A Parable TopazOwl Tue Jul 25 09:56:17 2000 (This is being cross-posted to several message boards.)*p**br*Once upon a time there was a village named Starland. In this village, there were many, many people, all with the usual vocations and skills that people tend to have in a village. Among those people, there were the Aes Dana, which included the Bardic ones, who kept the people entertained with their gift of gab and teaching the history of the people. There were also among the Aes Dana the Druids, who catered to the people's spiritual and judicial needs. And there were the Seers, who gave the people herbal cures, went to the Otherworld for the people, guided the souls of the dead, and divined the future of the people.*p*The Bards worked hard to entertain and enlighten the people. They worked very hard, but never got so much as a handshake from anyone but the other Bards and the occasional Druid or Seer. Everyone heard their talk and their stories and poetry, but no one ever commented. It became difficult for the Bards to know if the people were even listening to them.*p*The Druids worked hard to be liason between the people and the Gods for special functions. They worked hard teaching the young people, tempering the warriors of the people, advising the farmers of the people, and working magic for the good of the people. But they never got any feedback from the people. They never knew if the people even heard what they said or learned what they taught. Still, they kept at it, because it was their joy and their mission in life, and the Gods told them it would be a good thing to do.*p*The Seers worked hard telling the future of the people, healing the people, and advising on Otherworldly matters. But except for the occasional Druid and Bard, no one ever said thank you, or even asked any questions of them.*p*As it is in all villages, people come and go. But the core of the village remained the same -- children were born, old people died, but mostly it was a village made up of the same people.*p*One day the Bards, Seers, and Druids gathered at the village tree and asked each other, "Should we continue to do this? The people never respond. Perhaps we are just noise to them. Perhaps they do not even *want* us in this village."*p*"Brothers and sisters," the Bards said, "we, all of us, work very hard for the people, and yet the people never respond. We get very frustrated only talking among ourselves, only entertaining and teaching and divining for each other. What is to be done?"*p*The Druids turned to the Gods in prayer and offered sacrifices, and the Seers looked for omens and signs to determine what should be done. The Bards examined the history of the people for answers. Finally the Chief Bard (as he was most eloquent among them), after consulting the Seers for omens and the Druids for the word of the Gods, came to answer the gathered Aes Dana.*p*"The Gods have spoken. The Spirits have spoken. The Ancestors have spoken. They have all said to bring the question before the people and let the people answer." The Aes Dana nodded in unison, for this seemed a very good idea.*p*They called a gathering of the people at noon near the village tree. First to arrive were the Aes Dana, and they talked casually among themselves, waiting for the rest of the village to arrive. The Chief Bard, Chief Druid, and Chief Seer stood together near the tree, waiting and watching. They waited for a long time, talking among themselves and looking for other villagers to join them. They drank some mead together and chatted quietly among themselves as the sun moved in the sky and then began to dip down toward the horizon. Then, the Aes Dana were silent. They all looked at one another sadly, shaking their heads.*p*Finally, the Chief Bard went before them all and said, "The people of Starland have spoken. By their very absence they speak louder than if the entire village had been here this day."*p*The Aes Dana moved off sadly together, packed their few belongings, and went away from the village of Starland. Eventually they found another village where the people wanted them to do their important work, a village where the people were not indifferent, where the people asked questions and applauded their efforts and truly appreciated the services they provided.*p*It is said that the village of Starland became a ghost town.*p*- C. Leigh Nic Fhionghaile *p**p*