[pct-l] The Ogre's tale (Long)

[Owen <jrowen@ibm.net>]

Come hither, friends. Come, ye lads and lasses, and gather 'round the
night fire of the Ogre and hear his tale.

Ahh, but some of ye want not to be here - go then, and use not his wood
to warm thy backsides, for a warm backside would be all ye would gain.
And those who have not the wit nor the understanding to think thine own
thoughts - get ye hence, for the Ogre's tales be not for those who
cannot think freely. And take with ye those who look for sunlight and
flowers and butterflies, but deny the shadow and the rain and the
killing cold for they have much to learn. But they will not learn
from such as the Ogre, for he teaches as truth that the height of thy
joy will not exceed the depth of thy pain - and they will not believe
such. And go also those who believe that appearance is truth, for ye are
destined to be slaves to the deceivers, the People of the Lie. Go now -
get ye hence, for ye have no place here with free men. Ye have a Delete
button beneath thy nose - use it quickly, quickly now - lest ye be left
behind and must needs listen to that which would cause thee to learn and
grow. Ready, Aim - DELETE!!! 

Aahhh - are they truly gone, then? 

Aye, they be gone, Master Ogre. They've no stomach for what passes here
- best they be left to the tender mercies of those without honor. 

Now -- those who seek the truth which may cost a lifetime, and for the
love which is washed in tears, and for the joy which is bound by sorrow
- come, sit ye by the fire and feel its warmth. Come, ye few who have
understanding that only that which comes at great price and is held by
strength and will and pain against the destroyers, only that makes life
worth the living - come and sit and be comforted. And thou - aye, thou
with the cast to thine eye that marks ye for thief, sit ye down that ye
may learn of honor and kindness and love and become more than ye ever
have dreamed. Come - and listen to the tale of the Ogre, but lately
returned from the darkest depths of the lair of the Beast which flies. 

The Ogre is old now, and grizzled, but it was not always so. He too was
once young and fair and foolish, so like the youth of today. But he
learned and grew and lived and loved - again as the youth of today will
do. This day would the Ogre give freely of the wisdom which he has
learned through hardship and pain, through love and peace and war and
death, through conflict and the avoidance of conflict. This would he
give to those with the wit and the desire to learn, that ye may take
what wisdom ye find here - and increase it through thine own life
struggles and triumphs - and defeats. If ye wish not this knowledge,
then thee must needs hurry to join those who have already DELETED and
thus make room at the fire for others to edge closer to the warmth. 

This, then, is the first tale of the Ogre - listen well and learn what
ye may: 

Being a walker, the Ogre was much travelled in the lands of the East. In
his heart there was no desire to conquer the mountains, but rather to
learn what they teach and to become one with their immovable and eternal
wisdom. Being both a builder and a lover of the wild places, the Ogre
was often found on the ridges and in the valleys making the way smoother
for others to walk in the places that he loved. In his travels, the Ogre
discovered the List of AT-L, which was a magical place for those who
would learn of the woods and mountains of the East and a meeting place
for those who love the mountains as does the Ogre. And many a day did he
spend in teaching that which he knew to those who would learn.  And so
he taught of love and strife, of happiness and independence of thought
and action, of pain and redemption and honor and integrity, and of the
mountains and the skies and all they contain, which are the gift of God.
Thus did he teach. Nor was there desire, as some might feel, to dominate
others who would follow his example and his teachings and go forth to do
greater deeds than the Ogre had dreamed. And to those who felt neither
need nor desire to learn, he wished Godspeed and fair winds and a
strong arm against the swords of the evil, for of tolerance for others
and their lives and their beliefs did he also teach. And good was the
fruit of his teaching as he watched those who had learned go their own
ways and add to the knowledge and wisdom of the world, each after their
own fashion. 

As time passed, there came into the life of the Ogre knowledge of
other mountains in the Western lands. The Ogre was present when the List
of PCT-L was founded, and he saw that it was good, and that he, as
well as others, could learn from this Great List. And so he listened and
learned and planned for the day when he should see the Mountains of
Light which guard the approaches to the Great Western Sea, and walk in
their majesty and listen to their voices. And life was good. 

