Eib'bed's Grand Children

If one saw Eib'bed emerging reborn from her chrysalus as all deities must to keep their immortality, they would likely think that she needed a few more minutes inside. A goddess found in every grandmother, her domain is that of home and hearth, secret sweets, and the pure joy of nurturing wonder, especially in children. A being of pure kindness, she has one of the strongest followings of a lesser goddess.   Eib'bed's Grand Children are her most devout followers, who are focused on ensuring everyone feels welcome and cared for, doing grand gestures in the smallest of ways that tend to get lost on the way to the history books.

Structure

While there are temples to worshipping Eib'bed, they are unlikely to be affiliated directly with the Grand Children. The structure for the Grand Children is flat, with no favoritism shown to any one Grandchild. The organization prefers to work from a place of humility and, if possible, anonymity. To consider oneself a Grandchild is to become one.   Grand Children will occasionally gather for a Reunion. These Reunions are often ways for members to pool resources together to do powerful acts of charity that individuals may not be able to complete on their own. A few friendly farmhands who till the fields and leave before receiving payment, or a hefty bag of silver mysteriously appearing on a widow's door to pay the tax collector and save her home. Still, these Reunions are usually impromptu and are often gathered via word of mouth or bulletin bearing Eib'bed's symbol at the local inn, complete their task, and disband.

Culture

Most who are called to be a Grandchild are humble, kind, and willing to get their hands dirty in the name of service. Many tend to be the jovial sort, laughing and staying late into the night at the pub and ensuring the stragglers get home safely. In particular, they almost worship food. If you feel you must pay back a Grandchild for their generosity, there is no better way than a hearty meal and delicious drink shared between you and them. Never praise them if you can help yourself; praise is an unwanted burden to a Grandchild.   That said, nearly anyone can be a member. A cantankerous old man who mutters as he places coins in the hat of a beggar. A child who is always willing to lend a toy to a friend. The boisterous bard who discreetly delivers a basket of fruits and bread at the orphanage before heading out of town.

History

The history of the Grand Children is difficult to trace due to their attempts to do kindness from the shadows. The first mention of Grand Children, spelled as such, is from a manuscript written in 423 VE. This manuscript spoke of a stranger visiting a small village in Lochmalan that had fell under an unending drought and led to wilting crops and worries for the winter. The stranger had used a vitraxine dowsing wand, an incredibly rare artifact at the time, to unearth a large reservoir near the town and pushed the wand to vitraxophy pulling the water to the surface. Instead of being sorrowed by their valuable loss, they were instead overjoyed to have helped this group of strangers. All they had asked in return was a bed to sleep in that night and to dine with the entire town before heading out the next morning.   The manner in which this stranger held themselves likely means these devout followers have existed much longer. There are other potentially historical events that show great kindness. There are the Cobblestone Crusades, where a small army of men, women, and children put it upon themselves to pave the sloshy roads of southern Lochmalan that still are in use today which took place in 23 PVE. The supposed "defeat" of a leviathan by fixing a particularly nasty toothache in 142 PVE, and even the Miracle of Mourianji where the desert oasis city, Zafir, was said to have been pulled from the sands itself by an elderly woman burnishing a large flagon and a beautiful radiating staff to save a stranded caravan of religious pilgrims of Tribulan in 412 PVE. Unfortunately, these have not been corroborated by the Libraries of Gnosi leaving them as legends for now. The Grand Children are also not mentioned in any of the stories, so any involvement by them was likely lost to time as they would wish it to be.   The Stranger from Lochmalan had only one direct quote in the manuscript: "you can't let someone leave without breakfast". This became the basis of the group's motto: Love and Breakfast. The saying can actually be spelled or pronounced a few ways: "Loving Breakfast" to signify a love of food, "Love in Breakfast" to signify cooking a meal to show love, and "Love and Breakfast" to signify their driving forces of hospitality and caring.
* Eib'bed is in honor of my grandmother who passed in 2021. She was every storybook grandma made real: wonderful chef (especially baking), somehow both kind and cantankerous, and filled with wisdom. She was so quintessentially "grandma" that most people I knew, sans her kids and husband, called her such regardless of any relation.

Love in Breakfast

Founding Date
423 VE
Demonym
Grandchild, Child of Eib'bed
Location

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