The Dragon and the Birds

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It’s official, the world’s in a mess.

No-one’s happy about it, but I can’t help thinking people don’t realise that whatever position anyone takes, whatever view or position we trust, we are actually on the same side.

We want to be free. We want to be healthy, we want love and prosperity. We want the best for our kids. And we all dream of a better, brighter future. Right?

Perhaps we don’t understand the extent of the mess we’re truly in. Let me try and explain how I see things by way of this short story.

 The Dragon and The Birds

A long, long time ago birds flew freely wherever they liked. The lands were bountiful, and the birds lived in perfect health and there were no threats to their well-being.

Then, one day, a clever dragon, who had disguised himself as a bird, reached out and told the birds that a terrible time was coming.

The birds were worried. They knew this fire-breathing bird was smart, and before long, the birds grew fearful and many birds started agreeing with dragon saying that they had heard similar things too.

So the birds asked him what they should do.

The dragon thought for a while and then told them he would build a huge atrium, to make sure they were protected.

The birds were grateful. The dragon built the atrium and the birds willingly moved in and they did indeed feel safe. But soon they discovered that they could not fly as far, or as high, and the food was not as bountiful and they asked the dragon how long they would have to live in this cage.

The dragon replied that, regrettably, he’d borrowed his magic from a far away land he couldn’t undo the spells. It would take, the dragon said, many thousands of years until the cage would begin to break. But wasn’t it lucky, the dragon told them, that they were safe from the terrible times outside the atrium.

The birds were, once again, grateful, and they continued for hundreds of years, for generation after generation, until they had forgotten what it was like to be perfectly free outside the atrium. And soon all they could remember was life inside the atrium.

As time went on, conditions became more and more cramped, and the birds began fighting — one species against another. They asked the dragon what they should do.

The dragon thought long and hard. Eventually he told them that they should all follow the magpie.

But some of the birds didn’t like the magpie and they told the dragon. So the dragon told those birds to follow the crow.

Other species came along and said they didn’t like the crow or the magpie and so the dragon told those birds to be more like the jay. And the dragon suggested that all birds should model how they lived on these three birds.

The clever dragon knew that jays and crows and magpies didn’t get along and he watched as the birds fought and developed a taste for carrion. As the birds fought he wondered how it was that these clever birds were quite so easy to manipulate. And he realised that if they ever saw through his sorcery all he had to do was make them argue amongst themselves.

Thousands of years passed by. The birds multiplied and cleverly adapted to life inside the atrium. All the while, the dragon and his friends acquired a taste for eating the birds, and the dragon knew that he would never go hungry ever again, for the birds provided him with everything he could possibly wish for.

Yet, over time, the dragon tired of his game with the multitudes of birds. The atrium’s water was barely palatable and the air was thick and heavy with materials he’d blown in to keep them docile. They were now easy to feed upon because they blamed their conditions on one another. But the dragon knew that the magic surrounding the atrium was faltering, so he decided to build a new atrium, one in which the birds would do exactly as he wished without him having to fool them.

You see, many of the birds wearied of hearing the repetitive words of the dragon and realised something wasn’t right. Many began to fly higher towards the ceiling of the atrium finding more and more holes where the magic had worn out. And soon, some of these birds, now fitter and stronger because of their determination to fly, realised that any bird could fly through if they wanted. Even the birds who did not fly could walk to the perimeter to see for themselves what the others were shouting so loudly about.

And these birds discovered that outside, the air was sweet, the water tasted like nectar and the food was plentiful and full of goodness. Besides, when they searched around, there was nothing to harm them. Other birds reported meeting species they had never seen before, and landing on fauna and flora which baffled them as to what they were for.

When they returned into the atrium, they would tell their loved ones how the magic no longer worked and described what they had seen. But the majority of birds ridiculed them and told them no such thing existed. Besides, what could they want which the dragon did not already supply.

The dragon, noticing that his trick was close to being exposed, redoubled his efforts to build the new atrium in which he didn’t want birds who were too old or too undernourished. And besides, while the old atrium was crowded and chaotic, which was how he’d kept them subdued for so long, his new atrium would have just the right amount of birds for his requirements.

As more birds began to strengthen and fly to the broken perimeter of the atrium, they too found that what the others were saying was true and were filled with a whole new energy and excitement. But still, most birds did not believe them, and the dragon continually reminded them that the atrium was the only world, because he knew they did not remember their lives before he had tricked them.

