An Allegory!

    Hello, Reader! It has been a long time since I last wrote. However, I am making up for it today! Below you will find an allegory called "Of Trees and Rivers" that I wrote for an assignment. I enjoyed writing it, and I hope you will enjoy reading it. 

    She lived in Rivertown. 
    

    To the people inside, the city’s name appeared to come from the two rivers it was set between. Those rivers were mighty and flowed with great power. One was called Progress, and the other Rush. It was said that children and adults alike had been swept away by the tremendous currents. Rush and Progress were admired; they had direction, and sped toward their end, never slowing. 
  

     However, we know that Rivertown was so called because it was always busy. Ceaseless activity was its forte. Even at night, the town bustled, pulsed, hummed, vibrated with activity. This endless motion was attributed to the ruler, Lord Timekeeper. He ruled with an iron fist, efficiency and productivity at his right hand. Underneath the noise of the people, markets, and machinery, the constant tick, tick, tick of the Timekeeper’s towers, the driving tempo of the work that always had to be done, could be heard. Rest was a thing of the past, forgotten and unnecessary in this metropolis of the future.
    

    One would think that the citizens of this place would be worn and tired by the pounding rhythm of incessant work. But most were not. The people had no knowledge of a better way. The shops sold Delusives, food that tricked the mind into being an inexhaustible machine. Delusives were created to be made quickly, forming as soon as they were needed. They were the only thing the people had ever eaten.  
  

    And so our character had lived in that way for many years, swallowing down the life she was given, consuming the Delusives she was fed. She did not know yet that something better waited around the corner. Something for which she was created.  
    

    One day, our character was going to get more Delusives, as she was running low. She had not eaten any the night before, and therefore was weary. Her manager noticed her running behind, and sent her to gain sustenance. As she walked toward the shops, her gaze happened on a gate. There were many gates in Rivertown, but this one was different. This one shone with a golden light, warm and inviting, unlike the usual cold gray ones. On it was engraved a tree, planted by two rivers. Intrigued, our character opened the gate. Curiously, the gate filled her with hope. It looked like it meant something, contrary to her life. She stepped inside.
    

    She was in an Orchard. Smells, sounds, and colors greeted her. Trees of every kind grew, some flourishing and bearing fruit, others only in season for leaves. Trees that did not produce– that was strange. All plants in Rivertown had been modified to produce in all seasons. In the center of the garden, a man knelt, tending the soil. As she came further in, the man stood and turned to face her. 
  

    I am the Gardener, he said. I tend the soil. 

    "Why do not all the trees grow fruit?” our character replies.
    They all will, in due time. Come, sit, talk with me. 
    This behavior is strange to our character. Sit? He doesn’t demand work from her? But her heart is drawn to his words. She saw that chairs had been placed further in the garden. Her mind called to her, telling her of what she had left to do.
    “I have much to do. I should not stay,” she told the Gardner.
    Sometimes, rest is the most productive work, the Gardener answered. 
  

     Rest. It was an ancient concept. Our character had been taught that it was archaic, the very enemy of productivity. How could rest produce anything? Her mind again called her, her reason demanding efficiency. But she silenced it, and sat, drawn by the life the Gardener lived.
    

    The Gardener talked to her of the trees and the fruit they bore. They produced the fruits called Love, Joy, Kindness, and Peace. But they grew slowly. The trees had to be cared for. They were not efficient. They were opposite of the rivers admired in Rivertown. While the rivers rushed around, the trees stood firm, rooted deeply in the dirt. They grew, instead of flowing in circles with nothing to show for it. While she was in the Orchard, she felt valued. The Gardener had endless time for her, and he desired and delighted in her presence. This was exactly opposite the hurry of Rivertown. It was impossible to be valued when one’s worth was placed on productivity.
    

    After a time, the worries of her mind surfaced again, and she listened this time. She bade the Gardener goodnight, and left by the gate. As she walked toward her workplace, she pondered what he had said. She had been allowed to taste Love, one of the fruits that grew on the trees. It satisfied, in a way completely opposite to the Delusives. She was filled with stillness inside. She had never tasted Love before. In the world of Rivertown, there was no time for Love. It was a very inconvenient fruit, messy and time-consuming. While she worked, she pondered the Orchard and its mysteries. Most of all, she pondered the Gardener. He had invited her to return, for he would always be there. She merely had to show up. 
  

    And day by day, she did. She found that it was easier when she had not eaten many Delusives. When she felt the weight of her work pulling her down, she was reminded of the promise of the Orchard. She would always find rest when she stepped inside the gate. 

    Thank you for bearing with this long post! I hope the story had meaning for you and reminded you to rest. My inspiration came from the song Springtime by Chris Renzema (specifically the bridge), Psalm 1:3, and Galatians 5:22-23. You, Reader, can share your thoughts in the comments (I love hearing what people think!). Thanks for reading! Until next time, adieu!

*Disclaimer*: Thea Knightley is the author and owner of this original allegory, so don't steal it :)