in the widest of places

forests and valleys, mountains and deserts, waters narrow and wide,
the land seemed boundless.

people gathered in pockets and corners,
a fishing village edging the ocean,
communities dotting the glens,
and vibrance nestled in canyon walls.

leaders rose up, some acquiring vast swaths of nature.
tensions and conflicts were fought and settled,
the land became divided.

one particular leader, with a great number of communities under their charge,
began to clash with some of their citizenry.
the leader tried to negotiate, efforts which were praised by citizens open to their leadership.
but the discontent wore on, and vocal individuals placed boulders on the community’s borders.

each pathway into the community was soon blocked up,
even a tiny mountain village disconnected from the rest
was encircled with stones.

the vocal citizens wanted independence, claiming it would provide more freedom.
they threw stones at the leader who came to listen to their frustrations.
they added more boulders, and declared themselves separate.

the leader retained ownership of the land the community was on 
and tried often to listen and negotiate.
but the community’s boisterous citizenry silenced suggestions to negotiate.
as time went on, the leaders who owned the land,
seeing the vocal citizenry’s unwillingness to allow in reason,
let the community own the land.

the loudest citizens claimed their efforts successful, and added more boulders to fill in gaps.
the quiet citizens, especially those who had desired negotiation, began to find any unblocked gap to escape to lands where their voices could be heard.

the fleeing was soon noticed by the vocal leaders who began to catapult dissenters over the boulders, their survival of little concern.
others who tried to escape were stoned to death within the bouldered community.

these methods continued,
as did successful escapes,
until the morning came when a sunrise shone
on a community of citizenry who no longer spoke against the boisterous.
all the land between the boulders was quiet,
even the tiny mountain village disconnected from the main,
and the vocal citizens rejoiced in their independence, claiming they were truly free.

the former owner of the community’s land continued leading other communities,
and over time some of these groups wanted greater control of their regions.
these communities quietly reached an agreement with the leader,
writing a promise of peace, local control, and mutual independence,
and they constructed bridges to honour the new beginnings.

other communities and villages penned similar agreements,
motivated by unique cultures, economic growth,
distance, or different languages,
each beginning marked by the construction of a bridge.

the land was soon dotted with bridges linking a panorama of lifestyles,
connecting the many communities newly independent
from leaders of former large domains.

but the bridges did not go to the few communities still bounded by boulders;
suggestions of bridging with these areas had ceased
after decades of requests had been denied.

the bridged areas exchanged ideas and art, goods and support.
together they created meaning.
together they uncovered secrets of forests and valleys,
mountains and deserts, waters narrow and wide.
the land seemed boundless.

from time to time, tensions and conflicts arose in the bridged communities,
but they were settled through dialogue, promises for peace, and mutual respect.

no disagreements echoed within the bouldered boundaries,
where vocal citizens rejoiced in the boulders which contained them.
they were independent.
they, alone, were truly free.