And then the dragon told the birds that another terrible time was coming.

The birds became fearful and asked the dragon what he could do to help.

And the dragon went away and thought awhile. When he returned he announced that he had already developed the perfect antidote to the terrible time.

The dragon gave them his solution and said that it would only protect them if all the birds in the atrium partook, and on condition that no one questioned him, because after all, the dragon had looked after them so well for such a long time and kept them safe.

The birds were grateful to the dragon for all he had done for them and took the antidote without questioning what it really was. And these birds turned on those who told tales about the holes in the atrium. And as a sickness spread amongst them, they began to say that it must have come from the ones who had flown up to the holes of the Atrium.

For those birds who had flown out into the amazing new world, they looked down on the other birds in astonishment.

Was it really so difficult to fly up to the holes and see it for themselves? How had they grown so lazy and reliant on the dragon?

And these people realised the dragon was not a bird and he did not have their best interests at heart.

They began asking why so many birds were sick and dying, even when so many birds had partaken in the dragon’s remedies. And they begged the birds to leave their chicks free from taking the dragon’s remedy. Furthermore, they knew there were simple solutions like fresh air, food and water that made them feel truly alive while flying outside of the atrium.

But the majority of the birds said they had to do as the dragon demanded because the dragon had promised them safety. And they would not even discuss it. Soon, they became impatient with those who were claiming the dragon was not a bird at all, and they blamed these birds for their woes even more, even though many knew it deep in their hearts that they spoke the truth.

And those who had seen the world outside started breaking away from the atrium and planning what they would do in the glorious skies and earth beyond, and they begged the other birds to come with them.

Slowly, the dragon encouraged every bird to take his treatment not just once, but often several times, making them sicker. And soon only the birds who were strong enough to survive willingly entered into the dragon’s new atrium because they could not deny him and because the treatment meant they were no longer birds. They just looked like birds.

And the ones who had taken the time to fly up through the holes in the atrium quickly abandoned their past life and began to settle in the beautiful new world and realised that finally, they were free.

JKE

Have We Forgotten How to Die? A Moral Dilemma

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It wasn’t too long ago when an essential part of living, was understanding death. And if not understanding it, then preparing and accepting death as part of life. Many of the greatest classic literary works from The Old Testament to Plato, to Shakespeare through to the modern-day dwell on precisely this idea; the simple unmistakeable knowledge, passed down through the ages, that we are mortal. That life, though abundant and joyous, is fragile.

In almost every generation we have seen what amounts to progress. Technology, medicine & science quickly spring to mind. These disciplines, all of whom require exactness and the most stringent burden of proof, have grown into such idealised beacons in our lives that we treat them like modern day Gods to be revered.  As a result, we now see the media and our global leaders controlling us by this doctrine and Covid-19 has become the primary challenge to our science, our medicine, our technology and thereby, our society.

Covid-19 isn’t quite the brute we imagined it might turn out to be, but to those unfortunate to be afflicted by it (what virus won’t?) they will certainly know about it. But surely we must understand that it is one of many billions of tiny particles that build in human beings each and every second of the day. Many strands of virus and bacteria in their own evolutionary patterns have been with us since the dawn of time and in general, these help humans survive and evolve.

But here’s the thing. Statistics show that those who have underlying or health conditions, especially the elderly and obese, are those most at risk of death were they to catch Covid-19.

And I know it isn’t easy to admit, but these people will pass away from medical complications, or purely old age anyway; things kill us and we either survive, or we die. Perhaps it’s Nature’s way of saying that those who are unable to sustain their walk upon the earth, must now say farewell. 

This is not a new phenomenon. It is simply evolution. Seasonal flu wipes out huge numbers—millions annually—and this is well-documented. So does a failure–in one form or another–of the heart, liver, kidney, as well as cancers, tumours and much more. And let’s list those killers that we so easily sweep under the carpet; hunger, cholera, typhoid, depression, suicide, road-accidents, homicide, natural causes, drowning, snakebites, idiocy and unfortunate twists of fate.

The expression “Life is a lottery” is true. Better still, perhaps, is that life is a path along which we journey. A path that is wide, mostly in youth, but at times it narrows as if passing over mountains, or alongside raging rivers upon perilous cliff-edges. Each step is taken into the unknown and we cannot always know when our path will be swept away or collapse under our feet. 

