A Narrative Myth
I once had a home
That was snug and fit
It kept me in place
And made me secure
Then, as I was going along
I found a small stone
Unlike any I had seen before
It glistened and shimmered
I wasn't aware that a stone
Could look so different
So foreign and strange
Not like anything I knew
I took it home
But it wouldn't fit
I tried to angle it in
And pushed really hard
How could something that small
Not fit into my home?
Something that fits in my hand
Not fit in a house that fit me?
I gave it one more push
And I broke through the back wall
My home was broken
I looked at that stone
I looked at my wall
Was this little thing worth it?
I left the stone
In what remained of my house
Picked up pieces of the wall
And tried to put it back together
I got it all fixed
But it looked nothing like my home
It had grown
It was no longer snug
But it fit all the same
This little stone
Had made my house bigger
As if by magic
I wondered if there might be more
From that day on, I continued to look
I never found that stone's twin
But I did find several like it
Each time was the same
My walls broke and shattered
I picked up the pieces
And my home was bigger
But there was one stone
That did nothing at all
I walked into my home
And nothing fell over
It seemed strange and different
But did nothing at all
I put it on a shelf
And looked at it each day
Still it did nothing
Finally, I threw it away
Only then did a wall fall down
Only then was it bigger
As if its disappearance
Was bigger than its presence
I looked for it outside
In hopes it might be there
But it was gone
How different this one was
I started to search harder
In hopes I could find more like it
But I only found the ones I knew
And none other
My house was now very large
And expansive and roomy
It was getting difficult
To find the walls that fell
After each stone I brought in
I had a large pile of them in the cellar
I had stacks of them on the shelves
Even some of the walls were made of them
Yet I had no idea what they were
I just kept finding them
Littered all over the ground
I'd have to push further out
To find more and more
But they were just there
I had to know why
I didn't understand
So I set out to find it
The reason
The cause
I decided to dare going further
Than I'd ever been before
Gather my stones in my pockets
But not yet go back
I went out and continued on
The scenery remained the same
For quite some time
I thought I'd never find it
Until I came across another home
This one seemed massive
Compared to my little home
I was awestruck and dumbfounded
But I had to press on
I came to the door
And I was greeted by another
A person other than I
A person I'd never known was there
How strange this land was
So far from home
It looked all the same
But was so different from my own
I had no idea what to make of this new person
I didn't know what to say
So, I did what I could
I took a stone out from my pocket
And held it forward
They always made my house bigger
Not that this person would need it
But perhaps this person knew what they were
The person picked the stone from my hand
And slowly walked inside
And returned with one like it
But different and strange
The person placed it in my hand
And smiled
The person turned and went back inside
And I left bewildered
I walked home
And was astonished to see
Entire sections of my house
Leveled to the ground
Even before I took my stones inside
I rebuilt them all
And was amazed at the size
It had grown much bigger
Than I could remember it ever being
I was anxious to see
How much it would grow
Once I'd taken my new stone in
And surprised
when half of it fell
I rebuilt it all and felt glad
My humble home was now a mansion
The next day
I returned to the new person's home
And found it bigger still than my own
I exchanged stones
Hoping for an answer
Each day I'd return
And trade stone for stone
Our homes became castles
Then one day another new person
Came to my home
Stared at its size
And came to my door
I looked at this person
And was amazed to see
A stone in the persons hand
Offered to me
Perhaps this new person knew
What this all meant
But not a word was mentioned
Just an extended hand
So I took the stone
Into my house
And found one like it
But different and new
I returned and placed it in the hand
And looked and smiled
Each day, this person would return
Offer a stone
And receive one from me
How different this person was
But how so much the same
I wondered what this meant
Who were these people I'd met?
What were these stones we exchanged?
This went on for days on end
I realized that I was no longer looking
I found no stones of my own
Just the ones traded
My home grew and grew
And my neighbor's did too
These neighbors of mine
Were so much like me
I considered
That they might wonder the same things
Did they search like I searched?
Did they wonder about the stones?
Did they wonder about me?
Am I their only neighbor?
Or do they have others like me?
If so, how many?
And where are they?
