In the Valley of Hope, Truth was an elderly woman who traveled on her Horse of Justice; telling the villagers what they often heard from the outside world was wrong, inaccurate, immoral and even dangerous. Whether it was lies about medical issues or dubious declarations made the Valley’s appointed leaders, Mother Truth always settled the villagers’ fears. They had trusted her for as long as they knew and had no doubted she held their best interests close to her heart and soul.
Then, a new group of people ascended to the village leadership. They were loud and angry and disdainful of their predecessors. They mocked the people who had come before them with vulgar language and degenerative names. At first the villagers merely viewed them as pure buffoons; clowns who loved the attention. But, after a while, some of the valley residents began to listen to this new crop of leaders. Then they started believing them. And they began repeating the claims espoused by these new self-styled leaders. More and more of the residents started to believe these people. After all, the latter group was wealthy and educated – they must know of what they speak. They could not be lying. The words these individuals used, the images they painted of a world out of control – all of it frightened the valley residents.
One afternoon Mother Truth tore through the Valley atop Justice and frantically told the villagers that the crescendo of lecherous voices from of these new leaders spewed out falsities. “They do not understand what they say!” she cried. “They are merely greedy and arrogant! They want nothing more than to secure their own futures and their own wealth!”
“What shall we do?” asked the people.
“Stop believing every single thing they say!” Mother Truth replied. “Think and research for yourselves!”
Stunned, the crowd suddenly and unexpectedly metamorphosed into an angry mob. They attacked the old sage unmercifully and hurtled her into a catacomb, before sending Justice into the fields to reap the crops.
Eventually, some of the villagers realized they had made a mistake. “Mother Truth has never lied to us,” they moaned. “Her very name reveals the nature of her soul. We must free her.”
With the help of these renegades, Mother Truth escaped the catacombs and rescued her horse from an orchard.
Defiant, she rode back into the village, her head held high and her silver hair fluttering in the wind.
Troubled by their own behavior, the valley residents came to accept a painful reality – Truth may hurt, but hope always wins out, and justice plows forward.
Chief Writing Wolf 