Structure & Fires

"The outside is a magnificent structure, and the inside of the house is also magnificent. The heart of the house, however, is the hearth fire. That is what gives the whole dwelling warmth and light. A group of people come along and say, 'The essential part of the house is the hearth fire, so why don't we just take down the walls?' So, the walls are taken down, and vandals come into the house and puts out the hearth fire. There is nothing left but ruins.

"Another group of people come along and they say, 'This was once a beautiful house; let's build another one just like it.' These people reason that since it was the destruction of the walls that led to the ruin of the house, then it must follow that the walls were the most important part of the house. So, the new house is built, the walls are beautiful, but there is no hearth fire. . . .

"Another group of people wander across the earth looking for signs of the hearth fire. Occasionally they find a few sparks, kept alive in a humble woodcutter's cottage, or in a small fire started by a few of their fellow wanderers. These wanderers still travel to the ruins of the old house and try to start up the old hearth fire. But vandals now guard the old house and they refuse to let anyone near it who looks like they might try to start up the hearth fire. So, the wanderers continue to wander and hope and plan for the day when they can return to the old ruins, kill the vandals, rekindle the hearth fire, and rebuild the walls."

(from Daniel Neyer)