Master of the moon
Sapling #22
You will find him perched when the sharpest shadows fall.
Master of the moon, watching over the world.
Longingly, we look up to what he is holding. It’s a treasure he is guarding quietly, that much is clear. Such a shame he doesn’t open his beak, even by accident. Mere crumbs would do for us.
Is it his silence that makes him so exceptional? His improbably strong beak?
What is it that he knows but will not speak of?
Whatever we implore, however cunning our contrivances, the master of the moon is too smart for us. We will never catch him bantering. Not a sliver of light he grants us, that stuck-up piece of conceitedness.
How we love to tell ourselves stories. The master of the moon knows this better than anyone. As long as he keeps his silence, we can go on dreaming of his treasure, in a moment of carelessness, falling.
And how we, too, one day, will sprout wings.
The SAPLING series is a joint project with artist and illustrator Jurgen Walschot.
Saplings are creative sprouts. I will write to the images, he will draw to the words.
The background story of how this particular Sapling was conceived of, can be read here.