Most will dance, swagger or march with sure steps along the line as meaningfully, and as lovingly as they can—while they can—until they fall, or veer off. Nowadays however, our world has become pretty good at making sure we don’t stray off the path. In fact, it has become so adept that we cannot even attempt anything that might make us slip over. There are strong supporting rails that line the pathway.

Some use these supports, others don’t. We’ve certainly learned that because the rails exist, we can rely on them. A consequence of this is that now it doesn’t matter what muck we eat, what chemicals we throw over ourselves, how little we exercise, how we treat our planet, or how we engage with others, there is a crutch of support waiting to help us up.

Increasingly, we are scorned for exploring the limits on our life path because, for so many, the pathway now doesn’t even exist. Only the handrail exist. And for this, as we are constantly reminded, we must be grateful to those who have provided it.

But by clinging to the railings, we have stopped understanding how to live well? 

In lieu of recent events it now feels as if we’ve gone a step further. We’re actually trying to take on nature, trying to show it who is God. “We will defeat the enemy; we can save lives. All available lives.”  Has our arrogance as a species spiked up to a new kind of supremacy? 

For some, longevity is the bonus of living in these times (especially if one lives interesting, loving and full lives). But for others is the payoff—for living as long as possible—is an experience of painful, ghastly end-years.

Be assured, I’m not saying I wish people to drop dead or not be looked after. That is insane; we are well adapted in caring for our sick and our infirm. The last fifty years have seen a leap in medical and scientific advances, but viruses are never beaten. Pathogens change, mutate and reappear year after year, millennia after the next. It’s a ‘gimme’ that another will pop along out of nowhere. Each time humans take a hit and learn to immunise ourselves or, unfortunately, we pass away.

Nowadays, as a result of cushioning our bodies in the cotton wool of pills and medicines we forget that we’ve always had the mightiest of protection via our million-year-old immune system?

Are we simply too fat and poisoned to realise that it is our current life style choices which are, in reality, killing us?

Ask those at the twilight of their life if they were to do it all again, would they live a full life, or a long life? I bet you’d get most wishing for the former. 

Ask a second question. Would they take the small risk of catching Covid-19 and dying, or assist in the denial of their grandchildren’s prosperity and freedoms that they themselves have, often through great personal cost, built and enjoyed through their life? Without question the majority would happily forgo a year or a month or two for the future happiness of the planet’s next caretakers.

But we’re not allowed to say this–not openly. Even with our supposed ‘freedom of speech’, this kind of utterance is taboo. How dare anyone claim that one life is worth more than another? How dare we compare one age to another. That’s ageist. Well, I have news. A child’s life is worth a great deal more than any infirm elderly sufferer. It just is, and it always will be.

In the same breath, we’re not really thinking about the health of our elderly who have, up until now, been wholeheartedly ignored; we try to keep them going, come what may, and to me if feels like a lame excuse for real ‘care’.

The media and operational classes have all but abandoned our children. At the moment, the uncertainty and furore will deny a generation of children—now boxed in by steel railings while they tread life’s path at its easiest—the innocence of childhood.

Let’s go further. A generation of our youth—already harnessed to their screens with the fake notion of existing in online communities—can no longer physically engage with one another; no hugging or clasping hands, no dancing, or even sitting together. A generation who will not comfort their elders, or visit pubs and clubs, theatres, or football, or go shopping on the high street, or even pop round to each other’s houses. A generation who will never see or experience the magnificence of the world.

Have we sliced them off from the age-old traditions of human community in one brutally swift movement without even realising it? Or, is this part of a plan cooked up by a global powerhouse in the name of control? Because the more I look at it, that’s exactly how it feels.

I desperately hope that the above is the extreme variant of life hereon-in. But even if it isn’t, fear has been injected into their young hearts and this awful inoculation contains a diktat; a new sense of conformity and fearfulness that will be hard to erase. Oh, and of course they’re the generation who will be picking up the bill. And how will do they do that? By staring into computer screens of course. 

And what about those who are approaching their ends? The fear has been planted within them too: Will they survive the next wave? Will they spend their last few years shut away, as if they don’t even exist, from the people they have tendered to all their lives—enclosed behind walls, like prisoners?

But of course, they exist; they exist as statistics to back up the fear, should they die of a condition we now know is as dangerous as the ‘flu.