But, as often happens, the One God ordained that he must first learn of
the lands of the Great Divide where the mountains grow the highest in
all the lands between the Great Seas. And he learned once more that LIFE
is what happens while mere mortals are making plans. So, being a curious
being, the Ogre desired to walk among these Mountains of the Rocks and
to become one with these mountains and to listen to their voices and
learn from them as he had with those of his Eastern homeland. And the
Ogre determined that this should happen, and that his wife, the rare and
wonderful Hiker Babe, should be his only companion for this journey and
for all others in his lifetime. And so shall it be done. 

But the gods often test those whom they would use. How else to determine
if the chosen ones have the strength and flexibility and desire to
complete the task? And so, the List of PCT-L also became the abode of
another. 

Know ye that there was, in a far, far land by the Great Western Sea, a
being which called itself the Beejer. And it was said to be a fair and
comely Beejer to look upon (One must assume such things for the sake of
the tale!). But then, how may one know these things? For the Beejer kept
itself a secret unto itself, and would allow no other to look upon
it, nor to enter into its abode, nor to name its name. To do so was to
endure a great wailing and a gnashing of teeth such as few among living
beings may abide. 

And the Beejer looked on the Ogre, and he was ugly and gnarly and worn
and threadbare. And the Beejer sayeth: "He stinketh, for he is a
thruhiker". And it was true. And the Beejer took the Ogre for an enemy
and, attacking the Ogre without warning or apparent reason within the
Great List of PCT-L, left the Ogre with wounds such that he would not
forget the encounter. But the Ogre had had other, and greater, wounds,
and thus was discomfited for only a short time. 

But the Beejer had also named him with terrible and unwholesome names
and so there remained confusion. Why? And there was no answer. What to
do? And for that there was an answer, for the Ogre sought the counsel of
that great seer, The Lawyer. And the Ogre asked of him "How mayest I be
whole again and without taint in the eyes of mine compatriots? How long
must I bear the stench of the unnameable name?" And The Lawyer
counselled the Ogre wisely, saying, "Wait thou, and give the Beejer the
rope it desires, and when the time is ripe, the rope will ensnare the
Beejer and a great judgement will be judged". But The Lawyer also
counselled the Ogre saying "Once the name has been given, there are
those who will never forgive or forget, even though the name be
undeserved and unjust. Therefore, remember to follow thine own
teachings, to walk thine own way and to take pride in what thou art,
knowing that those who judge others are fools who but follow the lies of
the wicked, without wit or thought. Learn, therefore, humility and
forsake not the ways that thou hast taught to others. Be humble, but
accept rebuke from no being without reason. Nor ever forget that thou
wert bred and born a warrior, with all the responsibilities pertaining
to such. Now, go forth, and be an Ogre." 

And so the Ogre went forth, to be named thereafter as the Big Bad Ogre.
And the Beejer was happy. But the happiness of the Beejer was not to be.
Poor Beejer. For the name that had been named to the Ogre merely served
to remind during each passing day that the character of an Ogre is
determined not by the name that he carries, but by strength of will and
purity of purpose and by the manner in which he conducts his life. The
true character of an Ogre is honor and honesty and integrity, may it
ever be so. And the true end of an Ogre is that of a warrior, that
his status in Hell be determined by the numbers of his enemies that
accompany him through those fiery gates, to be his servants forever. 

And so time passed, and the Beejer and the Ogre met on occasion in the
Hall of PCT-L. And when they met, there were claws - and sometimes
blood. And the other inhabitants of the List were unhappy, for the peace
of the List had been broken. The Ogre was much troubled by this, but
when the Beejer attacked again, he still responded as he had in past
times. But this time there was a difference because there was no anger -
only a habitual response that left a sense of wondering - a sense of
something forgotten - of something incomplete. And so the Ogre sought
the counsel of others. 

But when the Ogre complained to his wife: "I have been insulted", the
incomparable Hiker Babe reminded him: "Hast thee not been insulted
before? Wherefore is this different? Have not your detractors fallen by
the wayside in times past? Why think thee that this is more important
than those? Stoop not to the level of the Beejer, but be what thou art." 

And when the Ogre grumped: "But the Beejer misunderstands what I say",
the illustrious Hiker Babe answered: "When has it not been so, that
there are those who do not understand? When has it ever been that all of
those who frequent the List understand? Why should it bother thee this
time when it has not in the past?" 

