The Master of All Paths

The Path of Labor

  Spen-Val wiped his brow and looked up at the twin suns over Geeshna.   He and his family had been raising crops for 6 generations on this farm.  Spen-Val’s was convinced it was his faith that made him a good farmer and he was recognized as such by the populace of Geeshna.  He saw the Grinlach in each stalk and root and gave thanks that he was able to feed the hungry families of his world. It was this love that helped his crops flourish.  The wind kicked up for a moment and the crops seemed to nod in approval of his thoughts.  He stood watching the majesty of the dance the fields and wind played with each other and momentarily became disoriented in the reverie.  Spen-Val shook his head and once again surveyed his fields.

  As was customary, Spen-Val had divided each field of crops into three sections.  One section would be for his family’s use, one for the Central City, and one for the outer sections of the planet.  The corners of each section were picked first and given as a gift to the Grinlach at the temple.  The temple also received any crops that had fallen to the ground in the swaying of a breeze or through tremors in the ground as it was felt the Grinlach themselves picked those crops.

  Spen-Val lived on his farm with his two wives and their other husbands and wives.  In total there were 27 children who helped with chores while learning the ways and rewards of hard work well done.  Spen-Val was Father-First to all the children so they were ultimately his responsibility but even with this duty and running the farm, Spen-Val was considered to be more pure of heart and strong of fist, than he was of quickness of wit or strength of intellect.  A simple man, he led his life in a simple fashion.  When it came time for decisions, answers were always given as either yes or no. Seeing the world in black and white made life much easier to handle and when a problem arose that he could not himself understand, the Nah-kell was there to help.

  There were other farms on Geeshna that produced far more crops than Spen-Val’s.  They used irrigation robots, nutrient growth hormones, genetic manipulation and auto-harvesters.  Spen-Val did not care for technology.  Much of it was beyond his comprehension to understand, but more importantly he felt that it took away from one’s relationship with the Grinlach.  Creating one short cut only led to creating others.  Soon enough the original ways would be gone and the people would grow arrogant with pride and fat with laziness.  That path could only lead to ruin.  So it was that Spen-Val’s farm remained true to the old ways.  Each husband, wife and each child had work to do.   Chores were mandatory for all, granting them the opportunity to experience working with their hands and touch the sacred soil.  Great lessons could be learned and greater satisfactions achieved by seeing the results of hard work, love and respect for the land.  Each time a crop was harvested, that success was reinforced.

  While the labor was much harder here than on other farms, his crops commanded a premium due to their organic nature.   Many families, who were not as devout as he, felt that eating Spen-Val’s crops brought them closer to the Grinlach without having to really work for it.  The farm thrived and his family was well cared for.  

  The winds that danced around him a moment earlier now carried the sounds of people running through his fields.  Running was never permitted in the fields so he knew that these must be outsiders.   Spen-Val removed a Zila’s horn from his belt, filled his lungs and blew a loud alert for the entire farm to hear.

  The alert set a number of protocols into action.  The children would be gathered up and brought back to the house with the women.  The Father-Seconds would stand guard outside the house in case the outsiders should approach but Spen-Val trusted that the Grinlach would protect him and his family.  As though the land and crops were speaking to him through the wind, he knew that the outsiders were running in the opposite direction of the house.  He could hear the war party running after the outsiders.  The sound of a hand-held pulse weapon and the scream of a Kersh warrior assaulted his ears.  Still the family and the farm would be safe and the harvest needed to continue.

  Sections of the farm were now made unclean by the outsiders’ presence. The sacred soil had been defiled by their touch.  He knew that the Nah-kell would be here later that evening to purify the land.  Following the sounds on the wind, he knew that about ten percent of his fields would need to be purified by fire.  This would certainly mean more work for the family, but this was the will of the Grinlach.  Spen-Val gave a prayer of thanks for the opportunity to serve more.