Has the Pen lost its Influence?
As rulers once mighty,
now fallen, routed

Forgotten to time  
when power was knowledge
and writer was King

Words passed on,
sent down from bygone days
Preserved,
not lost to mortalities reap
Endowed in volume for subsequent erudition

Significant statements,
worthy of note,
recorded to guide future leaders

To change the course of history,
to turn our page of understanding

To shape,
our views, our direction, our feelings

To scribe defining moments of
human triumph or aberration
in histories pages of account

Like a speech,
spoken by a great man;
His dream,
to unite his people in a common struggle,
now sealed in composition forever

Now,
unfortunately, forgotten, abandoned

The world of today has lost its want
for the force and pleasure of perusal

The quill,
once mightier than the sword;
Now eclipsed by the torpid visual medium,
languidly stealing any rite of progression
or self development

The people now lost in a void of inactivity,
watch aimlessly into unread oblivion

Elder:
    "My young nut,
the time has come for you to fall to the ground and begin your climb to Oakhood."

Nut:
    "Elder,
may I fall close to your roots so that I can grow in your presence."

    "My young nut,
you must fall away from my roots,
otherwise you'll never reach your potential!"

    "Elder,
I don't want to be alone in this wood!
There are too many dangers for me to comprehend!
You have wisdom and experience.
I can learn from under your cover."

    "My young nut,
If you grow under me,
you will have protection,
but you'll never learn to stand on your own roots!
You cannot learn to grow in my shade,
only through experience.
You must suffer great winds which will teach you to hold your ground.
You must fight for sunlight which will teach you to aspire.
You must grow a thick bark which will teach you to withstand attacks."

    "Elder,
I'm so small and vulnerable.
I don't think I can make it on my own!
I have a great fear for the unknown!"

    "My young nut,
Your fear is misplaced!
Your fear of not experiencing life should be greater than your fear of what could be!"

Salmon 1
Bear 2

"Please let me pass so I can finish my journey
to the place of my birth;
So I can continue the life cycle of my kind.
You've eaten many Salmons,
surely you've satisfied your hunger for today!"

"My hunger is satisfied Salmon,
but I'll feast on you as well!"

"I beg for mercy,
please let me pass!
This is my one and only chance to mate.
I've travelled a great distance for this occasion;
I'll exhaust my life for this endeavour!"

"You ask for mercy salmon.
I possess no such feeling for you!
You're food for me salmon,
nothing more."

"If you permit my passage,
you'll benefit from your grace in time.
I will lay many eggs,
which in turn will become many salmons,
more food.
Your feast will be greater in future years."

"Don't try to tempt me with promises of the future Salmon!
You've spent many years at sea,
waiting for your one and only time to return to this place.
You live for the run,
I on the other hand live by the seasons.
I suffer many hardships in barren times.
I dream of days of abundance,
days like this!
I've learned to appreciate the good times.
You offer me a prize I may not live to see.
I take opportunities when they present themselves,
In the present,
not the future!"

Oxpecker:
    "Impala,
may I offer my services to you?
I can clean you of your ticks and insects;
They must cause you great discomfort!
I'll eat them and keep you free of unwanted parasites.
I'll also clean your ears of wax and dandruff, helping you hear your predators approach."

Impala:
    "Oxpecker,
I would be grateful for your services,
it sounds too good to be true!
What's in it for you?"

Oxpecker:
    "Impala,
I only want to help you with your troubled condition.
I see your suffering,
I want you to be happy.
Your smile of relief will be my payment.
In order to carry out these burdens of care,
will you grant me permission to perch upon your back,
watching over you,
for your future well-being of course."

Elephant:
    "Impala,
don't believe the tick birds lies.
He'll feed on your pests and then on you!
His motives are sinister and self serving."

Oxpecker:
    "Elephant,
you spread malicious lies about me,
all because I refused a seat on your back!
You don't suffer as much as the impala,
he needs me more than you do!
YOU'RE a jealous, spiteful creature!"

