Fools

"How did you know to make this?" the First Created asked.
"I did not. It was exploration, experimentation," said the Earth Mother.

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All artwork by Shanda Nelson unless otherwise stated

Exploration

"Exploration?" asked the First Created. "But how did you know to explore?" She had been first created but knew not what to do.
"It is as others told me," the Earth Mother said. "Mold with what you create, move in and out, hold close, throw away. Explore."
"But I have not created this," the First Created said. "I cannot mold with it, move in and out, hold close, throw away." She stood upon grass and stared over a tree-strewn landscape. Emerald colors glowed in the pale morning light and wet earth tickled her nose, but these things were not hers. They were the Earth Mother's.
"You need not have created it. You can touch it. You can feel it. This will guide you."
She bent and touched the grass at her feet. Slick blades, bright green, soft scent. But she felt nothing for them. Her heart remained empty. She stepped back, afraid.

Experiment

"And what experiments did you conduct?" the First Created asked.
"That is exploration of its own," the Earth Mother said. "I melded and molded, set fires and froze to ice. I dug deep into the earth and threw water upon it, saw where it wished to run. I formed mountains to see how they intercepted clouds. It is as I was taught."
"Taught?" the First Created asked, ugly hate pricking her heart. "You bade me explore, to step into the unknown with no guidance, yet you claim others taught you?"
"It is true, I was taught the ways of land and air, water and particles. But--"
"Then teach me!"
"Exploration is meant to do so. Let it guide your feet, your hands, your heart. You will learn the whys and hows of it."
The First Created hardened, darkened. She did not want to walk among the trees and learn the whys or hows of it. She wanted to be told, like the Earth Mother. She wanted the knowledge and saw no reason to find it for herself when she could listen and absorb without exploration, without experimentation.

Knowledge

"Who taught you the whys and hows?" the First Created asked. If she discovered this, she could ask them herself, reap knowledge without the effort.
"A learned place, of great beings who filter in and out of this existence," the Earth Mother said. "They know the why and hows of it. They bade me explore, experiment. And so I did." She swept her arms wide. "And this extravagant beauty is the result."
The First Created narrowed her eyes. She did not see beauty in grass or trees. "I wish to speak with them. I want to know the whys and hows of it."
"I grew before I spoke with them. It is the way of things. You must grow, to know what questions to ask, to understand the answers imparted."
The First Created stamped her foot. "I want to know the why and how of it! Tell me of these beings. How do I speak with them."
"You must grow, first."

The First Created did grow, but with hardness and hate. All spread before her could be hers, but the Earth Mother refused her the knowledge. A shiver raced up her spine, and she turned.
Curiosity infused him. He was the reason the Earth Mother bade her explore because he deemed it necessary. He stood by the Earth Mother's side and breathed deeply and beheld the creation, but the joy he expressed did not translate to the stare he deposited on her.
"Exploration, experimentation, is how you know. You can hear the words, but until you taste them, swallow them, regurgitate them, you will not know them."
The First Created took another step back, and her heart hardened further. Fools only listened to other fools. She would find these teachers on her own. Then they would tell her the hows and whys of it and she would know.