Before the Bars The lion was not born in the cage. That matters. Before the bars, there was movement, choice, distance, the ability to leave, the ability to refuse, and the ability to make another creature think very carefully before […]
There are cages made of iron. And then there are cages with comfortable chairs. Those are harder to recognize. Aesop tells of a king with one beloved son, a young man fond of martial exercises and presumably quite capable of finding trouble […]
There was once a donkey who carried bags of salt for a merchant. Every day, the merchant loaded the salt across his back, and every day the donkey carried it along the same road and through the same stream. One […]
Heavy rain came hard enough to swell the stream and carry away whatever lay too close to its banks. A heap of apples went first. Then a pile of horse dung. Downstream they floated together, bobbing in the same current, […]
Jupiter was assigning duties and privileges to the gods. One by one they came forward and received their portion. Then Grief arrived late. By then, there was nothing left to give her. So Jupiter assigned Grief the tears shed for the […]
The Road Between Two Homes An old father had two daughters whom he loved dearly. The elder had married a gardener. She lived beyond the hills, where neat rows of vegetables stretched behind a small cottage and young plants […]
Where Winter Met Spring Long ago, Winter and Spring fell into an argument over which season people loved most. Winter lifted his silver head with quiet confidence. “They welcome me with warm fires, thick blankets, steaming soup, and families […]
The Question Above the Clover A snail was traveling through a meadow after rain. The earth beneath him was dark and soft, and every blade of grass held a trembling bead of water. He moved along the edge of […]
The Crisis Was Not The Time A wild boar stood beside a tree, rubbing his tusks against the rough bark. Back and forth he worked, carefully sharpening each one. A fox passing through the woods stopped to watch him. […]