When my neighbor came to me
I motioned for my neighbor to follow
There seemed to be an understanding
So my neighbor followed me
I walked to my other neighbor's home
My neighbor was waiting for me
And was surprised to see another
Stones were exchanged
Between all three of us
And my neighbors motioned
To continue on
I assume that is what they meant
So I followed them
The three of us walked
To a fortress so large
It dwarfed my own home
And humbled my neighbor's
We came to the door
And were greeted by a new person
Not unlike my neighbors
Not unlike myself
We four exchanged stones
And continued on walking
The four of us kept going
Until a new towering home was found
And we became five and six and seven
Our numbers grew
It began to grow late
So we stopped and walked back
It was nighttime before I reached home
It was flattened to the ground
I rebuilt it again
But was exhausted after
The next day
I only went to my neighbor's
Then returned home
The following day
I set out early
And went until we were many
And then went back home
My walls were demolished
And I rebuilt again
This time, I thought
I'd save myself some trouble
By just building the walls twice
I went out again
And came back at night
My walls were fallen
Except those that I had doubled
I went out each day
And returned and rebuild in double
Day after day
My home became a fortress of its own
And many were now coming to my door
And I'd go and be many
Until I had to return home
One day, I decided
To set out and not stop
Until I'd reached the last home
I gathered as many of my stones as I could
And placed them in a bag
Slung it over my shoulder
And left before dawn
I walked and became many
And then it was time to turn around
Many left and returned
But few kept walking
We walked through the night
And through the next day
Trading stones at each home
Some of those with me
Returned to their homes
But I kept going
Hoping to find the end
Day after day
And home after home
Many were palaces and cities
Some touching the sky
But still there was one more
One more home
One more neighbor
I became many
Over and over again
But no one I remembered was left
Only I and these new neighbors
Then came a door that would not open
I waited for a while
Then decided to trade with what was already there
I picked up a stone from the ground
And left one of mine
The doors on the next home
Remained closed as well
So I left a stone and took one from the ground
Soon doors had piles of stones in front of them
Untouched and undisturbed
I placed my stone on top
And took one for myself
And continued on
Soon the homes began to be smaller
And they no longer touch the sky
The doors remained closed
And stones piled outside
Then, the homes were small
They were broken and unkempt
The doors remained closed
But it looked as if there was no one there
Then there was nothing but a field
Littered with stones
I thought I'd reached the end
But just to be sure
I kept walking
My neighbors had long returned home
I was only one
There was no one in sight
But then, I saw it
One more home
Small and cozy
Sitting on the horizon
I came to the door
And was greeted by a person
And I held out my stone
But this person looked puzzled
And stared at the stone
Then took it
And looked at it
Before turning to go inside
But the person couldn't get in
And was confused by the problem
The stone wouldn't fit
The person turned back to me
And gave the stone back to me
Amazed and bewildered
I continued on
The homes remained
About the same sizes
But little by little they grew
And the people knew how to trade
Bigger and bigger
The homes became
Until I came to one
The seemed different from the rest
It wasn't that it was better or worse
But just that it seemed familiar
When I came to the door
No one answered
And a pile of stones in front
I didn't know why
But I looked inside
It was too familiar
Soon I knew why
This home was no neighbor's
This was my own
I quickly brought in my stones
And rebuilt my walls
I remembered the fields
And I remembered the palaces
I wondered if my home
Would one day be a palace
But would it also
One day be a field
Of littered stones?
Had it once been palace before
Before his memory?
And then turned to fields?
And what of these stones?
What are they?
Where do they come from?
Would I ever know?
That was snug and fit
It kept me in place
And made me secure
Then, as I was going along
I found a small stone
Unlike any I had seen before
It glistened and shimmered
I wasn't aware that a stone
Could look so different
So foreign and strange
Not like anything I knew
I took it home
But it wouldn't fit
I tried to angle it in
And pushed really hard
How could something that small
Not fit into my home?
Something that fits in my hand
Not fit in a house that fit me?
I gave it one more push
And I broke through the back wall
My home was broken
I looked at that stone
I looked at my wall
Was this little thing worth it?
I left the stone
In what remained of my house
Picked up pieces of the wall
And tried to put it back together
I got it all fixed
But it looked nothing like my home
It had grown
It was no longer snug
But it fit all the same
This little stone
Had made my house bigger
As if by magic
I wondered if there might be more
From that day on, I continued to look
I never found that stone's twin
But I did find several like it
Each time was the same
My walls broke and shattered
I picked up the pieces
And my home was bigger
But there was one stone
That did nothing at all
I walked into my home
And nothing fell over
It seemed strange and different
But did nothing at all
I put it on a shelf
And looked at it each day
Still it did nothing
Finally, I threw it away
Only then did a wall fall down
Only then was it bigger
As if its disappearance
Was bigger than its presence
I looked for it outside
In hopes it might be there
But it was gone
How different this one was
I started to search harder
In hopes I could find more like it
But I only found the ones I knew
And none other
My house was now very large
And expansive and roomy
It was getting difficult
To find the walls that fell
After each stone I brought in
I had a large pile of them in the cellar
I had stacks of them on the shelves
Even some of the walls were made of them
Yet I had no idea what they were
I just kept finding them
Littered all over the ground
I'd have to push further out
To find more and more
But they were just there
I had to know why
I didn't understand
So I set out to find it
The reason
The cause
I decided to dare going further
Than I'd ever been before
Gather my stones in my pockets
But not yet go back
I went out and continued on
The scenery remained the same
For quite some time
I thought I'd never find it
Until I came across another home
This one seemed massive
Compared to my little home
I was awestruck and dumbfounded
But I had to press on
I came to the door
And I was greeted by another
A person other than I
A person I'd never known was there
How strange this land was
So far from home
It looked all the same
But was so different from my own
I had no idea what to make of this new person
I didn't know what to say
So, I did what I could
I took a stone out from my pocket
And held it forward
They always made my house bigger
Not that this person would need it
But perhaps this person knew what they were
The person picked the stone from my hand
And slowly walked inside
And returned with one like it
But different and strange
The person placed it in my hand
And smiled
The person turned and went back inside
And I left bewildered
I walked home
And was astonished to see
Entire sections of my house
Leveled to the ground
Even before I took my stones inside
I rebuilt them all
And was amazed at the size
It had grown much bigger
Than I could remember it ever being
I was anxious to see
How much it would grow
Once I'd taken my new stone in
And surprised
when half of it fell
I rebuilt it all and felt glad
My humble home was now a mansion
The next day
I returned to the new person's home
And found it bigger still than my own
I exchanged stones
Hoping for an answer
Each day I'd return
And trade stone for stone
Our homes became castles
Then one day another new person
Came to my home
Stared at its size
And came to my door
I looked at this person
And was amazed to see
A stone in the persons hand
Offered to me
Perhaps this new person knew
What this all meant
But not a word was mentioned
Just an extended hand
So I took the stone
Into my house
And found one like it
But different and new
I returned and placed it in the hand
And looked and smiled
Each day, this person would return
Offer a stone
And receive one from me
How different this person was
But how so much the same
I wondered what this meant
Who were these people I'd met?
