Introduction

The Mirror of Truth

The Magic Coin

The Gopher’s Other World

The Forbidden Union

The Trail of Paradox

The Squirrel and the Apple

The Camel’s Conclusion

Will and Trust

The Subservient Child

Fanning the Freedom Flame

The Seed of Possibility

Harvest Forlorn

Conclusion

 
 
“Stories tell us of what we already knew and forgot, and remind us of what we haven’t yet imagined.”

—Anne L. Watson

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Conclusion

_____So, what is this "neglected reality" anyway? Again, I could only begin to tell you about my own, and even so, only to the extent I understand it myself. Even then, you could only see it through the veil of your own experience. It is this veil I hoped to sharpen through these parables. My initial voyage was toward a means of sharing my reality with others, in a manner they would entirely comprehend. Though I accepted the futility of this idea, was it entirely an impossible dream? If at any moment, while reading my simple tales, you felt the same sensation as I, then in that instant my initial pilgrimage was fulfilled. If any event chronicled within these accounts evoked an emotional response, you more than likely peeked into that "Mirror of Truth" at your own reflection. When the feelings were most intense, you probably found yourself fixed on the image you saw. If the feelings were happy or hopeful, you uncovered a bit of the reality of which I speak. If the feelings were uncomfortable, you discovered the neglect.
_____So, what would I encourage you to do with this "neglected reality" anyway? Though the stories did not often end happily, the message is one of hope, for joy cannot exist without sorrow, evil cannot exist without good, and grace cannot exist without tragedy. The question then becomes, "On which do we choose to focus?" The "reality" I dream of cannot be expressed in words or stories, or perhaps even in ideas, but it is most definitely something worth living for. It is this type of reality we so often neglect. Just what this means to you, and where in your life you will find it...?...well, how can I begin to understand your complex reality? I do wish for you, with all my heart, what my heart hopes for itself... to understand and appreciate my own!

© 1993 - Paul Stephens