DILIGENCE
The Plowman had picked his field carefully,
because he knows the ways of dragons.
(Some dragons may be slain by a Plowman
with paltry armaments, but others....?)
(I must stay away from the dragons that I don't know how to fight.)
Then the Princess arrived
(and many dragons were chasing her.)
She was so harried by her dragons
that she may have mistaken him for a knight without armor.
She had placed herself into his Charge, but that was long ago.
And the Plowman knew (all along)
that what she thought she wanted was a knight to remember.
(But I'm not a knight, and never will be.
How can I help her stay safe and happy?)
(All I can do is to be my best, and ask God for help with the rest.)
He hurriedly put up a fence around them both to thwart the dragons.
He built a tall castle
where they could watch for the dragons from a safe vantage.
(And it worked for a while.)
The Princess has formidable weapons, but she must practice.
She parries and thrusts in mock battles, readying herself for her dragons.
The Plowman could never but help her gird her sword and shield.
She never aims to injure, only to sharpen her skills,
for she has dragons to face.
The Plowman helps, but sometimes he dodges too close to her steel
(but the scars will eventually fade.)
(I wish I could tell which way to dodge her piercing moves,
and still give her the help I promised.)
(I wish I had a magic shield, so that she could strike hard and true,
but I wouldn't be hurt accidentally.)
The dragons pecked at the fence incessantly
until finally some small ones broke through.
Then the Big One came lumbering in.
The small ones (especially one) nursed from the Big One
until all the dragons were too huge to be fought.
But the Princess took up her sword and swung mightily
(and the Plowman dodged wrong again.)
(Wait, Princess, your flailing has not touched a dragon.)
(I can't see the Big One yet, although I can smell its stench,
but I think I see its offspring.)
And then the Big One stormed to the front and shook the flimsy castle.
The Princess glanced backward at him.
(Your dragons teamed with mine are too much for us).
(I must save myself...save both of us. Godspeed, Plowman!).
The Princess was gone, and the Plowman stood alone,
and the dragons seemed uninterested in him.
(There is a gaping hole in the fence.
I hope her dragons stay here and don't follow her.)
Then he heard the clang of sword against scale.
(The timbre of the note is strident.)
(It's not her sword! She has found a knight.
No, a knight has found her. God, let her be safe!)
(Oh, no! I've seen knights like this one before.
His sword is double-edged. God, please keep her safe!)
The Plowman searches...he wants to help the Princess...
but she must be found first.
The Plowman looks for the Princess. (You must find her!)
Where are you, Princess? (Though you already know.)
The Plowman paces....examines...paces...calls her name...
paces...searches...
(You know where she is, you fool!
Why do you persist in looking down untrodden paths?)
(The dragons are nothing. Forget about the dragons. FIND HER!! )
(She must think that she has already been found,
or she would answer when she hears my call.)
The Plowman will never give up.
It is his destiny to be beside the Princess. He must be steadfast.
(I know the dragons are hers,
but I can help if she can find her way past the knight back to the dragons.)
(I'll help her with any dragon...any knight...if she wants my help.)
The Plowman paces...and searches...he wants to help her.
Where are you, Princess? I'm here for you!
A KNIGHT IN THE LIFE...
Shiny armor! A gallant knight! My Rescuer!
Pure of heart...noble of deed.
Thanks, God, I needed that! I needed a knight like this!
(I'll just close my eyes and rest for a little while.)
The knight I've always longed for has finally arrived...
just when I wanted him.
The dragons have worn me out, and I couldn't
(didn't want to)
fight any more.
(The dragons plagued me, and the Plowman couldn't vanquish them.)
I want to dream about the knight.
(Even though I hear the Plowman calling my name.)
I think I'm awake (but my eyes aren't open yet),
and I think my knight is still there.
(He tells me that he's fighting dragons,
and he's promised their ears to me.)
(I've always wanted someone to give me a dragon's ears,
but the Plowman never could.)
I hear the knight now. He says the battle is won,
thanks to the inspiration he got from me.
The knight tells me that the ears of the dragon are mine.
