The Acolyte
A wise person and their young apprentice walked thru the dense jungle, returning from a foraging trip. The apprentice leading the way; moving with youthful energy, bouncing slightly on the balls of feet like a spring held in retention, swinging a spear stick. The wise person followed, hands casually clasped behind the back, face expressionless.
“What is the thing in the jungle that you should most fear?” inquired the wise person with a grumbled tone tinged with knowing.
The apprentice knew that these types of questions at first appeared quite simple, almost childish, but knew from experience that they were really meant to test and teach. The apprentice walked on in silence rolling the words around in the mind with hopes of wearing away the outer surface and get to the right answer hidden within. While the wild boar was most frightening to the apprentice because of a scary experience when a small child it was too simple to be the answer. The silent progression thru the jungle went on for quite some time, then after hopping over a fallen log and landing on some small dead branches the answer came.
“I think the thing most feared in the jungle is the snake.” stated the apprentice with some self-satisfaction and a small grin.
“Why do you think this?” posed the wise person.
“Well they move in silence, can disguise themselves as sticks and conceal themselves in small places high and low. Besides that they can be quite poisonous, one bite and you may die in a matter of minutes.”
“All of these facts are true, but that is not the answer.”
The young apprentice knew that it was hopeless to argue the point as the wise person had seen much more of the jungle and surely had come across some very scary things indeed. With furrowed brow the apprentice walked on, mesmerized by this puzzle. The silent progression thru the jungle went on for quite some time more.
The apprentice was startled out of the thought trance by some rustling in the bushes up ahead and reflexively sprang into a defensive stance with both hands firmly gripping the spear stick pointed at the disturbance. Suddenly several fowl flew out of the underbrush straight over the apprentices head, who, startled fell to the ground.
The wise person smiled and helped the student back up. The young apprentice was slightly embarrassed and walked on with head hung low. Then as suddenly as the birds had startled, the apprentice pivoted around to face the wise person with eyes as wide as the full moon.
“I’ve got it. The jungle cat is the most feared in the jungle because they lay in wait, silently and then ambush their prey. I have even heard they can climb trees, have teeth that cut like knives, and claws that slash like spears.”
The wise person tilted their head slightly upwards to the sky. “All these facts you have stated are correct” and just as the edges of the apprentices mouth were beginning to turn up into the grin of success, the wise person raised an index finger, “but it is not the answer.”
With mouth scrunched up the young apprentice turned and began walking again. Frustration fizzled in the air. Perhaps it was a riddle too difficult to figure out. All the simple answers had been crossed off like wild boar, poison insects, predatory birds, but perhaps the answer was intangible, like getting lost or perhaps it was the raging river. The silent progression thru the jungle went on for quite some time as the apprentice attempted to unravel the puzzle of the wise person’s question.
The young apprentice stopped suddenly as there was a sense that the wise person was no longer immediately behind. Glancing back the wise person has stopped some 15-feet away at the edge of a small clearing that they had entered.
“Why have you stopped?” the young apprentice inquired.
“Have you come to a conclusion as to the thing you should most fear in the jungle?” The wise person countered.
“I have thought of all the possible responses but have not yet come up with the answer. Can you possibly give me a clue” the apprentice implored.
“Well the first clue is to look down”
The young apprentice’s head snapped quickly down only to discover that he was standing on quicksand. Feet had sunk and were no longer visible. The more motion that was attempted the faster the quicksand seemed to swallow with a voracious appetite. Soon the sand had reached half-way up the thigh.
The apprentice looked with open mouth and wide eyes to the wise person for aid. The wise person with hands casually clasped behind the back, tilted forward slightly returning the gaze.
“You see, the thing you should most fear in the jungle is non-other than yourself.” The wise person stated before breaking a vine loose from a tree nearby and flung the loose end to the student.
Once pulled up onto solid ground again the young apprentice exhaled a sigh of relief. The vision flashed of what might have happened if the wise person had not been there. The young apprentice thanked the wise person for aiding but also for the knowledge that was imparted. After a brief rest they continued towards their village. If one looked carefully the step of the apprentice was slightly more tentative, the actions slightly more considered.
The end.
Interlude #4
Our view of the world is based primarily on managed assumptions, the first of which is that things will continue as they always have.
What happens when they don’t?
Standing on Quicksand Page 4
