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So tired ...of the dog eat dog
Be ever watchful of ...the bully and thief
One take from another ...as if just to survive
Is this living
Can find scant relief
Sporadic ...acts of kindness
Less seen ...of than heard
This legend ...this love
Back ...in the old days
It is said...
Was observed
...Religiously...
When the current wave of cultural awareness began
Many years past anyone living could remember
The person to person exchange of the day ...was to barter
Or trade goods and services
Since bands of outlaws roams the countryside
Protecting their prospective areas of control
The borders of which changed with new alliances or betrayals
Based on their abilities to maintain them
Naturally merchants grew tired of being robber
Enlisting the stronger of these groups and paying tribute/taxes
For the benefit of the protection
And still could make modest profits
However, as consequence of the depredations
The moderate inherent friction between buyer and seller
Was lost in the equation
The regional authority, bandits themselves ...had to make rules
To prevent the sharing of the spoils
Become too laden with spoils from the top leaders
From being too greedy, so that their juniors
Would use treachery to usurp them
Such was society
Some good rulers, some not so much so
In the meanwhile ...the mood was set on labor
Competitive combat tournaments were observed
Periodically to balance the governing powers
Eventually ...the merchants themselves managed
To sweeten the rulers take with small bribes
And the center of balance began to favor
Those who could afford to buy favor
This in turn encouraged
Those in power to become
Increasingly more corrupt
Even those chosen for their skill
In settling grievances between
Those whose person or properties were damaged,
Or those who believed that they were wronged
Were in turn, influenced by the imbalance
In the law which ...warped the scales
Thus corporate greed
...slithered into the equation
Of urban life
Since the regional authorities
Set the pace for all commerce
Larger entities gradually forced out
All the smaller merchants
By lowering prices
Until they could not hope to make a profit
Or buying out their sources by offering higher prices
Than the smaller merchants could afford to pay
Thus, in time
Life had largely been broken down
To service ...and military occupations
What had become of the people
In this ...the life equation
Once upon a time
The kingdom was happy place
Of rich cultural heritage
And the dances
Which were legendary ...themselves
Life had broken down
Rarely people even spoke
Most either walked with their heads stuck in the air
Or hung trudging along with heads towards the ground
What was needed was a silent revolution
A return to the quiet pace
of creative thoughts
and dreams...
songs and dances
Love of life
...and honest exchange
...between people
Personal contact
a return to an honest life of...
Person to person ...touch to touch
The love germ ...spread its fever
And the people began ...to enjoy
the calm and peaceful aura
...this thing called urban love
C2
