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But, the fairest of all were the
water lilies, which grew in the central pond of the garden. They were white as
snow, with four crowns of petals that made the water of the pond sparkle like a
diamant when the Lord of the Garden visited them. But it wasn’t Lord Sun who
liked them above all, no, it was the Lady who favoured the water lilies best,
and when Lady Moon visited their waters, the water lilies tried to look their
loveliest. They would shake their petals and fold them in neat patterns to
delight the Lady with their show, they would rise above the water as much as
they could to demonstrate their beauty, just to please their Lady. They would
sing to her about the everlasting life and love in the garden, and the Lady
would clap her in hands in joy, dance in the water and hug each flower tightly,
and every time the lilies prided themselves what lucky flowers they were, that
they could please their Lady so much.
One day, the Lady visited the lake again, but she wasn’t happy this time. The
flowers stretched their petals as much as they could, they made images of the
animals in the garden, of the youngling Stars playing with the deer, they sang
every song they knew, but no picture would make her smile, no music would
brighten her face. They were astonished and didn’t know what to do. A little
forlorn, they gathered in the center of the pool and all looked at their Lady,
sitting in the grass. Then, all of sudden, the Lady rose to her feet and stepped
into the pond, but she didn’t dance, no, she hesitantly moved towards the
lilies, and all the flowers held their breath. When she finally reached them,
she told the lilies what had happened.
‘Dear flowers, I don’t know what to do. My Lord left me alone for hours and I
was sick with worry. He hadn’t said a word to me about it, so at first I just
waited for him. But after a while my anxiety grew and grew. I searched the whole
garden, I asked all the Stars and all the flowers, but no one had seen him, no
one knew. Then, hours later, when I was asleep beneath a birch tree, my Lord
came back and quietly laid his hand on my shoulder. As soon as I was fully
awake, I started to cry and he held me tight in his warm arms. When I finally
was able to ask where he had been, he simply said “outside”. Can you imagine, my
dear lilies, his Lordship went outside. As if
we’re not good enough for him. When I asked him why, he said: “I saw so much out
there that I had never thought of before. I saw illness and I saw betrayal. You
don’t know what illness is, do you?” He dared to ask me! Of course I didn’t
know, and I don’t want to know. My dear lilies, what shall I do with him?’
As soon as she finished speaking to them, the Maiden of the Moon started to cry.
At first, the lilies had only listened, they had reached out to her words with
every petal they could muster, but now that the Lady cried, they folded round
cups of their leaves and received her tears and drank them, like they drank the
rain of spring. And when she finally finished crying, they started to sing to
her for a second time and made the most beautiful images imaginable; they
imitated the roses in the garden and the big yellow flowers his Lordship liked
so much and when they sang and pictured and danced for her the Lady finally
forgot her sorrow. They danced through the pond for hours and in the end, when
the Lady fell asleep on the grass beside the pond, the lilies prided themselves
what lucky flowers they were, that they could please their Lady so much.
It was a week later, when the Lady visited the lake again. The lilies had been
waiting for her every day, for they wanted to comfort her with their art and
beauty and had prepared a special show for her, but her face told them enough
when she descended to the water surface and they kept their peace, awaiting her
story. The lilies gathered in the center of the pond and the Lady advanced on
them immediately and spoke:
‘Dear flowers, I still don’t know what to do. My Lord left me alone for hours
again and I was sick with worry. He hadn’t warned me in advance, so at first I
just waited for him. But after a while my anxiety grew and grew. I searched the
whole garden, I asked all the Stars and all the flowers, I even went to the edge
of the garden to look for him, but no one had seen him, no one knew. Then, hours
later, when I was fast asleep beneath an oak tree, my Lord came back and quietly
put a hand on my shoulder. As soon as I was fully awake, I started to cry and he
held me tight in his hot arms. When I finally was able to ask where he had been,
he again said “outside”. Can you imagine, my dear lilies, his Lordship went
OUTSIDE AGAIN. As if we’re not good enough for him. When I asked him why, he
said: “I saw so much out there that I had never thought of before. I saw poverty
and hunger. You don’t know what hunger is, do you?” He dared to ask me! Of
course I didn’t know, and I don’t want to know. My dear lilies, what shall I do
with him?’