Oxpecker:
    "Impala,
the elephant's trying to trick you so I'll take a seat on his back and care for him instead.
I know YOU'RE smart,
don't fall for his deceptions."

Impala:
    "Elephant,
you won't trick me with your duplicity!
You want the oxpecker all for yourself!
I'll accept the oxpeckers invitation at once
so you no longer try and steal him away.
YOU ARE a jealous, spiteful creature!"

Elephant:
    "Impala,
remember this day!
I warned you,
you chose to ignore me!
You've made a decision based in fear.
You take the word of a creature that eats other creatures,
you'll suffer for your rashness!"

Rose:
  "Dandelion,
how dare you grow in my bed!
Only I have the privilege of feeding on this nutrient rich soil,
created for me, me alone!
You have no right to make your home here!
My keeper will pull you out of the ground
and dispose of you like the **** you are."

Dandelion:
  "Rose,
I've just as much right to grow as you do!
Why do you insult me?
Am I not a flower just like you?"

  "Dandelion,
you're a common garden ****,
I'm beautiful, admired by all who set eyes upon me.
My keeper feeds and carefully prunes my body.
She admires my soft velvety petals which are the deepest red.
My stem, so slender, my prickles tempting, dangerous.
I'm beauty and pain in perfect harmony.
You can admire, but do not touch!"

  "Rose,
I'm beautiful in my own way,
don't you see?
My yellow petals, the colour of golden sunshine.
I symbolise the sun, moon and stars;
I'm also resilient.
I've no carer to look after me, yet I still manage to flourish,
even in the toughest of places."

  "Dandelion,
your time will be short in this place!
There's no room for your commonness here.
I'm a special breed, you're ******!"

  "Rose,
I know my fates sealed,
I accept the situation for what it is;
Beauty's in the eye of the beholder.
What you don't realise,
we'll suffer the same fate!
You'll end your days
standing in a vase filled with water.
My death will be quick;
Yours prolonged!
In the end,
your beauty will be your downfall!"

My dear Conifer,
how long have you stood in this place?
How long have you laboured to become so mighty and sturdy?
Have you worked hard to achieve this strong foundation?

  My dear Conifer,
can I attach myself to your system and enjoy the fruits of your labour?
May I reside on your strong trunk and grow my berries from your sap?
My needs are small and you're so abundant
You won't even notice my presence on your towering body.
Can you afford me the advantages you have toiled for?

  My dear Conifer,
can I bore into your core and grow heavy in your honour.
I'll enjoy your kindness and establish my position from your greatness.
Don't be afraid,
I bear you no ill will,
I only want to become a part of your brilliance and reach the heights which you've suffered to attain.

  Conifer,
Have your roots become weak in the ground?
You sway back and forth from the most gentle winds.
Your foliage looks dry, withered.
Branches no longer reaching for the sky.
I've grown strong on your trunk,
I'm beautiful and ripe, my berries,
the most succulent of all mistletoe.
You're a frail shadow of your former self,
no longer worthy of sustaining me.

"Snowflake,
you've woken me from my slumber."
Said the evergreen.

  "Forgive me evergreen,
I've no control of where I fall."
Said the snowflake.

  "Have you fallen here before snowflake?"

  "No,
this is my first and only time in this world."

  "I'm pretty sure you've landed on my foliage before."

  "You'll have seen other snowflakes,
but not me."

  "First and only time in this world.
What do you mean?"

  "I'll experience this world once,
when I melt away,
that'll be the end of me!"

  "Won't you be created again
by whatever caused you into being?"

  "No,
I'm unique,
I'll never be formed again.
I'll have to make the most of my time,
here and now."

  "I don't see the point of your existence!
You'll only be here for a brief moment in time.
What's the reason for your being?"

  "To exist,
that's the only reason!"

  "What purpose will you fulfil?"

  "My purpose is to simply be,
that's my function in this world!
That's enough for me!"
Said the snowflake,
as it melted away,
in the warmth of the rising winter sun.