The Lake

In the middle of a forest, there was a lake. This lake was the main source of food and water for the surrounding tribe for many generations. They worshiped this lake like a god, and always made sure to take good care of it. One day, a group of men entered the camp. They were not recognized by any of the people. The tribal chief approached the men. After a discussion, the men left. Later that evening, the chief held a meeting in the center of the camp.

    "My people," he said, "the men who visited our camp this evening were from an area outside of the desert. They have offered to give us some new instruments in return for use of the lake. I have decided to hold a vote. All in favor of seeing what these outsiders have to offer?" Most of the tribe members raised their hands.

    "It is settled then. I will meet with them in the morning."

    The next day, the men were back. With them was a strange creature that the tribe had never seen before. It had a shiny body and circular limbs. One of the men was actually sitting inside it. The beast was carrying a large number of items, presumably for trading. Also among them were slips of a thin material. The men offered it to the chief, but seeing no value in it, he declined their offer. Then, the men brought out a supply of trinkets, as well as a long tube attached to a handle. One of the men, to show how it worked, pulled a little hanging piece. Immediately, thunder filled the air. The tribe members took cover until the sound stopped. The chief walked over to calm them.

    "Do not worry. The sound you heard was one of the new weapons the men have supplied us." More goods were exchanged, and the men left.

    The following morning, more of the men arrived, along with three additional beasts carrying a smelly substance. They backed up to the lake, and the creature raised its back, dropping its load in. Another wave came and repeated the procedure. Then they left.

    Many tribe members didn't understand what was occurring. The chief again addressed his tribe.

    "The men have explained to me that the lake is too big to be damaged. It will be O.K."

    This went on for many weeks. One day, the town Shaman decided to go fishing. He sat at the side of the lake and immediately spotted a fish at the top of the water. He felt lucky, until he noticed another one next to it, and then another. Soon, he realized that there was a mass of dead fish at the surface of the water. He immediately visited the chief and told about the experience.

    "Hmmm. This is strange. I will ask the men tomorrow."

    When the chief brought up the problem, the men told him that it was normal. It had to do with naturally occurring events. The chief relayed this information back to the Shaman. He was skeptical, but concluded that they probably knew more anyway.

    The next week, the men brought with them two more creatures carrying more goods and guns. They asked for permission to use the forest. Again, the chief put it to a vote. Fewer people voted to allow it. However, enough votes were received, and the chief allowed the men access to the forest.

    The Shaman was now getting more worried every day. Recently, he had noticed a noticeably smaller population of fish and crab, both of which had been plentiful before. Also, the water, which had been crystal clear, began to get murky, and diseases which had never attacked the tribe before were spreading through the camp. The Shaman once again visited the chief and voiced his concerns.

    "I have already discussed the matter with the outsiders. They say that it can be cured with a medicine they have. They are bringing a supply tomorrow." This they did, along with an army of yellow beasts with large shovels in front. The men used these machines to push against the trees in the forest. Over the next few weeks, they continued to cut down the trees until none were left within a mile of the camp. The Shaman noticed that the days were quieter; there was no longer the sound of birds to break the silence. Many of the game that the tribesmen hunted had also disappeared. The quality of the water decreased each time the beasts dumped the smelly substance into the lake. On top of all of that, the medicine supplied by the foreigners did not work. Disease claimed many of their lives each day. Now, it was not just the Shaman who had an issue with the outsiders; complaints came from all over the camp. However, the chief, from the many months of being supplied by the men, was getting greedy.

    "Please, my people, enough. These men have supplied us with riches as well as new weaponry. So far, they don't seem to have lied to us, and the medicine 'problem' was a mistake; they brought  the wrong one. Those of you complaining about the water from the lake, let me remind you: there is still rain. As long as this fact is true, you will have water, and crops will grow." Most of the tribesmen were satisfied with this explanation.

    The next day, a storm passed over the campsite. The people in the tribe set out containers to collect the water. However, when they tried to drink it, many spit it out and gagged; it was very bitter. They also noticed that the water they had collected with the containers was almost as murky as the water in the lake. Growing season passed, and there was no crop growth. The tribesmen began to die of hunger on top of disease; the new medicine had not worked either. Now, even the chief was worried. His son, the heir, had just contracted whatever was spreading through the camp. But when he wanted to discuss this issue with the men the next day, they didn't come. Nor the next day, or the day after. They realized that they had been used, but it was too late to do anything.

    The Shaman knew that he had to make sure that none of the other tribes in the area were tricked by these men. That evening, he entered his hut and opened his book of incantations, passed down from generation to generation. He turned to the back of the book. After finding the spell, he began to chant it, first slowly, and then faster and faster. In his hands, an orb of light appeared. He stepped outside of his hut and threw this orb of light into the air, watching until it disappeared in the night sky. This is why, every so often, that you may see a streak of light cross the sky. It is a warning to the world: be careful with your resources. If they are mistreated, the consequences could be deadly.