Surprisingly, the warmth seemed to spread beyond my face back and down into my back. If the warmth first was comfortable, it now turned hot like a blazing fire and mingled with the pain all the way down in my back.

I felt like my whole back was pierced by an iron sword, glowing red like ember and trusting through my back all the way down through the pelvis to the ground. Not understanding anything and feeling an extreme fear and pain at the same time, I suddenly felt so young and fragile, like I was a child again. In the midst of this panic, I kept remembering the rhyme by my wife and breath by breath gave up on my struggles as I exhaled. When I finally felt my back relaxing, tears now began to pour down my face. Like the first drops after a long drought, they ran over my cheeks like water in a cracked riverbed long dried out. On this very moment, life came back to me.

My granddad now turned his face and looked to me. I saw that his eyes were now moist and shining and they remained so as he told the rest of the story:

After the event on the hill, I had many strange things happening to me. In everyday life I would often feel very warm and tense moments before saying some uneccessary harsh words to your uncle, like a warning that helped me change course to a better relationship with him. And even stranger still, I would have many a sexual thoughts about girls, something I hadn’t had in a long time. Perhaps I shouldn’t tell you this, but a few times I even had sexual thoughts involving animals, even your own aunt! I felt very shameful with these thoughts but could not doing anything with them except laugh and not take them very seriously.

And in my dreams, often would I see a small child crying, resembling myself, that was cared for and comforted by my deceased wife in her younger years. With time passing, my relationships with your uncle and aunt greatly improved. Since I now had learned that suppressing my emotions only makes them worse, I saw the same pattern in how I acted with them. The less I resisted and tried to oppose their plans and wishes, no matter how crazy they might have been (especially the ones of your uncle), the more we could talk about it, and I felt they were actually listening to me instead of just playing some kind of theater. Through these honest conversations, I began to see them as individuals with their own needs and pursuits in life, rather than only seeing them through the old lens of my fears and worries.

Also regaining a bit of my younger self’s open and curious attitude, I started reading again and joined a book circle. It was here I eventually came to meet your grandmother and we ended up having your dad. Sometimes I joke to your grandmother that raising your uncle and aunt was a preparation for the real challenge, raising your dad (but don’t tell him that). At first I was actually very reluctant to her invitations but she persisted and I somehow felt that my first wife would definetly want me to remarry. That’s it, the end of the story, I hope you don’t feel upset for hearing it so late, because that wouldn’t be of much help to either of us, Granddad chuckled and twinkled his eyes as he gave me a overly strong pat on my back.

It felt strange, to know that I kind of had another grandmother that I never got to know. A grandmother whom by just hearing of her made me feel warm in my chest. It first made me sad, but now that I know what my grandfather went through and how she helped him change to the loving man I know today, I felt happy for the truly great gift she gave me.

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23 mars, 2015

Sleeping Beauty

In a small town not far from here, lived a man, ordinary like most. He worked as a carpenter, building houses and made a comfortable living from that. His dreams did not stretch farther than the confines of his town and most days he felt content with his lot, if only he would have a family to share it with.

But as of late, he had begun having trouble falling asleep. Often he would lie in bed for hours, ruminating over the most mundane of things. Countless of times he would go over conversations of the past days, worrying about what others might think of him, or about tomorrows unfinished work.

When the lack of sleep began to affect his carpentry, him feeling tired even during working hours, he said to himself determined:

– I better go see that old ragged lady, perhaps she can give me some help

At the outskirts of the town lived an old and wrinkled lady. Infamous for her very peculiar ways of helping, but highly cunning and respected for her knowledge of medicinal plants.

Approaching her tiny house, the man felt a strange mood coming over him. He suddenly remembered how he, as a kid had played daring games with his peers, of whom would be courageous enough to peek inside the windows of her mysterious hut. Also brought to his mind was a memory of how he once hurt his leg badly but was cured by her herbal remedies.

He carefully knocked the door and waited for a reply

– Come in come in, chuckled a cracked voice

He opened the door slowly and was met by a wave of aromatic smells

– Ohh but if it isn’t the son of Jules and Eve, how big you have grown! Please, have a seat and I shall make us some tea.

Smilingly and with a sense of familiarity, he sat down on the wooden chair

– I see you still have your fathers smile, the lady noted

Tell me, dear one, what can I do for you?

– Thank you for your time dear lady. As of lately, I have had great troubles falling asleep. Whenever I lay in my bed at night I stay awake for many hours, worrying about all things good and bad. Over and over I end up thinking about tomorrows work, the coming weekend dances, but also on last weeks conversations and what others will think of me. Even silly things like bandit attacks or bad harvests occupy my mind in these nocturnal hours. The man answered in a elaborative manner

– Ah, I understand, replied the woman. These are all thoughts that in the right moment have their virtue. But for every repetition this virtue is scrubbed down to useless dust.

– Precisely, so please, I ask of you to give me some herbal potion I can drank at night to fall asleep. pleaded the man

– I’m sorry my dear, but I have no potions for you, the woman quickly replied

– Why not? Exclaimed the man. The woman, unsurprised by his reaction, took her time before explaining her reasoning:

– Potions to ease sleep by dampening worrying thoughts or pain are never solutions in themselves. They are merely like snow on an untidy garden. Their only aid lies in the ability to postpone the problem for a later time, when one might have more beneficial circumstances to deal with it. But sooner or later, spring will arrive and what’s covered under the snow will come forth, sometimes even messier than before.

To you, a young man with the best of your abilities, i can only give the real medicine:

You say you worry about all things high and low. What is obvious to me, is that all your worries are connected to this idea you have of your future self. Even your worries of the past circles like vultures around this future you, who might or might not come to harm from something you have said or done. Slowly the woman’s pitch altered and became more distinct and her tone lowered.

But how do you even know you will wake up the morning after sleep?
How can you be so sure that you will exist in this future you imagine.

This question, will be the only medicine I can offer you today, said the woman and by her tone implying their conversation was over.

– The man, dazzled as if hit by the sheer weight of her words, slowly arose and left the house. As he walked home the steps felt heavy yet fast, as if he tried to walk away from something. And in the depth of his thoughts was now a dark seed planted.

Many days went by and he did the best he could to avoid pondering the unsettling question given to him. But it seemed the question had a life of its own and only grew stronger by his opposition. He now slept worse than ever, having an intense fear of vanishing, of not waking up again. Even during the day he would sometimes feel afraid for the smallest of things.