He tells me that the gift is precious, and I should guard it with my soul.
(And I will,... I have! I feel so lucky to have found this knight!)
All I have to do is to accept the gift from him, (and him, alone).
He's giving me the dragon's ears, and, aren't they wonderful?
I've dreamed of these dragon ears.
(Wait! Something's wrong! These dragon ears aren't silky ...
they're scaly!)
(This doesn't feel right! Did he give me a knightly gift
that he got from someone else?)
But the knight tells me that his gift is for me, alone,
because I am so special.
Thank you, my knight, for the gift...(but, where did it come from?)
I ask, and he hints that the gift might not have come from him, alone.
The scales on the dragon's ears transform into the scales of a serpent...
poised to strike.
My eyes are opened wide, now...the serpent is deadly...and I'm afraid.
(Why did he?...he told me he wouldn't...I thought the gift would be silken...
and not secondhand.)
God help me! I've opened my eyes. I can see the knight's true colors.
The tarnish doesn't show if you look at it
when the light is at just the right angle.
But, now I can see more clearly...it wasn't a real gift,...
but a cast-aside trivet he brought back.
Others may not be able to see the tarnish,
but the shiny armor can't hide the black heart from me.
He led me to think that the gift was all mine, but he lied.
I was but another challenge.
His gift to me turned out to be the spoils from a sordid quest
in another realm.
(I wish I had never seen those dragon's ears.)
(I wish that I could have seen the knight clearly
before he gave me his horrifying gift.)
Are all knights going to be like this one?
(It just can't be...my knights are supposed to be good!)
When will I find a good knight?
(Later, maybe, but now I must concentrate
on ridding my domain of dragons.)
(God will help me. I don't think anyone else can.)
(I sometimes wish that the Plowman could have known
how to slay my dragons.)
(But all he can do is to stand beside me while I fight them myself.
He can't swing my sword.)
(The Plowman will help me and hold me up if I fall.
He will support me if I weaken or flag.)
(But the Plowman doesn't quest for knighthood,
though his heart is pure and his deeds noble.)
I think that if I look for another,
a Plowman can make a good knight for me.
FEARLESSNESS
(Ho! Good Plowman! I must return to my own province.
Will you help?)
The Princess waits while the dust from the last battle settles in the clearing.
(I will do what I am able, Princess. Where would you go?
Where are you, now?)
The Plowman can not yet see the Princess clearly
through the mist and clouds.
He has lost sight of the path the Princess had taken,
but has searched for her anyway.
He has heard the din of skirmishes, and, once,
he thought he heard her cry out.
Now she is close by, and is calling to him in answer to his signals.
(I am here, lying beside the pedestal from which I was thrown. I am hurt.)
(Your wounds will heal in time, Princess. Do you want my help with your bandages?)
How do you bandage a heart?
(I need but little, but, yes, you can help if you will.)
(What is that parcel which you guard so closely, Princess?)
(It was a trophy which became a pestilence when it was given to me by a knight.)
The Princess sneers when she mentions the knight.
(I will no longer remain in the domain of one who would forsake me
to pursue other quests.)
(Why, then, Princess, would you guard this souvenir?)
(I want never to forgive the knight for this cruel gift,
though he said he saw no ill in it.)
The Princess arises, takes the Plowman's arm,
and they travel back through the haze together.
They hear the rumblings of distant dragons, but they are unafraid.
The Plowman would help her keep her baggage balanced,
but his own baggage shifts constantly.
Neither knows their final destination, but they pause for respite
from dragons and knights.
(My people have summoned me home. I will rest there for a while.)
(They will help keep you safe from dragons, Princess. Rest well,
and call for me if I can serve you.)
The Plowman returns to the castle (his dungeon)
which he had built long ago to keep the Princess safe.
He will not repair the holes in the fence. His fear of dragons has vanished.
He has learned to live with them. (Fences don't stop them.)
The Princess practices daily to stay ready for her dragons.
Sometimes she asks the Plowman to assist in her training.
He is delighted, for he enjoys being with her.