As soon as she finished speaking to them, the Maiden of the Moon started to cry.
At first, the lilies had only listened, they had reached out to her sentences
with every petal they could muster, but now that the Lady cried, they folded
tiny goblets of their leaves and received her tears and drank them, like they
drank the summer rain. And when she finally finished crying, they started to
sing to her, even more beautifully than they had done before. They made the most
wonderful images imaginable, they imitated the roses in the garden and the big
yellow flowers his Lordship liked so much and when they sang and danced for her
the Lady finally forgot her sorrow. They danced through the pond for hours and
hours and in the end when the Lady fell asleep on the grass beside the pond, the
lilies prided themselves what lucky flowers they were, that they could please
their Lady so much.
For weeks the lilies awaited another of the visits of their Lady, and they grew
more anxious every hour. They thought the Lady had found another favourite
flower or that she had left the garden for good but after a month the Lady
finally showed up at the water’s edge, her face dark and icy. The lilies huddled
together as much as they could in the center of the pond, but they were barely
gathered when the Lady spoke to them again:
‘My dear flowers, I think I know what I must do. My Lord left me alone for days
and days and I was sick with worry. He hadn’t spoken to me for a while, but I
didn’t wait for him. I went to the edge of the garden to look for him, even a
little beyond into the Wilderness, and there I saw him, flying through the skies
looking down at the lands beyond our garden. But he never saw me, not once did
he look back at the beauty of the garden, the place we loved together. Then,
hours later, when I still lay awake, my Lord came back and quietly tried to put
a hand on my shoulder. He was startled to find me fully awake, but this time I
didn’t cry: I furiously swept his arms away. I shouted to him why he had to go
outside again and again, but he remained silent and never spoke. Then, when I
finally stopped shouting, he said: “I saw so much out there that I had never
thought of before. I saw war and death. You don’t know what death is, do you?”
He dared to ask me! “Of course I don’t know,” I yelled at him, and I left in
anger. My dear lilies, I must expel him from the garden. Let him go outside,
forever, but don’t expect me to wait for him.’
As soon as she finished speaking to them, the Maiden of the Moon started to cry.
At first, the lilies had only listened, they had reached out to her story with
every petal they could muster, but now that the Lady cried, they folded vases of
their leaves and received her tears and drank them, like they drank the autumn
rain. And when she finally finished crying, they wanted to sing and dance for
her, and weave intricate patterns like they used to do all the time, but they
stopped before they could start. Behind the Lady, the bright image of the Lord
of the Garden appeared. He had heard all the Lady had said to them. A smiled
played along his lips as he addressed his Lady’s favourite flowers with the
following words:
‘My dear flowers, why do you tell her Lady of everlasting love, when there’s so
much more beyond this garden? Why do you only tell of life, if death is just as
everlasting? You should come outside and see for yourself, you are blinded by
your tales of everlasting love and life, while outside there’s illness and
betrayal, poverty and hunger, war and death.’
Then he turned to his Lady, his smile now menacing as he spoke:
‘And you, woman, you want me to leave this place? I’m happy to, but I'll take
you, you and your darling children with me. Like me, you will fly the skies and
look down upon all there is to see beyond this garden...'
What happened then, no one knows. Yet the lilies found themselves bound in their
green leaves, forming little green buds on little green stems, captives in a
little green cell. Then, when the Lady of the Lilies first cried from her new
high seat and her tears rained down upon the flowers, the lilies opened up and
sang their song to comfort her, but not from a sparkling pond - instead, from an
ocean of sand. And every night, when the moon rises above the Rahaz Dath Desert
and the Lady longs for her Garden and cries in desperation, the lilies will sing
their song. And if their song pleases the Lady, she might come down to them,
forgetting her sorrow, descending from her high home upon an Aj white as snow,
and she’ll dance the whole night with them, till Lord Sun scares them all away
at dawn.
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