He pressed himself to go back to the old lady, unwillingly as he had a vague feeling that another meeting would not give him what he wanted

In their second meeting, the lady seemed even more welcoming of his arrival.

– Oh, I see you have returned, she greeted him

– I’m sorry to say, but your medicine have been a bitter one. I am now scared even more than before and worrying thoughts occupy my mind during both day and night. He explained with a sadness in his voice.

– So I hear. Then what exactly are you so afraid of? The woman asked with a piercing sharpness

– It is nothing other than death itself I fear. To vanish and and forever from this world disappear, the man promptly replied

The fireplace sprakade as her voice trembled in the small room

But why? Numberless times have you vanished as you’ve fallen asleep, only to be resurrected the next day. Why fear what you do not know? Surely you have no idea how it is to fall asleep, never again to wake up.

– But.. I still fear it. How do I know it’s not painful, that I will not be trapped in some deathly realm forever?

– Hmm. How could you breath in without first letting go of all the air in your lungs?Trusting earth and sky that it will supply you with new fresh air. Everytime you breath out, you do so without truly knowing there will be another breath to fill your body, slowly dying before the next in breath rejuvenates you once more.

But when one lives in mistrust of this process, the rhythm is broken. One pushes the air out violently and in the next moment gasp for air instead of waiting for air to fill the lungs in the natural pace.

– Ah, I cannot see how this would help me any bit at all, muttered the man

– Oh you thick headed goof. When did all your carpentry turn your head into wood?

Let me be as clear as I possibly can:
You build a house to live in, despite knowing it will eventually fall apart. Just the same all of us live despite knowing deep within that we will eventually die. Most of us, keep ourselves occupied enough with pointless thoughts all day long to avoid facing this reality.

But as you have already noticed, you can worry about this or occupy yourself all you want, it will not make you any wiser. The lady suddenly looked straight into his eyes with her piercing gaze and let upon him a soft smile:

Therefore I give you as my last piece of advice the most simple of things: A smile. Whenever you face hardships, just remain with the smile that doesn’t know whether this breath is your last. The smile that begins deep down in your stomach and does not need to know or prepare for what comes next.

Her last sentence ending in a still silence, with crackling noises from the fire as the only voices in the room. After these words, the man arose slowly, forced himself to a polite bow and left the room. As he walked home he cursed his past self for deciding to seek her out for help in the first place. The coming days were hardly any better.

Now even as he breathed out, he was constantly remembered by the old ladys words, and with them it felt like he was slowly dying there and then as the air was leaving his body. More often than not did he end up in struggles with his lungs as the natural dance between inhalation and exhalation to him resembled more of a wrestling game. He tried many a times to force his lips to a smile but it only seemed to make things even worse. In his sleep his dreams were filled with death and agony. He saw himself die countless times each night. Death in work accidents. Killed by bandits, by diseases and even slowly brought down by old age.

But amidst all these hardships, a subtle change was taking place. The smiles he brought up were not as hardly squeezed, and his breath turned more and more rhythmic. Despite the notorious nightmares, he slept better during the nights than he could ever remember and in a few months had regained a vitality that was far beyond his previous. When a year had passed, his breath and smiling belly had turned fluid and soft like a mountain spring creek, worries of past and future seldom bothered him much.

After surviving a terrible accident at work, where he selflessly and without thinking threw himself to rescue a college, he noticed afterwards that he was the only one to maintain a calm and sanity in the panic that erupted. He now knew that that a distinct courage had flowered within him. And the countless smiles and battles with the breath had brought to fruition a generous trust in the ever so uncertain fate of the next moment.

Since he had moved to another town the year before, he decided one day to head back to pay a visit to the old lady and thank her for all her help. When he knocked on her door, there came no reply. Since there was a small smoke coming from the chimney, he thought she was probably out on some errand so he opened the door walked in. From the hallway he saw her lying in her bedroom and thought of waking her up. But as he approached her body he noticed an unnatural stillness. By touching her chest, he knew that the breath of life had left her during her sleep, but only recently as her body was lukewarm and the fireplace still burning.

With tears streaming down his face, he was about to turn her head up when he noticed her final gift to him. Because as he uncovered her face from the pillow, he discovered how her lips were forming a delicate smile.

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23 mars, 2015

The demon in her dreams

Many of us walk our life as if balancing on a thin line. One day tipping down on one side and end up feeling wonderful and filled with joy. But just as often the winds of misfortune may blow us down on the other side and we despise the day, oozing of hatred, disgust and bitterness.

For most, these dips are brief and short lasting but for some they can last for what seems as an eternity, and this tale is about such a fate.

Ever since she was young, Aduna had been known for her hot temper. In school, boys find her extra worthwhile to tease as she would run after them in an enraged fury.

Back home she would often end up in conflicts with her family, but just as easily as she ignited, so did she cool of and could the next moment shrug her shoulders causally for some issue that previously seemed to be a matter of life and death.

Growing into her teenage years, she dove heart first into wildly passionate relationships, often short lived and ending with loud voices and angry faces. But through every up and down in the relationship rollercoaster she became more aware of the emotional gasoline that fueled the ride.

She noticed a peculiar pattern in herself, she would often fall between the two extremes. On her good days, she felt madly in love with her partner and the world, as if nothing could ever come between them. But after these rosy times, the thorns began to take over.

Feeling like her heart was thrown into a stormy sea, she would be pushed between anger, jealousy and fear of being left alone, floating on waves of self guilt and loneliness. In these chaotic times, her own thoughts would grow sharp edges, either turning it all against herself or only finding faults in others. Slowly she found her way out of this black and white prison but only to unknowingly return a few weeks later.

It was as if her heart lacked a certain elasticity that was needed to bounce gently between the two extremes. After having met a partner that had both feet deeply rooted in the ground, she received great support in the stormy times but after many a weather shifts, her partner made it clear things were not working out at good as she thought. Despite being explained to that the bitter words she uttered while enraged may have been forgotten by her, but not by her partner, she still could prevent her sudden outbursts and felt that there was an alarming distance growing larger between them.

And as her worst nightmare, being completely alone and unloved was looming around the corner, her mood swinged more frequently and with an even stronger intensity. Slowly making itself to the surface of her mind, was a comment she never remembered to have heard from another: ”You will not find what you seek in others”.