The Plowman has learned much about avoiding her sword.
He can be near her without fear of injury
regardless of how she wields her weapons.
The Princess has learned much about how the Plowman reacts.
She can practice for dragons without fear of hurting him
when he dodges unexpectedly.
They find that they do not need each other
to combat their respective dragons.
(I'll fight my own dragons when they appear.
I don't need anyone's (the Plowman's) help.)
(If my dragons are too big for me, so be it.
It's not the Princess's charge to slay them for me.)
Neither dragon nor knight besieges them,
but they are ready if battle need be.
She rests high in the towers of her palace, guarding her secret gift (curse).
Both Princess and Plowman know the treachery of the knight,
But they speak not of him except to each other.
They hear of him scuttling from quest to quest
like a rat in a warehouse searching for morsels.
(Princess, do you remember the knight...?)
(Hush, Plowman! The knight no longer interests me.
It takes more than a fool to amuse me.)
The Princess and the Plowman sometimes laugh together,
taunting dragons which can surely hear them.
Dragons no longer inspire dread.
In fact, dragons should beware the Princess and the Plowman.
They are ready.
THE MESSAGE
The Voice came to me, not from the darkness, but in full light of day
as I wandered through my ruins.
I sensed an Angel, and she spoke words I could understand,
not the gibberish of the others who rattle on.
(Oh, Plowman: When will your ghosts vanish
so that you can see all the Princesses longing for loyalty and devotion?
Look carefully, and you will see them walking in your garden
when your dungeon becomes a castle again.)
She would not say more, though I implored her to continue.
Then I couldn't see her any more.
I know there are ghosts here...they do not frighten me...
their presence comforts me...they are familiar.
Have they obscured my sight?
Have they been in the way when I thought I was seeing clearly?
Is this abode a dungeon? I had thought I was free...(free from what?)
I want to see clearly. (But are the ghosts clouding your vision?)
The Angel hinted at such, (but how clearly can Angels see?)
The Voice told me that there are Princesses hungry for what I can give .
(And the Angel seemed so REAL!)
It's been so long since I met a Princess.
I don't know if I would recognize another one.
Am I afraid to expose a Princess to my dragons?
(You've seen what happens when dragons congregate.)
I'm not afraid of the dragons for myself, but a Princess...?
(But you know a Princess who is not afraid of dragons.
Are other Princesses more timid?)
Has the Princess whom I know led me to blindness?
(She has said Open your eyes, Plowman!)
She has warned me to be careful.
(Keep your eyes open, Plowman!)
No, it is my ghosts who have made the world unclear to me.
Can I not see? (Will you not see?)
Are there blinders on my eyes? Is there a lock on my gate?
(To keep the world out? Or to keep you in?)
Who is the Plowman? Prince or servant?
(Yes! Born to be both! You had almost forgotten!)
I will not live in a dungeon! The Light is glorious!
A Princess creates Light wherever she goes.
(So does an Angel!)
(And you can let the Light into these walls!)
(This castle will be lighted, again!)
There is Light abundant, waiting only for my sight
to acknowledge its presence.
Even if there be neither Princess nor Angel here,
there will be Light in my eyes.
I once built this castle, and a castle it shall be again!
(Thank you, Angel, for helping me see!)
Warm the Hearth! Fire the lamps! Let the Light flourish and dance!
Prepare the soil in the garden!
(Let there be Music!)
(A Princess is not the only source of Light.)
Make it plain that the Darkness is not welcome here!
Cry it out that Music, Dance, and Poetry abide herein,
and flares of laughter blaze brightly .
Princess, varlet, beast, or Angel...it matters not...
they are welcome here. (Unless they be deceitful...)
No deceiver has yet disgraced these walls...
even my dragons profess to be dragons.
(Let them past the fences.)
(Dragons are more honest than those knights
which proclaim their own honor falsely.)
Thanks be to the Angel, who helped me to see the Darkness
(and the Promise of the Light.)
(And who told you that the Light will reveal many wonders,
if you would only see them!)
