...would you be pleased to find a nation of such barbarous temper, that, breaking out in hideous violence, would not afford you an abode on earth,...what would you think to be thus used? this is the strangers case; And this your mountainish inhumanity. - Sir Thomas More by William Shakespeare
Naturally, we elected the mountain.
It had the correct qualifications -
experience with pressure,
a proven record of not moving,
and a face no one could accuse of empathy.
Committees bloomed like moss.
The Committee for Accepting the Mountain
met weekly and adjourned satisfied.
The Committee for Questioning the Mountain
met once, briefly,
and was folded into Infrastructure.
Pamphlets were distributed.
Living With Weight: A Practical Guide.
Illustrations showed smiling citizens
standing slightly bent,
which was explained to be “good posture, historically.”
Those crushed outright were mourned efficiently.
Those slowly compressed were congratulated.
Those who asked whether the mountain was necessary
were reminded that necessity
is defined by whatever is already there.
Each year the Festival of Endurance grew larger.
There were speeches about grit,
souvenirs shaped like small, harmless rocks,
and a popular game where children guessed
how much weight a person could take
before becoming inspirational.
Once - purely for variety -
a crack appeared.
Experts assured us it was cosmetic.
The mountain issued no statement,
which was widely applauded as leadership.
Someone proposed dismantling it stone by stone.
This was considered radical.
Someone proposed adjusting how we stood beneath it.
This was considered divisive.
Someone proposed doing nothing.
This was considered realistic
and promptly funded.
Over time, the mountain shrank slightly -
not in size, but in discussion.
It became impolite to mention the weight.
Very impolite to suggest standing upright.
Unforgivably rude to ask
who stacked the first stone.
So we adapted.
We adapted so well
that future generations assumed
people were simply shaped this way.
Bent. Quiet. Careful not to look up too long.
And the mountain remained blameless,
having never spoken,
never voted,
never once insisted on being obeyed -
a model citizen, really,
doing only what it was built to do.
Moral (for those who enjoy such things):
A mountain cannot be guilty,
but it can be useful.
Especially to people who prefer
their cruelty heavy,
their responsibility geological,
and their conscience explained
as gravity.
GBS jr
2024
0 Comments