Becoming more and more desperate, one day as she was out in the forest, walking of the worst of her boiling temper, she felt a sudden urge to scream out what tormented her inside:

– Why is life so unfair?! Why do the ones I love move away from me and hurt me so badly?

The words echoed through the spruce and pines, carried away by the wind into nothingness. In the silence that follows, she suddenly heard a strange voice from within, close to her own but still distinctively different.

– What do you think forces them to abandon you?

Taken by surprise by this odd voice, the threads of angry thoughts that had been occupying her mind fell apart and she walked home with a slower pace, baffled by this mysterious voice.

Later, the same day, when falling asleep, she lay in her bed filled with conviction that she somehow had to understand this voice and the question it asked her.

Entering the dream world, she became aware of an unusually vivid landscape formed around her. It was a fiery land, scorched by volcanos and pitch black clouds. In front of her was seated a gigantic mountain and an entrance to a cave lay at its feet. Somehow without fear, she walked towards the cave and as she was almost at its edge, saw an red and burning creature coming out of it. With vile eyes and

– Do you know who I am? Asked the demon
– It is you! She screamed out as she recognized the demon
– You are the source of my torment! Whenever I become engulfed by the flames of rage, it is because of your devious thoughts and tricks! – As she shouted to the red creature, flames around it seemed to intensify
– Why do you torment me so? She asked in a pleading agony
– I could only ask you the same thing. Do you not hear your own voice right now, screaming at me like a hungry child kept away from her mothers breast? The demon angrily replied

Infuriated by this insult, Aduna awoke from the dream, with a boiling rage pumping through her body. After calming herself down in what seemed like an eternity, full of bitter thoughts about this hideous creature, she finally managed to fall asleep once more.

And at once she found herself once again standing face to face with the burning beast, looking straight at her like it had just blinked while she was gone.

– How dare you insult me like that? Haven’t you caused me harm enough already? Must you also infect even my dreams at night? She angrily spoke to the demon, slightly calmer than before.
– In one way, you are correct. I have taken many dark shapes in the past. The demon causally replied
– However, did you ever consider, even once, that I might also be a victim in this war?

– What do you mean, a victim? Aduna asked with a bewildered look

– Look around you, do you think chose to live her in this hellish place and send you all sorts of devilish troubles? Sending you torment was my only way of communicating with you, and unfortunately it took you all the time until now to figure out how to come and see me. The demon explained and despite it’s groce face she could her by its tone it somehow expressed sadness.

– I don’t understand at all. Who put you here? And why would I help you out of here when you sent all this hell onto me instead? She asked with an upset voice.

– You have all the right in the world to be mad at me, I if someone understand that. But are you not tired of always having the clouds of rage and anger hanging over your shoulder? Asked the demon

– Tired? Tired doesn’t come close to describe my ailment. I feel torn apart by these relentless havocs in my mood. If you are the one causing them I ask you to stop them straight away. She commanded the demon.

– I’m afraid that is something outside of my power alone. The only way for me to help you, requires something of you in return. Replied the demon

– Tell me now, what would that be, although I have a hard time seeing I would even want your help in the first place, she sneezed back.

– For me to help you with your situation and bring answer to your question, you first have to find it in yourself to forgive me. The demon replied in a slow, deliberate manner

– Forgive you!? Once again enraged she almost screamed back to the demon. I would rather let you rot here forever, she shouted back with voice dripping of contempt, and woke up from the dream.

The days went by and she did not have any new dreams of the demon. But after another struggle with her partner, when going to bed the same night she felt a new form of uncomfort and heat in her body she never noticed before. After the sudden jump into the dream, the demon once more stood in front of her

– I see you have decided to come back. Perhaps we can now work together? The demon asked with a sincere look
– I am ready to work with you, but just to make things clear, I am not doing this for you, but for my partner. Aduna told the demon with a confidence in her voice

– Understood, the demon nodded as in agreement. Then lets move on to the forgiving.

– How do I do that? She asked with a perplexed look
– I thought all humans knew how to forgive? The demon asked with a surprised look. It’s easy, you just give me a piece of your heart to eat.

– What?! I could never do that.. she quickly replied.
– Is that how far your confidence last? The demon asked as if posing a challenge

– I’ll show him, she thought and in the same moment her heart appeared in the palm of her hand, alive and beating. At her will, a small part fell of and she gave it to the demon and watched in disgust as it gobbled it down.

– Thank you, the demon greeted and bowed and returned to its cave.
Waking up, she noticed nothing out of the ordinary and went back to sleep. In the coming days however, she was often pained by thoughts of old conflicts and hurtful words she had spoken. After a week had gone by, she once again dreamed of the demon.

– It is you again, she greeted the demon
– Have you come for yet more forgiving to be made? Asked the demon

– I’m not so sure how this is helping me, in the past week I have only been filled by remorse and hurtful words I have said, Aduna spoke in a slow manner.

– Your original questions, who I am, will take you straight to the truth of the matter. And of course this truth will pierce through whatever clouds and walls that have been blocking you from the answer. The demon answered. Are you now ready to give up an even larger piece of your heart?

Reflecting the issue for only a short moment, she willed forth her heart once more and gave to the demon a big chunk of it. This time, when gobbling it down as before, the demon seemed to turn slightly less violent and beastly.

In the coming time, the woman had even more frequent memories flowing forth in her mind of hurtful words she had said or received. And for each new visit to the demon in the dream, she gave it a larger and larger piece.

She now had begun to notice strange changes in her daily life. Anger, when it arose, she now felt it as a burning fist in her heart. And unlike before, she could let it remain so, not needing to spew out the fire in the form of angry words to her partner or friends.

Another newfound insight she made was of fear. Now ever so often fearful thoughts would arise in her mind. Fear of being left alone, of being unworthy of love and of hurting others. Together with these thoughts she would feel a distinct and novel surge through her heart, like a swift wind passing through.

Through time she came to understand that the streams of fear that normally would flow through the heart had ever since her childhood been blocked of. Instead they had gathered like a dam and slowly turned stale and bitter, only to let out ooze in the form of worrying and fearful thoughts and even violent anger when the streams were pushed by a strong fear.

In her conversations with the demon in the dreams, whom she now had befriended, she learnt that the demon had been passed on through countless of generations. In her childhood, when her parents had yelled and screamed at her, not being able to handle their own anger, their demons had been transferred to her body and mind as she made protective walls from all their misdirected malevolence. And just like she got it from them, did they receive their demons from their own parents.