And the Ogre whined: "But the Beejer deals in lies about me". And the
wondrous Hiker Babe asked: "Would ye therefore deal in lies about the
Beejer? Thou art not capable of that. Those who know thee know them for
lies and those who know thee not will not be swayed by thy protests. Let
it lie - and the lie, if such it be, will be proved false in due time." 

And again the Ogre sought counsel of The Lawyer, and the Ogre thundered:
"The Beejer maintains that I stalk it like a deer in the forest". And
The Lawyer laughed a great and thunderous laugh and answered: "Thou
livest near the Great Eastern Sea and the Beejer liveth near the Great
Western Sea. One does not stalk the deer that liveth on the opposite
side of the World. And what of the beauteous Hiker Babe - would the
Beejer have us believe that thou wouldst abandon the incomparable Hiker
Babe in order to stalk a  Beejer? This is foolishness." And then the
Lawyer added: "And the accusation adds to the evidence that she
slandereth thee. Is it your desire to proceed in this matter?". And the
Ogre answereth: "Nay, it is not yet time." 

Then the Ogre asked: "Why will the Beejer not answer even a simple
question directly?" And The Lawyer quoth:"There are some who are not
capable of such. Perhaps the Beejer is one of these. Or perhaps
the Beejer has no answer for the questions and, like a child, strikes
out in the effort to divert attention from their lack. Why should it
trouble your mind? Are the questions so important?" And the Ogre
considered that - and determined to withdraw the questions, for The
Lawyer had reminded him that not all questions have answers. Nor do all
questions need answers, for many times the answers are self-evident. 

So the Ogre returned to his wife, the most brilliant Hiker Babe, and
grumped: "The Beejer claims without reason to fear me. Fear is not my
intent and this is most unsettling." And the most brilliant Hiker Babe
laughed and answered :"Do you not understand? The Beejer is female and
she playeth a part - as an actress on a stage. If the fear were real, no
power on Earth could hold her to the Hall of PCT-L. She would disappear
like the morning fog in the warm sunlight. This play-acting is the 
way of some females, and some males as well. Hast thou forgotten so soon
the wiles of the mother of thy children whom thou endured for many
years?  Know ye not that beside her the Beejer is but an amateur - a
child in the ways of manipulation?" 

And then the Ogre wondered: "But what of the List of PCT-L?" And the
wise and loving Hiker Babe answered: "The List is what it is and will
become what it will become. If the manipulations of the Beejer harm the
List, then it will be by the tacit consent of the List and there is
nought that thee can do to help or protect them. The List will choose
its own path, be it the path of truth and honor and light, or that of
strife and bitterness and darkness. And if the List will not fight 
for its own path, then by the Laws of Survival, it will perish.  Thee
cannot force it to be otherwise, and if thee attempt such, it will
destroy both thee and the List, for this would be contrary to all that
is sacred to thee. Let it be." 

And at last, the Ogre's heart was lightened and he laughed and laughed -
and rolled on the floor with the gales of laughter. For the Ogre had
known these things, but he had blinded himself to these truths in the
depths of his anger and self-pity. And the Beejer troubled the Ogre's
mind no more. And life with the incomparable Hiker Babe was good.

This is not the end of the tale of the Ogre, for the Ogre's tale is the
tale of life itself and is never ending. But it is enough for one night. 

Aahhh - art thou still awake back there? What sayest thou? - what lesson
is here for thee?  There are many lessons, my friend - how did ye miss
them? Did ye not understand that strife is foolishness and that it comes
not from the foolishness of others, but from that which we carry inside
ourselves? How could ye have missed that? Those who would be warriors
learn that at their mothers breast. 

Aye, lass, - ye in the front row - ye want another lesson? Take this
with ye then - that even the wisest among us sometimes need to be
reminded of what they already know.  That each of us has wisdom that
we've forgotten and that the reminding is not often to our liking. 

And for thee, lad, who would be a warrior - understand that redemption
lies not in victory over thine enemies, but in victory over thyself.  

Enough - the fire dies, tis time for sleep. And with the dawn comes
new hope for life and love and happiness. May it be so for all, even for
the Beejer. Go in peace and light.

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