Thanks be to the Princess,
who admonished me to keep my eyes receptive so that I could see.
The ghosts may stay if they wish...I will know that they are here...
but I will see through them clearly.
The ghosts will no longer be allowed to swallow me into their gloom.
The ghosts may exist...because I so choose...
but they may not control this place. (Or dim the Light.)
The Light will sustain me...It will keep me from falling asleep again
(when I think my eyes are open.)
The Light has been here all along...
but it took an Angel (and a Princess) to show me how to see it.
Thanks be to God!
(For an Angel, a Princess, and the Light!)
Thanks be to God!
THE EXAMINATIONS
The Plowman/Prince has examined his domain for signs of dragons,
and has detected several.
He has examined his heart for courage to fight dragons,
and has found ample.
He has studied his armory carefully,
comparing the weight of each weapon with its effectiveness.
He has tried each weapon against a luckless dragon,
discarding those weapons which prove cumbersome.
He has discovered that most dragons disappear on their own,
Without the need of battle cries and bandages.
Although some dragons require vanquishing,
they are the ones which can be seen clearly.
His weapons are more than an adequate match
for any dragon yet encountered.
He fears not to face dragons;
he feels secure whether in his castle or afield.
The Plowman/Prince has examined his domain for signs of Princesses,
and has seen only one.
Though he has seen many self-professed Princesses
who are not what they claim.
He has examined his eyes for acuity of sight,
and is satisfied that he sees clearly.
The Voice of an Angel had admonished him to look carefully;
the Princess had implored him to see.
He had blinded himself,
and has struggled to regain his vision (and his visions).
He has faith that Princesses exist
(other than the one he knows).
He is concerned that the real Princesses are hidden
among the crowd of pretenders.
The Princess whom he knows has accustomed him
to the joys of being with a genuine Princess.
But that Princess has rejected his offers to share his domain with her.
He enjoys spending time with a Princess
(The Princess).
But this Princess has shown no sign of relenting;
she retreats from him when he advances.
She has said that she wants him to be her Plowman/Prince,
not her Prince/Plowman.
The Plowman/Prince has examined his domain
for signs of decay and rot, and has found none.
(Other than the bleaching skeletons of slain dragons.)
He senses nothing putrid around him, on him, or in him.
He has examined his mind for clarity,
and has found pathways through the myriad mazes.
He has explored many paths and discovered
that even the old, well-worn trails show signs of new life.
Fresh blooms emerge between cobbles,
young saplings abound amid the established grove.
This place is not stagnant and deteriorating;
it teems with natal energy.
The new growth strives for existence,
And only the strong ones of the elders can withstand the competition.
He marvels at the Way of Nature that keeps the place vibrant with life.
He thanks his Force for the opportunity to view the spectacle within.
The Plowman/Prince has examined his domain
for signs of mis-fired arrows and has observed a mere few.
The vast majority of the arrows are snug in their intended targets.
He has examined his soul for direction and purpose,
and a range fraught with bulls-eyes was revealed.
Some of the targets are side by side,
each requiring its personal attention to aim.
Some of the targets are lined up so that the first must be penetrated
before the next can be dealt with.
He has seen that his aim has been true for the most part,
And he has determined to focus on keeping his aim.
He wants no inadvertent victims,
and he has tried to avoid injuring those in proximity to his targets.
His dread is that an innocent on-looker might suffer a wound
from a salvo intended for another.
He has no intention to injure,
so he practices by firing at the unfeeling and inanimate.
He has found that the few strays that flew wrong
were launched by the Plowman, not by the Prince.
(The Plowman's aim is true enough,
but the Prince's eye is keener, and his hand steadier.)
The Plowman/Prince has examined his domain for signs of occupancy,
and has found no trespassers.
There have been no uninvited visitors
laying siege on the castle or gardens.
He has examined his life for honesty,
and has found that only true men abide therein.
The steadfast Plowman surges ever onward,
eyes wide with astonishment and wonder.
The noble Prince stands ready,
welcoming the regal and the base who seek refuge, warmth, and Light.
He has passed this examination, and awaits the next.