After many a months, Aduns relationships had all improved greatly. She seldom lashed out in her old ways to those around her and many asked what had happened to her. Feeling like she lacked an answer they could comprehend, she usually replied shrugging her shoulders and said that she just learnt how to stay calm. She did however still have many fears that often gathered within her, a recent one was to loose all the love and intensive joy she had felt in the upper swings of the mood seesaw.

One day when she looked at a beautiful sunset with her partner, she suddenly was struck by a deep sorrow and grief. Mourning a loss that could only be expressed in tears, not in words. The very same night she dreamt of the demon once more.

– Greetings my dear friend. Tonight we celebrate as it is time for your to offer me your final and complete forgiveness. The demon, now looking more human than beast, greeted her with a big smile
Hello my demon friend, she replied. What do you mean with this complete forgiveness?

– You now have the opportunity to set me free forever, by giving me your whole heart to eat. The demon happily explained

– But, my whole heart? Surely I do not have to give you all of it, can I not save a little piece to protect me?

– Protect you? What do you need to protect from me? Surely you can trust me now after all we have been through? The demon said with a distinct sadness in its voice

– As she looked at the demon, she suddenly realized how lonely it must be. How sad and alone it had been feeling for all this years in this hellish realm. Finding courage in her empathy she decided to hone their agreement all the way through, despite her grave fears.

When she now willed forth her whole heart, completely exposed as it lay in her hands, she noticed how the hell around them had transformed and its boundaries seemed to evaporate into a black darkness.

When she took the final steps towards the demon, holding her heart in front of her, with every step she approached the painful truth she slowly had begun to understand, that the demon were not a part from her, but rather a part of her.

As she held out the heart and their eyes met, the demon held it ever so softly in its hands and through her vision she witnessed how the demon transformation into her own mirror image as it swallowed the heart whole.

In the very same moment, she and the demon both blended together as the hell around them vanished into nothingness, leaving only behind its comfortable warmth in this vast open space

With no walls to protect and thus block her heart, she now could see clearly that there truly was noone to blame. Not her parents, not their parents, not herself and not even the demon itself. And through her final forgiveness she had been the first one to break up with this ancient demon heritage, and with this turning her worst nightname into her closest friend and ally.

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23 mars, 2015

Rainbow Eyes

When I was a little kid, my parents sometimes got a bit tired of my relentless questioning of all and everything. Since my grandpa lived just next doors, at those times they would tell me ever so kindly, ”Why don’t you go and ask old grandpa that good question, I’m sure he knows a great answer!”

And sure he had. Besides having a smile as big and round as the enormous apples he grew in his garden, my grandpa had a great talent for finding answers to the weirdest of questions I would come up with. He had been working as a fireguard in the big reserve for most of his life and some people said all the loneliness had made him a bit crazy. Just my kind of crazy as I loved his tricks and funny stories.

During one of my visits to him, as I looked into his deep emerald eyes, it hit me that I didn’t know why people had different eye colors! Asking him straight away, he chuckled and stroke his big beard, a signal that he had a peculiar answer on its way:

– Why we have different eye colors you wonder? Let me share this secret story that a raven once whispered in my eye. It all happened back in the good old days when everything was black and white. Before we had any colors of the kind you see today.

– Ahh come on grandpa! Everybody knows you had colors too, it’s just that you could only take photos in black and white! I smilingly objected

– Ohh really? I didn’t know you lived back then, or how could you otherwise be so sure? Didn’t I tell you already to never believe something just because ”everybody knows it is so”. Grandpa put his serious face on and I realized I was defeated before I even began the argument.

– Back in these grey days, the only source of color we had, was rainbows. Oh my weren’t they the most beautiful thing you could ever image. But unlike today, they used to be full circles high up in the air, like snakes biting their own tails.

One day the clever monkey dragon was walking beneath one of these rainbows and bored as it was, thought up a plan to have some fun.

– Ohh you beautiful rainbow, how I admire your magnificent colors. Would you not mind to come down to the ground so I can look closer upon your astonishing patterns.

The rainbow, flattered as it was, gradually lowered itself to the ground by making itself straight instead of a floating circle. But as it came closer and closer, it became heavier and suddenly started to drift without control, falling straight down into the ground.

As it touched the dirt and rocks, they became illuminated by its colors and rapidly all its colors began pouring in the earth. The plants that grew in the now brown earth surprisingly sprouted in green and marvelous colors. And when animals ate them, new colors passed on to them as well!

Soon enough colors spread all over the world, but there was one place that for some reason remained black and white, the eyes of all humans. And when the colors of the rainbow ended up in the ground, all the rainbows in the sky turned black and white. This..

Deeply absorbed in my grandpa’s great story, I somehow remembered something important he had yet to mention and broke him of with a new question:

– But what happened with the rainbow that crashed?

– I’m glad you asked, because that’s exactly the answer to your original question, he responded with his broad smile.

One day when a little kid, just like yourself, was playing out outdoors, the kid found a small little colorful thing stuck beneath some rocks. Out of curiosity, the kid began to pull the colorful thing as hard as it could and with a big poof, it flew up from the ground and into the air. The kid could barely catch a sight of what looked like a huge colorful stream pouring up from the rocks before it lost its balance and fell headlong into the mud.

When arising from the muddy ground, the kid happened to look at its own reflection in a small puddle and was very surprised that its eyes now were sparkling with colors. Looking up to the sky it could now see that the colorful stream had turned into a great rainbow, but unlike the others, this one was in wonderful colors and instead of a circle seemed to stretch from the rocks, up in the sky and all along the horizon.

As time went by, more and more rainbows let go of their tail and fell down into the ground and as more people dug them up, eventually all rainbows ended up with this new shape, putting colors to the eyes of every human. But when doing so, the rainbow always lost a bit of its tail, that’s why when you go close enough to the end of a rainbow, you will see that it’s actually not ending in the ground but seemingly in thin air.

That’s why the famous treasure at the end of the rainbow actually exists where most people would never look for it:

– Where is that?! I quickly asked Grandpa. And as he slowly turned his moss green eyes to me, I knew his answer almost before he uttered the words:

– In the eyes of all the people you meet.

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23 mars, 2015

Women of Shadow and Light

Among our people, few legends are more famous and retold than the women of shadow and light:

It begins with a young woman who, like many of us in our youth, was utterly convinced she knew the perfect way by which to walk through life. Her conviction, running deep in her veins, could best be described as a path of light. She was always trying to be kind, smiling and to maintain a positive spirit no matter how dire the circumstances. Holding hope and faith as her dearest treasures, the future seemed ever so bright for her.

