Wisdom of the dragon 2-10

The Dragon and the Queen

 

Long ago, on a tall mountain, lived one of the last of the wise dragons. Every day, this wise dragon would leave its cave and head down the mountain to a particular clearing about halfway down the mountain. There, many people from around the land could come and ask the dragon questions, and she would give them her wisdom. From time-to-time people would even stay on the mountain and train as an apprentice of the wise dragon.

The kings and queens that ruled the city in the valley below the mountain often came to ask the dragon for her wisdom on issues of state. At this time, the valley was ruled by Queen Sali. A young but wise queen who listened to her people’s wants and needs and tried to help her people wherever she could.

 

One cloudy afternoon, Queen Sali came to the wise dragon and asked the following question.

 

“Oh, wise guide to all that ask. I stand before you with great sadness,

for my people cry out, asking me to build a canal from the river to the city

so that they need not walk the miles each day to the farmland to gather water. 

I would do this, for their plight is just and I wish to lessen their daily work, but the master of the waterways says that if I do this it will lessen the water that flows to the croplands and the produce will suffer. By extension, the people will then suffer as prices for food will certainly rise. How can I help the people when both options cause suffering?”

 

The wise dragon thought for a long time on this and then finally spoke.

 

“You are truly a compassionate and sensible ruler. If you have the funds within the

kingdom to bring the water from the river to the city, and the master of waterways

has the wisdom to know that this will hurt your croplands, then surely one of you must know that the water that falls on the city from the sky is the same water that falls on the river to make its banks swell with its life-giving goodness?”

 

Queen Sali thought for a second, then responded, “I had not thought of that,

but I do see how that is true. I am sorry, though, I do not see how knowing this helps my people’s plight?”

 

The wise dragon looked a little surprised that the queen had not made the connection between what she had said and the solution to her problem. Then, after a moment of clarifying her thoughts in her head, the wise dragon responded.

 

 

“If it is the same water that falls on the city as the river, can you not use the same funds that you would have built a canal with to now build some way to collect and store the water as it falls from the sky before it rolls down your streets and across the ground to the river? So, would not this be the same as bringing the river to the people, as it is the same water the river has within it?”

 

Queen Sali thought about this and was very pleased, for she knew that the dragon had given her a solution to her people’s troubles.

 

Before she left to go put into action what she had learned, the wise dragon spoke one more time to her, saying.

 

“Remember, all the water that falls from the sky on your land is yours to use.

 Use it wisely.”

 

THE END