What were these stones we exchanged?
This went on for days on end
I realized that I was no longer looking
I found no stones of my own
Just the ones traded
My home grew and grew
And my neighbor's did too
These neighbors of mine
Were so much like me
I considered
That they might wonder the same things
Did they search like I searched?
Did they wonder about the stones?
Did they wonder about me?
Am I their only neighbor?
Or do they have others like me?
If so, how many?
And where are they?
When my neighbor came to me
I motioned for my neighbor to follow
There seemed to be an understanding
So my neighbor followed me
I walked to my other neighbor's home
My neighbor was waiting for me
And was surprised to see another
Stones were exchanged
Between all three of us
And my neighbors motioned
To continue on
I assume that is what they meant
So I followed them
The three of us walked
To a fortress so large
It dwarfed my own home
And humbled my neighbor's
We came to the door
And were greeted by a new person
Not unlike my neighbors
Not unlike myself
We four exchanged stones
And continued on walking
The four of us kept going
Until a new towering home was found
And we became five and six and seven
Our numbers grew
It began to grow late
So we stopped and walked back
It was nighttime before I reached home
It was flattened to the ground
I rebuilt it again
But was exhausted after
The next day
I only went to my neighbor's
Then returned home
The following day
I set out early
And went until we were many
And then went back home
My walls were demolished
And I rebuilt again
This time, I thought
I'd save myself some trouble
By just building the walls twice
I went out again
And came back at night
My walls were fallen
Except those that I had doubled
I went out each day
And returned and rebuild in double
Day after day
My home became a fortress of its own
And many were now coming to my door
And I'd go and be many
Until I had to return home
One day, I decided
To set out and not stop
Until I'd reached the last home
I gathered as many of my stones as I could
And placed them in a bag
Slung it over my shoulder
And left before dawn
I walked and became many
And then it was time to turn around
Many left and returned
But few kept walking
We walked through the night
And through the next day
Trading stones at each home
Some of those with me
Returned to their homes
But I kept going
Hoping to find the end
Day after day
And home after home
Many were palaces and cities
Some touching the sky
But still there was one more
One more home
One more neighbor
I became many
Over and over again
But no one I remembered was left
Only I and these new neighbors
Then came a door that would not open
I waited for a while
Then decided to trade with what was already there
I picked up a stone from the ground
And left one of mine
The doors on the next home
Remained closed as well
So I left a stone and took one from the ground
Soon doors had piles of stones in front of them
Untouched and undisturbed
I placed my stone on top
And took one for myself
And continued on
Soon the homes began to be smaller
And they no longer touch the sky
The doors remained closed
And stones piled outside
Then, the homes were small
They were broken and unkempt
The doors remained closed
But it looked as if there was no one there
Then there was nothing but a field
Littered with stones
I thought I'd reached the end
But just to be sure
I kept walking
My neighbors had long returned home
I was only one
There was no one in sight
But then, I saw it
One more home
Small and cozy
Sitting on the horizon
I came to the door
And was greeted by a person
And I held out my stone
But this person looked puzzled
And stared at the stone
Then took it
And looked at it
Before turning to go inside
But the person couldn't get in
And was confused by the problem
The stone wouldn't fit
The person turned back to me
And gave the stone back to me
Amazed and bewildered
I continued on
The homes remained
About the same sizes
But little by little they grew
And the people knew how to trade
Bigger and bigger
The homes became
Until I came to one
The seemed different from the rest
It wasn't that it was better or worse
But just that it seemed familiar
When I came to the door
No one answered
And a pile of stones in front
I didn't know why
But I looked inside
It was too familiar
Soon I knew why
This home was no neighbor's
This was my own
I quickly brought in my stones
And rebuilt my walls
I remembered the fields
And I remembered the palaces
I wondered if my home
Would one day be a palace
But would it also
One day be a field
Of littered stones?
Had it once been palace before
Before his memory?
And then turned to fields?
And what of these stones?
What are they?
Where do they come from?
Would I ever know?