When accidents did occur, and hardships turned upon her, she would always find support in her belief that this too was nothing but a blessing in disguise and that something good must surely come out of it given enough time.

But despite all her noble efforts, many a nights when she was lying in her bed and waiting for the entrance to the dream world, her mind would be strained by a vague feeling of distress and uncomfort. A notion that something malicious was on her tail, and some nights this took the image of a shadow, a shadow that blended together with the darkness in the room and threatened to consume her. As she grew older, the shadow only seemed to grow stronger, but she kept her vision on the light ahead and dared not look back.

One day, one of her friend came to her with a message. Their village had recently received a refuge, a woman fleeing from a far away war. The refuge was in a very bad shape and tormented by dark dreams. Her friend then asked her to go and seek up this woman in need, surely one who was so kind and gentle could give her comfort.

She happily agreed and sought out the refuge, but as she entered the house, she felt her shadow creeping ever so close behind her. It was like an foul ooze of something dark inside the house, turning every step into a challenge.

Finally she arrived at the door of the refugee women and knocked

– Excuse me, may I come in? She asked

– I can’t stop you, replied a fading voice

She stepped in the room and had to resist showing any kind of reaction when she saw the woman on the opposite side. Sitting in a corner, with her knees towards her body, was the gloomiest of figures. With hair like a hornets nest, skin pale and chest caved in.

– Hi, I heard about your arrival and thought I can come by to help, the woman kindly greeted

– Thank you, but the ones who need help are already beyond saving, the war torn woman pushed forth

– I am terribly sorry for your losses, perhaps I can still be of help to you, is there not anything you need? She asked as mildly as possible

– No need for you to be sorry, it won’t do them any good. As for me, my needs are few. The ragged lady replied, and it was like her reply was cut off straight into silence

A silence that settled, and saturated the entire room.

The woman of the village, visibly uncomfortable by a feeling of broken connection between them, abruptly asked

– I understand that you come from a horrible situation and with a dark past, but would it not help you to have something to look forward to?

– Look forward to? Why would I want to look forward when I can’t even look back without pain or grief. – The woman bitterly replied

At once it stood clear to the woman just how upside down her question had been.
Like asking a cow to stop ruminate food, such was the nature of her question to the woman on the other side.

But stubborn as she were, she persisted.

You can build a new life here, make a family in our peaceful village – she purposed
– Why would I do that? Only so that I gain new loved ones that will eventually die and be taken from me again? Open my heart only to have it ripped apart once more.. – the cornered woman replied

She understood, of course it was too big of a suggestion to one that had lost family and friends, something smaller should work better.

Perhaps you want to help me cook and and hand out food for the workers in our village today?
– Not really. They will just end up being hungry again, and might even complain that my way of cooking is not how its supposed to be.

Don’t say that, maybe they will love your way of cooking?
– If so, then I will just cause them distress when I am no longer around to cook for them

The woman desperately tried to turn the conversation around

But could I not help you with a bath and some clean clothes?
– What for? Time will make both me and the clothes dirty again in the blink of an eye

Whatever the woman proposed, was carefully broken down in its components until no more meaning remained.

The woman of the village felt ever so distant from the refuge, despite her efforts. And as deep as her belief, so was the barrier between them. They were like day and night, oil and water and each time the woman visited the refuge she left with an ever so haunting shadow, now weighing her whole body down and distorting even her kind smile.

But just as the shift between night and day, sets ablaze the sky, so would their meeting take a volatile course.

One day the woman felt she had enough and walked with rushed steps to the house of the refuge.

She went straight up, flung open the door and shouted:

– When are you going to let go of the past? Just sitting here and endlessly reliving what you can’t change will do you nothing good!

The refuge, shocked by hearing the anger from this kind and timid creature, lashed back:
– Atleast its better than your childlike manners. Always longing for the horizon,
but instead of going there you run around in circles, too afraid to find out the truth that’s been right behind you all this time. From dust and darkness we all spring forth, all return to.

– My faith is stronger than to be pushed down by some bitter words, the standing woman replied, yet feeling thoroughly shaken by the force of the statement

Her statement proud as it was, ignited perhaps some old remnant of pride and nobility, and the eyes of the shaded woman suddenly sparked with fire as she grinned and replied:

– Ohh, is that so? I purpose a challenge then. Let us change place for a month and see just how deep that precious faith of yours is rooted.

– It would be my honour, said the woman

On the dusk the very same day, their challenge commenced. The woman of the village was to sit in the same room for the whole month, neither washing or changing clothes, while the refuge would take her place in the village and help out with all the chores (and maintain a proper hygiene).

Without much time passing, the woman of the village quickly met hardships in the dark room. Countless were the times she was on the verge of giving up, of walking out and resuming her old life. But every time she almost fell for the sly, charming thoughts or wanted to run away from the towering darkness, something within her helped her stay put and wait it out.

As hours turned to days and days turned to weeks, the sun rose on the final day marking the end of the challenge. And when she opened the door and stepped out in the light, she felt born anew.

As she began to rejoin her old life, she was shocked to discover a new kind of vitality. It was as if all her overblown optimism previously had drained her of energy, always trying to find some way of making sense and meaning, even where there sometimes didn’t have to be one. She now was able to be at ease without having to justify it and knew that overworking her smile like she used to actually was not helping anyone.

Most shocking of all however, was an episode that took place during the darkest night a few weeks into the challenge.

After struggling through every single night, trying desperately to hold her hope and faith together, ultimately she was pressed to give it all up. The shadow and darkness finally caught up with her and consumed her whole. But instead of falling into an endless black hole as she had imagined, she found that as the vast darkness and remaining faint light united, her body seemed to melt together, from left to right, from outside to inside. Leaving nothing but an inviting openness on which her whole life could emerge.

In the days that followed, sitting alone in the dark room she gradually understood how her hope, faith and willingness to focus on the light side, good supports and shelters as they had been, also had trapped her in a protective cage. A cage that built walls around her. By daring to release them, by daring to cross the shore to the realm of despair, she learnt she need not abandon them for good, but that she now could live life more openly. No longer forced to fixate on an escape route from darkness to light, she stopped counting the remaining days and felt at once a great peace entering the room and her heart.

Coming back to her old life, she could now truly meet people where they were rather than where she wanted them to be.

