There once was a rotund chap named Ernie.
Ernie was a happy sort. He liked to wander through his domain…
Laughing and chatting with his friends along the way..
Yep, Ernie was a happy chap.
One day though, Ernie noticed something strange..
Ernie did not know it, but he had stumbled across a monster!
Now Ernie – in addition to being a happy chap – was also a bit naive..
So Ernie decided to be friends, and associate himself with the monster.
Ernie took the monster under his wing (or paw), frequenting all his favourite haunts..
Over time though, Ernie started to notice something peculiar..
Ernie wasn’t sure.. but it seemed like his friends were disappearing!
Little did Ernie know that – when he wasn’t looking – the monster had cut a swathe of destruction through his kingdom!
Ernie started to grow suspicious of the monster…
With that the monster started crying, which made Ernie feel bad.
And this is when Ernie made a big mistake.
With that pronouncement, Ernie thought of a plan. He would somehow help make the monster become less – well – less ‘monster-ish’.
He took the monster jogging….
…to the library…
…and even out for sushi…
But monster remained a monster.
Over time, Ernie’s spirit grew tired of battling the monster’s nature…
…became despondent…
… and eventually, weak.
Several years passed, and Ernie forgot who he was – and the difference between him and the monster.
Ernie had thought he could change the monster, but the monster – true to its nature – had changed him.
After a long time of monster-like living, Ernie had a strange dream.
He dreamt he was walking through his domain…
When all of a sudden he fell into an abyss!
The abyss seemed to go on forever..
His fall abruptly ended when Ernie emerged from a huge hole..
…which turned out to be the eye of a gigantic being!
Ernie stared, transfixed, at the apparition.
All at once, it spoke!
And with that, Ernie woke in a fright!
Ernie thought carefully. He thought back to his kingdom…the appearance of the monster.. the disappearance of his friends… and the gradual darkening of his life…
And Ernie then realized:
And with that realization, his monster-shell fell away and Ernie regained his true spirit.
With his renewal, Ernie decided to deal with the monster for once and all.
And the monster left.
Slowly, peace and joy returned to the kingdom.
Things were almost as before.
But sometimes, a cloud would pass over the sun and Ernie would remember his strange dream….
Years later, when Ernie would notice someone befriending a monster, he would shake his head and enigmatically pronounce:
“He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
Ernie decided to explore further, completely ignoring all childhood tales of woe associated with dark woods.
As he sauntered on, Ernie didn’t really notice that the light was getting dimmer and that he was slowly forgetting his way back home.
All of a sudden, Ernie stumbled upon something he found highly unusual – a person with a crown!
Ernie watched, fascinated! He had never seen a crown before – and, oh – how it gleamed..
Ernie found himself possessed by a strange yearning – never had he seen anything so enchanting..
Ernie grew obsessed by the idea of the golden crown! He had to have it!
What Ernie didn’t know that he had inadvertently stumbled into the Forest of Envy, which blinded the souls of all who entered, filling them with insatiable longing for the fortunes of others.
All he could think about was the crown – the precious crown.
Ernie wanted to yell – what are you so unhappy about, you at least have a crown!
All of a sudden Ernie was struck by a realization.
With those single words, the clear rays of light came shining through the Forest of Envy.
And with that, Ernie decided it was time to go home and strolled away, leaving the changed forest behind.
simonandfinn 