THE VINGAR TWINS
High on a mountain top, in a rock bound canyon past a tortuous trail, lives Harry the hermit in his cave of the wild. Harry had always felt his idyllic
retreat would be safe from the ingenuities of city folk until one day he spied the Vingar Twins making their way along the circuitous route to his home. "Avast there!" shouted Harry from the top of a cliff.
Beware of your trepass. Turn back at once--you do not belong here." What a sour looking puss!" chimed the Twins, looking up. A foreigner from some barbarous country, no doubt. Just stay out of our way you old geezer." "I warn you." said Harry solemnly. there is only despair here for people who live the worldly life. There is no peace except for those who would be deserted.
There is no beauty except that which has been forsaken. If you would seek the happiness of convention, turn back. There is utter abandonment. Only those who would consign themselfs to a living death will pass those rocks." He sounds like Harry horseradish after being grated, jeered the Twins. Old lady who defied convention?" Old man did you ever hear of madam snowflake.
"Why no." admitted Harry grudgingly. I guess i didn't." It goes like this said the twins, PITY HAPLESS MADAM SNOWFLAKE, PUTTING PEPPER ON HER SHORT CAKE;-- Years ago , a mystic told her SPICEING THINGS WOULD MAKE THEM COLDER; NOW SHE MIXES CREAM WITH MUSTARD, ADDS DILL PICKLES TO HER CUSTARD. THOUGH HER MIXTURES SPITE CONVENTION, MADAM SAYS IT ALL INVENTION."
Nevertheless you will be sorry if you come here, " declared Harry the hermit adamantly.you are much too young to realize your folly. If your hair had been whitened by reflection , perhaps there could be a chance for you here. As it is it will be suicide. Go back . Go back i beseech you. We've tamed better heads than yours," laughed the Twins.Could you imagine
an old fool wanting to keep all of this wonderful peace and soiitude to himself! Now that we know the way, we'll come here often.
" Ah, how sweet is ignorance, murmured the Hermit sadly. Once you come here there is no returning. If you step beyond the ending of that road, you comdemn thereby the whole world.
They shall not accept you again , unless it be in pity. you renounce fanily and friends. You deliver yourself to a life time of loneliness unless---" "Yes, Yes?" prompted the Twins, threir eyes dancing with humor. "---unless you can derive comfort from reflection and meditation .
But you are much too young for that.
Take not another step, I implore you ---from here on , you carry your own coffin." Well, its only
made of glass so it won't be heavy, smirked the Twins as they went foward. Suddently a peal of thunder shook the ground . The old man bent to his knees in humility. The Twins looked up in wonder. Frightful flashes of lightning stroked the air about them. The rain came with terrific force, threw them to the ground, and beat upon them. The Twins cried out to the Hermit, "Old man! Old man! What shall we do? What shall happen? Where can we go to get out of this storm?" And the voice of the Hermit came to them fron above. There is no haven
my children. You cannot escape the storm once you have trangressed." But what do you do ?"
the Twins persisted.
I Do not feel the rain; the lightning does not touch me. An angry world has no terror for me--I care no longer for the comforts of the mortal body. For you, I do not know..."But the storm will be over," cried the Twins, it won't last for ever." With the end of one storm, another begins, said the old man sadly. But there is no space for you. You shall live in constant dread of the of the next storm to come. Once you come here , the world cares little for you. This is forbidden ground. And the world you have left is bitter--- it will not take you back. We didn't really want to come here, they wept. It was only a dare.
Somebody recited the poem of the old lady who defied convention, and we thought it was cute. We just thought we could do the same. Well, its alright to put mustard on ice cream, but this is different. We don't want to lose all of our friends and family and everything we hold dear to us. I'm sorry murmured the Hermit. We want to go back wailed the Twins. What must we do? Just because we laughed at the world once, they shouldn't condem us forever. Surely , we couldn't have gone too far, we'll make up for it; we'll never think of coming this way again,
and we'll be different too. We'll be sweeter to people, we won't make them wince and pucker their lips. We won't be so bold, only tell us how to go back. . . . " I'm sorry said the Hermit.
And he began to walk showly to his cave.
Bill
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Posted on Apr 19, 2005 by Past member
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