Never before could she have guessed how much resentment she had carried towards people with less fortunate circumstances in life, previously believing it was their own responsibility to turn their situation around.

As for the girl of the shadow, her hardships presented themselves almost immediately.

In her long time absorbed in solitude it seemed she had forgotten the many fundamental ways of connecting with others. Needless to say, malltalk, smiles and touches did not come come easy to her

The villagers around her felt the strangeness she emitted and reacted by behaving ever so uncomfortably in her presence.

But after a week of being surrounded by nervous chatters and tiptoeing, the woman somehow found the whole situation so obscure she found herself laughing for the first time in what felt as an eternity.

And as her body trembled from the laughs, her belly and chest began to open and relax ever so slowly.

As more days passed and she felt safer and more in tune with the villagers, she started to take small strolls in the neighboring areas.

In of these strolls, approaching an open meadow she suddenly saw something she never could have prepared herself for. It was a family of husband, wife and their two young sons flying kite on the playful summer breezes with their father. Laughs and joy echoed from a distance but turned into a bitter taste in her stomach.

As the kite crashed in a tree nearby, one of the kids ran towards her. When their eyes met, the kid shyly said hi and she stood as frozen to ice.

And there she stood, long after the child had disappeared. Like a memorial statue, stone outwards but chaos within as she relived in her inner eye all the horrors of the war.

But as the smells of the summerly meadow flowers and the songs of the birds filled the air, she felt the playful breeze fly on her skin, warm by the touch of sun. And at last, the eternal winter that had gripped her heart began to melt. Bittersweet memories streamed down her face as she cried out all the injustices and brutalities she had to face, and at the same time remembering her joyful youth and the smiling faces of her deceased children.

Not by forgetting, but rather by forgiving even life itself for her terrible past, she slowly began to find her way back to a place of trust within.

Through time she learned that her heart was never really broken but instead torn open so wide and sensitive by all the scars
That slightest light and warmth felt like a searing fire.

And when she dared to let in more, this vulnerability turned into a vibrant source of wisdom.

After this breakthrough it struck her that all the fancy ideas and philosophies she had carried to the village, true as they may have been, were only a last resort and defence to prevent her from fully acknowledging the losses.

Time now flew by faster and in the last days of the challenge it suddenly hit her that all the terrible thoughts that previously had tormented her, now visited ever so seldom. More often than not she could now enjoy even the smallest things in everyday activities.

When the two women met, it was in silence just as when they departed.

But this was a silence of a different nature, not like the dead and solid wall of before
Rather a fragrant and gentle space, an expression of the
deep attunement and respect they shared.

They embraced each other for many breaths and from that moment were inseparable in their sisterhood.

What they both realized in the challenge was so simple, they quickly had heartfelt laughter as they shared their experiences.

The tale of these brave women and their challenge where so inspiring to the whole village and nearby communities that people started seeking them out for advice in all types of manners. It didn’t take long until rumors of their knowledge spread widely and countless of youths followed in their tracks, diving deep into brightness and darkness.

As time became history, they became known as the great mothers, wise of shadow and light.

And to celebrate their communion, to this day we people of Edith honour both dusk and dawn, the time when day and night became each other.

It is said when asked the most important lesson they learned from the challenge, the women replied instantaneously in a united poem:

One blinded by the strongest light, never to see what’s truly here
Carrying behind the largest shadow

One blinded by the pitch black darkness, never to see what’s truly here
Lost forever in the whispers of the past

But when daring to look back, daring to fall and let the shadow catch you
When daring to cross the stream again, leaving death for life once more

The hunt is over, the walls are torn down, never to be rebuilt
One sees only beginnings without meaning
The other is blinded, of potential and hope endlessly dreaming
Between the two, truth intervening

As day and night transform into each other
The scorched sky reveals
The vastness between
Inseparable
Like you and me

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23 mars, 2015

The Immortal Man

When I was growing up and came to the terrifying insight that we will all die, my grandmother used to comfort me with this story of the man who wanted to live forever:

Many years ago, here walked a man who lived his life in constant fear of death. He was taught since childhood to always avoid danger even in the most benign forms, and his parents made sure his diet was proper and took extensive means to maintain his perfect health. And when his parents finally passed on, their deaths became fuels for his fears and he became even more occupied to ensure he did nothing to risk an early death.

But no matter how much they struggled, his years counted higher and blodcells lower as he grew old.

As he was approaching the final stage of his life, resting alone near a lake, lacking both vigor and skin color, he saw his own reflection in the clear water and called out a desperate prayer:

Please, you servant of darkness who hear me, please come and save me!

As it happened, a shadowpriest was walking by and came to the man.

What ails you my friend in need – the priest asked

My body is fragile, my mind shrouded and my heart so tense even my heartbeats feels like a heavy burden. The marks of death are all upon me and I feel I am not ready yet. – replied the old man

I see your bodys weakness, I hear your minds confusion and I feel your hearts weight as it was my own, old man – ensured the priest, then asking

What can I do to help you?

I know you shadowpriests know ways untold to commoners on how to extend one’s life beyond the normal span, please could you teach me how to live longer, if just for a little bit? – begged the old man

That would be my honour dear friend – replied the shadowpriest

After conducting a sacred ceremony, the priest then gave the man a herbal concoction and told him to drink a tiny sip of it with the rise and fall of the sun each day. This would give him as many years longer to live as the number of days he drank the potion.

The man did as told and drank it for 10 days straight. To his surprise, he found his health and vigor returned, his thoughts were clear and heartbeat as light as in childhood.

Grateful to the priest, he resumed his life with his family and time began to fly by once more. On the day marking the 10 years since the ceremony, he suddenly remembered and at once was grabbed by an intense fear, gripping his heart like a clenched fist.

Oh no, what if today will be my last day? – his worry grew with an anxious fervor as he noticed his body aging, heartbeats heavier and his mind become misty.

I am no more ready today than I was 10 years ago, please, surely there must be something I can do to prevent this?

Then he rememembered that he still possessed the herbal concoction, as he kept it in a safe vault during all these years. Quickly, before the sun settled beyond the horizon and intoxicated by fear he drank not a sip but a mouthful. A few moments after he sighed deeply as he felt the body rejuvinating once more.

Some time later he ended up walking near the same lake and once again met the priest.

