The Flaws of Man

It was a bright sunny day, in the early pink dawn, as the sun began to rise over the sheet of glass that hugged the coastline.

But the silence was temporary as the natives began to gather along the beach, for no more than a few miles, stationed just outside the harbour, where a fleet of ships was lying in wait. When Mother Nature heard of all the commotion, she knew she must come to meet these foreigners for herself.

The first of many of the small boats to reach the landfall was just about to make its way to shore by the time she reached the beach. When the boat finally came ashore, she noticed that it was occupied by six men, all brutish in appearance with rugged pale white flesh; however, there was one man who stood out most of all. He was a tall, vulgar-looking man with broad shoulders and a large pot belly that he covered with a mysterious metal plate, and he had hair down past his shoulders that was strangely almost the color of the sand itself.

She would come to learn in time that this man was Randal Cunningham, and not only was he the captain of this fleet, but he was not a man to be trusted the moment your back was turned.

By day's end, many more small crafts had come to shore, and by now, what began as just a few individuals had now grown to a small community of 50 men and women who wasted little time in setting up shelters along the shoreline. Although these newcomers had claimed to have come in peace, that all they were looking for were new lands to explore, the tools they had brought with them painted a far chilling portrait. Large quantities of this thing called gun powder, large metal rods called muskets, which seem to harness the power of thunder and lightning itself, and finally, these shiny metal chains, called shackles, whose purpose is not yet known to us, yet we fear we shall learn soon enough.

Upon seeing this discovery, it was agreed by the elders of the neighboring tribes and Mother Nature herself that these newcomers must be watched very carefully, as their true intentions could very well be to rob these lands of all they desire, leaving a path of destruction along the way.

But how can we watch these pale-faced intruders without alerting them so that their intentions may be revealed? After much consideration, Mother Nature had concluded that perhaps it would be the animals of the forest who would be best suited for the task at hand.

At first, she felt that the sly wolf would be best suited for the job, as he was clever and cunning and could move without being seen. As the wolf approached the village, moving like a shadow in the night, he came to the realization that although he was a stealthy beast, while reaming hidden amongst the trees, much of the forest around that had once existed and had reached the shoreline itself, now stood a barren. The trees were relocated to what was soon to become a great wall, built to protect the now-existing fort.

So, it wasn’t long before the wolf was spotted by villagers below, “looked, they cried, looked at that powerful and mighty beast, truly Mother Nature must be watching, so on our best behaviour’ we must be, as not to reveal our true intentions.”

And with that, the wolf fled back into the forest, knowing that although he had gotten a glimpse of the capabilities of these pale-faced men, in reality, his mission had been a failure.

Frustrated but not discouraged, she began to rethink her plan and decided that perhaps the mighty eagle would be best suited to complete the task at hand; not only was she graceful and majestic, but perhaps it was a bird’s eye view that would help her gather the information she required.

So, as the eagle took flight, soaring high above the village, it was not long before her beauty caught the villagers' attention below. “Looked, they cried, look at that graceful and mighty beast, soaring through the skies above; we must be in the presence of God, or perhaps Mother Nature herself, truly on our best behaviour we must, so that our true intentions shall not be discovered.”

Yet again, the villagers had discovered that a spy had been sent to watch their every move; only after this encounter had they become suspicious that these encounters were far more than curious little creatures come to take a peak. The eagle returned full of shame as her greatest assets had been her undoing, her beauty the cause of her failure, and instead of performing the tasks of a spy, she had unintentionally given the newcomers the knowledge that they must act with a greater sense of caution as the forces surrounding them are becoming suspicious of their plans.

Frustrated by the fact that not only had her plans once again been a complete and utter failure, but now the intruders were beginning to suspect her intentions to place them under her surveillance, with no idea what her next plan should be, she thought it best to take a stroll through the forest to clear her mind. Along her journey, she decided to sit beside a babbling brook, as she often found the sound to be quite comforting.

Just as she sat down, a raven came to join her so that he may bring comfort to her soul; that is when a whole new plan had come to fruition; who better to hide in plain sight than a creature that is so often misunderstood.

And she sent the raven on its way, with hopes that this time, her plan would achieve great success.

Know more than seconds upon its arrival, had the town’s folk spotted the raven; however, on this occasion, the people of the village reacted precisely as Mother Nature had anticipated. “Look at that foul and vile creature,” cried one of the women, “surly this beast must have been sent here by the devil himself,” cried another, “oh just ignore that filthy little scavenger,” yelled a large man in the town square, who was busy cleaning animals in the town square, “He’s probably just come here looking for scraps.”

And so, the people went about their business tearing up the land for gardens, killing the trees so they may build their shelters, while on the other side of the compound, a group of men were reviewing plans for a piece of land that was to dig up for something called a mine. Once the raven had felt satisfied with the information he had gathered, he quickly returned to Mother Nature to report his findings.

After learning this new information, she fell into a furry, as her greatest fears had come true.

And so, she had decided from that day forward that this land, which had yet to experience the fury of a storm, would now be plagued with storms of every kind until such a time that man should no longer take from it all that he desires. Once again, the land shall be given the freedom to live in peace and not to be robbed of all the resources that make up its existence.