And anyway, who wins in this so-called war of science, or fear? A few leap to mind. Online vendors. Artificial Intelligence. Political controllers. Totalitarianism. Big pharma. A very, very small body of people who have control over what people, see, hear, think and do.

Makes you wonder what kind of world we want. A relentless fear-agenda driven by the unrelenting media, unleashed on our children, or perhaps something fresh.

I believe there is another approach.

How about re-learning that wonderful timeless value of common sense stemming from an entirely re-vamped school curriculum that teaches kids how to really live life and how to work and communicate in the future and not in the past.

And how about re-engaging with local communities from top to bottom, binning out-of-date models to discover fresh, wholehearted approaches to encourage what it is to be human, to find our spirit once more, our joy, our health, our vitality.

How about formalising a new chapter of health, especially eating, exercise, and mental well-being and embracing methods which have been around and successfully used for millennia but denied because the science tells us not to.

We should welcome companionship, love and laughter, and ditch models which play into the hands of lies that contains and restricts humanities’ basic liberties.

It’s about turning our attention towards our hearts, our feelings, and our ability to see life as it should be played out. It’s about humanity taking back control and undoing our programming; un-knotting the fear and division used to create anger and strife.

First off, perhaps we should start by accepting our glorious mortality.

James Erith is the author of ‘Eden Chronicles’ a six book fantasy series set in Yorkshire.

In book two, Spider Web Powder, a virus quickly sets about destroying the world – within days – spread across the World by particles in dreams...

Power and Fury (explained)

Here's a little video I made all about what's going on at the beginning of Eden Chronicles.

Learn about book one of my epic adventure fantasy book series, Eden Chronicles, which is perfect for middle grade, young adult, teen all the way to older-gen...

A Cover Dilemma

Book two, SPIDER WEB POWDER in EDEN CHRONICLES, has, in my opinion, a splendid cover. Here it is:

Tom Moore, my old friend and brilliant cover designer, who has Skullduggery Pleasant amongst others under his belt, came up with this final version after a huge struggle.

I originally wanted a girl lying down, being fed a dream by the Dreamspinners. Note the girl on the back cover above who happens to be my daughter, who posed for the photos.

(BTW Check out her pink, metal framed glasses. Read on into the book series and you'll find out why!)

Sometimes these things aren't meant to be.

No matter how hard we tried, the composition didn't work.After trying all sorts of angles, colours and different variations this is the draft he could come up with and neither of us liked it at all:

Actually, it's plain awful. Worse, my daughter looks... dead.

Time to rip it up and start again. If you haven't tucked into SPIDER WEB POWDER (and I thoroughly recommend you do!) there's a scene where Daisy visits the haunted garden and notices a gate. She's drawn towards it and the moment she goes through we slip into a new world.

After a load of soul-searching this moment probably captures the overall FEEL of the book.

Time for gate research. We came across a few reasonable ones, like these:

If you’ve read SWP let me know which one you think is most like the one in the book! (1-5 - top left and clockwise)

The gate appeared. But the cover still looked a bit... bland. Soulless.

Tom found a female silhouette cut-out to give depth. An excellent decision!

But even then we weren't finished. What about the dust? I wanted dust!

And I got dust. For about a minute.

Finally, after an agonising time, we "found" the real cover, minus dust.

What do you think. Interesting or crazy?

Every cover has its moments, some more than others. But I learnt that design, like writing isn't easy. Creativity is often about trial, error, and patience. I can definitely attest to all of those!

You can buy SPIDER WEB POWDER on this link.

Oh, and if you need a cover, Tom can be found at Tom@beatmedia.com

A New Start

A lot has happened. I can only apologise for those of you who read the first book and waited and waited and waited. I felt the best way forward was to write the entire series, otherwise I could be left muddling over various plot pickles for years to come. And what with one thing and another, life, generally, it's taken a couple of years.

So, now I've finished the fifth book of the Eden Chronicles series and my new editor is about to cast her beady eye over it. 

I'm seriously excited by how books three, four and five have turned out -- and it's considerably different than the original story which popped into my head so many years ago -- and for the better!

I'd love to tell you, but you're going to have to wait.

I'd like to offer the first book to you for FREE, as my way for not only thanking those who've held on for so long (and BTW, there's a nice surprise at the end) but to introduce new readers into the Eden Chronicles family. I'll be setting up a private facebook group shortly as well for avid fans.

Welcome. I look forward to meeting you.

J

Want a cracking read. Try this link to Amazons top YA books

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