Greetings my friend – said the priest
I take it my advice worked out for you as you seem healthy like a youngster

Yes, my dear benefactor, I am truly thankful from the depth of my heart for this blessing you have given me. I was recently on the verge of dying as I only drank for 10 days and the 10 years have now passed, but then I rememembered your potion and drank a big mouthful, which seemed to prolong my life even more – replied the old man

Ohhh, I’m sad to hear that, said the priest

Why are you sad? I am as healthy and happy as ever, asked the man

By drinking that big of amount, you surely will have reached beyond the immortal level, and thus will never die by nature’s grace – explained the priest

Really? You mean I will live forever? The man replied, excited
And why would that be something to shed tears for?

You will find out soon enough – said the priest

Hmpf, muttered the man and walked by

He then fell back in his old tracks, now with a sense of freedom that he knew all the fear he had was unnecessary.

But as the years grow by, his wife was now drawing closer to her last breath. He was now struck by an immense grief and fear, what would be the point of living forever if he would be all alone?
He once again turned to the herbal potion and told her to drink a mouthful. She also, returned quickly to health and from that day seemed untouch by age.

Now the years rolled by even faster, and before they knew it, both their kids had aged past them and were now lying down for their final rest.

Both unable to accept this heartrending fate, for a parent to outlive their kids and even hold their hands as their spark of life left them. Thus the father once more brought forth the potion and gave to their kids.

Now, as the whole family was immortal, the old man thought peace would be had forever.

But inevitably, one day came when his grandchildren had their last moments coming.

And as he rushed for the potion once more, when lifting it up from the vault, he suddenly stopped mid motion as the realization struck him.

He saw the futility of his actions, as time would once again just make another jump and they would end up mourning his grand-grandchildren. And he rememembered all his friends he had lost on the way as he now was in two generations ahead.

After shedding both tears and laughter, on how pointless all his efforts had been, he went back a final time to the lake to find the priest.

Sitting there, in the shade of a tree was the very same shadowpriest

I understand now why you were so sad my friend – began the old man

As you now know, I too drank to much of the elixir out of fear and ended up immortal like yourself. – replied the priest

And as you also have realized, this only postpones the hardship to the next link in the chain. Because if you can’t even face your own mortality how could you face others?

Ah, said the man, I see now how vain my attempts have been, ever since I was young I have been running, running, constantly on the run from death.

But it strikes me now, that I have not even the faintest of idea what it actually means to die – stated the old man, with a curious look on his face

The man and the priest had many more conversations and lived to face many deaths among them, until the day forever turned into today and they finally could see for themselves what death really means.

It is said the old mans last words were inscripted on his grave and that they were the following:

”Immortality is not about living forever, forever avoiding death
The truly immortal is one who faces the end straight upon

Because only the one who knows death while living
Will have the heart lifted of the chains of fear”

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23 mars, 2015

The gift of words

Spurred by the failure of its previous plan
The monkey dragon had now devised a far more ingenious scheme, this time to finally make peace among the humans.

First approaching a tribe in its majestic dragon form, it gracefully descended from the sky and spoke with their elders

Fear me not, landwalkers, for I do not come to harm you, proclaimed the dragon in the chattering speech of the humans of this time

I come merely to share one of my gifts, if you would have it

What is this gift you speak of, great reptile – answered the elders

Seen only when written
Heard only when spoken
Known only when learned
Carriers of wisdom
The greatest gift of all

What I offer you are symbols. Symbols to pass on what you have learned, to help one another to food, to avoid danger and to come to agreements.

This sounds too good to be true – replied one of the elders
What then do you wish in return? Asked another

Dear little one, said the Monkey Dragon
I wish for nothing in return but that you leave my forests alone

So it came, with their curiosity catched and suspicion squenched, the elders accepted the gift and learnt from the dragon the ways of the written word.

And at first it seemed the gift was far greater even than the initial praise by the Dragon

The people were so delighted, now that they could write down all their stories and knowledge of places near and far. They could describe and monitor even greater areas than before and quickly pass on knowledge on everything from herbgathering to housebuilding. Tribes that had been in feuds and battles could now begin to come to terms and agreements and violence decreased multifold.

And by gathering around certain written stories and uniting under the same language, their tribes grew bigger and bigger. But in all this progress, some of the elders began to notice changes.

In the younger generations, as the kids grew more dependant on written words, they no longer looked up to the older generation as they used to.

Gone were the times when friends and foes, young and old, gathered together around the evening fire to dance and hear the stories from the elders.

And even though there were many more conversations in the tribes than before, they seemed to be missing some sort of connection. Because no matter how they tried, words alone never could convey one’s experience all the way from the heart.

To some people, the usage of all these words became much like a web that trapped them in their thoughts. Getting stuck in loops in the mind and more often than not saying the wrong words, without meaning so – lying to themselves and others. When their clouded judgements became too shrouded, it often led to mischief and even greater violence than before through machines of war. Because in every generation, technology advanced by every word written down, and not all was of the good kind.

And the initial promise to the Monkey Dragon, to leave the forests untouched, was quickly forgotten when someone came up with the idea of making paper from trees.

This is why some people here parted ways with the modern civilization and withdrew to the remaining mountains and forests. To live a life free from the ensnaring trance all the words and symbols brought with them.

Others took a different route and began using the words themselves to rid themselves of the trapped thoughts and to communicate clearly from the heart, and their descendants are known as the riddlers.

In the end, one could say both good and bad things of this gift from the Monkey Dragon. But you better leave the forests alone as not to spur it’s rage because who knows what kind of gift it will bring forth the third time.

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23 mars, 2015

How humans lost their tail

Have you ever wondered how we humans came to loose our tail?

In a distant past
When we used to roam the forests with our tails, like our monkey brothers and sisters

One day one of our ancestors, jumping around from branch to branch, suddenly came eye to eye with the legendary monkey dragon

The monkey dragon, at this time disguised as a simple monkey was getting tired of all the humans overcrowding the forest with their noise, and saddened by their violent manners. Thus it had come up with a scheme to put them on the ground for a while.

– Hi there fellow tree dweller
The monkey dragon shouted to the human through their chattering speech

I have seen your kind jump around in the treetops for quite awhile now and i must say you look pretty confident in your climbing skills

– hah, replied the human
We are surely the most agile of all the tree dwellers and i myself is one of our tribes quickest climber

– ohh really? Said the monkey dragon
I have heard the tribe on the other side of the forest has an even quicker climber

– pfft
No way muttered the human
Who would that be?

