Events shape us, but you know this already, you too were shaped by your events. They make us who we are. We all have our own personal stories. Sometimes we forget a story or adopt one that isn't our own in order to make a conscious change. Sharing those stories can empower them. Some stories gain lives of their own that are greater than the real events. In the spirit of this, let me tell you a story. I will begin with a few words of warning: This story is a lie. However, like most lies, if you are able of seeing the truth underneath, then you may gain something greater than if just told the whole truth from the beginning. Such is the power of lies.
I shall begin with the old words, for they hold power and bind the story with it.
Once upon a time in a far away land, there was a certain river valley. In this valley there was a village surrounded by forested mountains. There was a keep inhabited by an old viscount. The viscount was a kind man who did not overly tax the folk and made sure that in winter no one starved. Along the river that cut through the valley there were small tiered waterfalls that the villagers put to use by building mills for their grain.
The viscount, although old, had a younger daughter. She was the talk of the surrounding lands. Her skin was supposedly like satin, her hair the color of the breaking dawn, eyes like the spray coming over the top of the falls over the vale. Very many young men tried to win her interest. The viscount issued a challenge to any would-be suitor of his fair daughter. Being wise and generous he insisted hat the men display these talents as well as honor, bravery, and humbleness.
In the spring when the mountain passes thawed and the river swelled, caravans of traders made their way through the valley heading to richer locales. Still, they went through the dale and carried the story of the viscount's daughter and the village to places unknown. They also carried the tales of the viscount's challenge. To some, this challenge was more interesting.
Late one spring after an especially harsh winter a lone rider came to town. His horse was sable and of good breeding; especially sturdy and quick. Unlike the beast of burden, the man mounted on it was malnourished, emaciated, and wounded. The kind people of the valley cared for the man and when he was well enough to tell his tale, he began, "I was beset upon by brigands in the hills beyond the mountain pass. They dispatched my friends and I only escaped by chance with what I thought was a mortal wound. This horse has been carrying me for what has felt like days."
Immediately, after hearing this, the viscount issued the first task for his daughter's hand: removal of the bandit problem. Meanwhile, the viscount insisted that the man stay in his keep until he recovered fully. A month passed and the man healed, and the many young men who went out in search of bandits never returned. During his recovery in the keep, the man saw the beauty of the viscount's daughter for himself and upon doing so foolishly fell in love.
The man swore to track down the bandits and rid them from the land beyond the mountain pass. He departed and many thought he would never survive to return a second time. Life in the village continued and prospered over the rest of the year. That winter there was a massive blizzard early in the season which closed the mountain pass earlier than expected.
In the depths of midwinter, there came a stranger walking into the town. He was dressed in gray rags and staggered like a man lost to the wild. He walked through the deep snow right up to the front of the keep. It was only when he was allowed entry that it became apparent that he was the man who left earlier in the year.
The man told the tale of how he sought out to find the lost young men, how he could not find them, but how he found the bandit camp. He told of how he eliminated the bandits using stealth and guile, how he was in the pass during the blizzard, and how he was trapped for days. He told his tales until he passed out from exhaustion once more.
When the man recovered once more in the keep, he was awarded riches by the viscount for his bravery and service to the land. Being a man who traveled and had few possessions, the man gave the money to the towns people who housed him and nursed him back to health during the times he was injured as well as those in the village affected by the harsh winter more than most.
When the viscount heard of this, he summoned the man to his keep. "I had my healers care for you and I gave you gifts of gems and gold for your deeds, why did you give them away? Were they not valuable?"
The man plainly responded, "I have traveled the earth many years and walked on many gems and jewels, but never have I been in such a place that has more beauty than a man can buy. I gave to those in need and those who cared for me when I was ill."
"You are a stranger to our lands, but you show strongly the values that I hope to instill in my people. Speak plainly, have you come for my daughter's hand?"
"If she will have me."
And with that, and the consent of the daughter, the man became engaged to the most beautiful and pure woman in the lands. They were wed. There was much ado. The people rejoiced.
But, this is not the end of the story.
No, there is far more to come.
-L
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