– the young speedster in the mango tribe

– ohh that kid I could easily outspeed any day of the week

– aha, then you wouldnt mind a race between you two i suppose?

Ohh that would be nothing but a stroll in the fig trees for me, lets get on with it right now!

– ahh you sound so confident
Chanted the monkey dragon
Perhaps you would like to take me up for a bet on that?
If you win, i promise to show you some hidden fruit grooves ive recently found
But if the kid defeats you, you have to promise me that your whole tribe will stop using your tails for a whole month!

hmm, what an odd bet thought the human and then spoke out loud

– ahh never mind about the losing part since that wont happen, go and get her so we can decide here and now whos the quickest climber

After putting up the stage and gathering the tribes
The race begun

As was expected, the boasting adult was way faster than the little kid
But midway through the race
Something terrible came up in front
It was a reptile monster bigger than anyone had ever seen
And the sight of it scared the grown up frozen to the bone

(This creature was actually the monkey dragon who quickly had changed apperance in order to change the race in a more favorable outcome)

When the scared one finally got to the end of the race with tail between the legs
He was once again approached by the monkey dragon

– what happened to you my friend
The kid passed through the finish line ages ago
And you look like you have just seen a ghost

– hmmmpf, grumped the now shameful human

And so it ended up that his tribe were forced to live without tails for a month.
But within the first day they realized that the bet did more than that.
Because without the aid of their agile tail, they all began to fall down from the trees and were now forced to live on the ground.

The monkey dragon, satisfied with the result, kept pitting more tribes against eachother. Always scaring the dominant male and making him loose his tail to a younger kid of amother tribe

After a while
It looked like everything was going great for the monkey dragon.
The humans who lost had their tribes descend to the ground during the month without a tail and the canopy calmed down

But slowly the plan began to backfire for the monkey dragon

After living some time on the ground
Some humans actually found it so pleasant compared to all that jumping, climbing and always the risk of falling down,
That they began living there permanently as land dwellers

And as such they cut down trees to make their fires and houses
Furthermore they spread across the world in all types of land
No longer restricted to the treetops as homes.
And made more noise than ever
Especially when they competed against one another

Because for every time a tribe lost, they came up with new ways of combating eachother so that the embarrased male could prove his strength once again. These turned into all sorts of odd games and they even made up even artificial tail extensions!
(When humans stopped using their tail, it grew smaller for every generation until but a tailbone remained)

As such
The monkey dragon hatched a more clever plan to finally get some peace in the jungle..

— In this modern day and age —
Few of us remember the days of flying across jungle trees with our tail as support but one memory yet remain in us all

Whenever we sit up in a chair
And are on the verge of falling asleep
We can sometimes forget that we ever left the treetops and as soon as we go deeper into sleep
We typically wake up with a fearful realization of falling
Catching our breath as we remember —

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23 mars, 2015

Running trees

It is said that a long time ago
Trees used to walk on earth just like animals of today

Slowly they moved
Slower than an untrained eye could see
But among these trees
Some young and quick ones were picking up the pace

They encouraged each other to walk longer and longer distances each day

Why should we just remain in one spot – they shouted
When we can roam the land and discover whats beyond the far hills and mountains

The older trees shaked their heads in disagreement
– why all this running around when you can let the wind move you just enough
And let the sun and rain give food and quench thirst just by standing still, they lectured

Standing here and there
In the same place every day every year
How boring
The younger trees shouted

Why would we have to wait for the rain for water when we can run across the plains to the streams and drink

And who would want to have groce insects pollinate us when we can rub our branches on eachother instead?!

So they walked and ran all across the land
But gradually grew tired

Mysteriously their leaves turned yellow despite all their drinking.
It didnt seem to matter how much they drank from the deep river or bathed in the strong sun

Until one of them understood
– Thanks to our constant movements, our roots cannot dig deep enough in the ground to support us with earthly riches

And when a harsch drought hit them
Drying up even the deepest river
Many of them died of thirst

Not long after the drought came an unusually big swarm of locusts that ate all their leaves

The trees realized how dearly they missed the birds that could have protected them
Since they didn’t have much insects in their leaves and they moved around too much to make good nests, the bird had since long left them

Gradually the surviving runners slowed down
First with a sense of defeat and depressed mood
Many grew bored
But slowly, as the insects and birds came back, and small animals made their home beneth their roots,
the once restless trees began to enjoy their stillness, now being ever so aware of all the fascinating things taking place around them that they couldn’t see before, when their branches were always stretching towards the fields far away.

Today most trees have gone back to being moved by the wind
Traveling in time instead of space
And allowing insects, birds and rainclouds to support them with what they need

But every now and then
You might end up in an open and inviting glade in the midst of a dense forest
And perhaps here used to stand a tree that one day rooted up and walked away

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23 mars, 2015

Sun and Moon

Have you ever wondered why the sun wanders across the sky?

It is said that our great great ancestor Zor once learnt how to travel all the way to the sun
And out of curiosity asked it
Why are you always wandering across the sky like that?

Then sun then replied
Dear friend
If i could only explain to you how wondrous this light is i have seen in a distance
Ahh you probably wouldnt have anything to compare to

It is always there on the sky
As a white ball floating across
But it seems that whenever i get close to it
The ball turns and ends up on the other side of the earth

Zor
Baffled by this weird story
Asked the sun

But have you never caught up with it in all these eons?

Ohh, exclaimed the sun
I surely have!

Just a few lapses ago
I actually came so close i could feel this great warmth and light cast upon me
I was utterfly at peace that moment and somehow it felt so familiar, this radiant warmth
Almost like it was coming from someone very close to me
But then i quickly lost it and we parted ways yet again

Zor then made a huge laugh

– But dear sun
Dont you know
That all this light is coming from yourself?

– Nonsence
Muttered the sun
I couldnt make anything that beautiful
Im just floating around here all alone in the cold space

– I see
Replied Zor
And suddenly understood

The sun
Despite being so utterly vast and flourescent has no mirror but the moon in which to feel and see its own radiance
Therefore it always wanders across the sky to get closer

And this is why we celebrate the solar eclipses

Because at that moment
The sun realizes all the warmth and light it saw in the moon
Is nothing but a drop of its own inner source of energy

But after the eclipse
The sun looses its own reflection
And begins to relentlessly run across the sky once more as it forgets the true source

This is why its so important for us in our daily life to be the moons for eachothers
To remind eachother of the greatness, warmth and wonders we are constanly passing on to others

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