From: li@Data-IO.COM (Phyllis Rostykus)
Subject: Re: The Nightstalker explains--and Caithelin has her say...
Organization: Data I/O Corporation
Date: Tue, 17 Nov 1992 06:28:41 GMT


>She looks around the bar for a moment and notices Blammor sitting near by
>and goes to sit by him.  Leaning slightly against her old friend as she
>tries to still her temper.

Blammor opens his crystal white eyes and hugs Caithelin close.  The warmth
hasn't ever been his area so much... but this is dear to him, as is her
ability to acknowledge herself for who she is and to face what it is she
believes.  He frowns a little, trying to find words, but, as ever, they
don't come easily.  So he simply hugs her again and says softly, "I agree."

And behind white eyes run memories that have jumped at her words...

----

"Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen
by them.  If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.

"So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the
hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men.
I tell you the truth, they have receieved their reward in full.  But when
you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand
is doing, so that your giving may be in secret.  Then your Father, who sees
what is done in secret, will reward you.

"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray
standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men.  I
tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.  But when you
pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is
unseen.  Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward
you."  Matthew 6:1-6

A different hot tub than the one at the Place, just a simple cedar lined
tub with hot water... and in it are John and Phyllis looking up at a
winter sky.  "Hmmm..." says Phyllis, thinking about the thing that has
been bothering her lately... "It's gotten all right and wrong on the
Net."  John, "Well, one doesn't nessecarily have to be wrong if one isn't
right by someone else's standards." a long pause, Phyllis, "I don't think
that they see that, sometimes." They keep trading off... "Then they'll
learn it, eventually." "... but they're mostly in school, and, at the
moment, their lives are run by right and wrong.  Every measurement they
have in school is based on The Fact being Right and anything else is Wrong
and Bad."  A long pause.  "Hmmm... hadn't thought of that, but they'll
learn once they hit the real world... no... not real world...  same world,
just a different frame of reference."  A short pause, "Yeah... probably."

Mother on the phone going, "Good God, you're a deacon's WIFE!?" she laughs
a gay laugh, "Never thought you'd be a deacon's wife..." and trails off in
bemused laughter.  "Still can't imagine it.  But tell John congratulations!"

A seagull... crying as it passes them by a grey seashore... She watches it
as it climbs high and then does a barrel roll, then something that she
would have thought of as an Immelman if she were still flying in a game
battle she used to play at.  The bird is playing with the air and it's
wings.  Alone on an empty beach.  Eventually, tired of its play, it skims
away over the surface of the water.  She blinks as it leaves, wondering if
it ever met Jonathan.  Wondering, even more, at the beauty of its flight.

"By your endurance, take ownership of your life." Luke 21:19 from the Greek.
Where 'life' is translanted from 'psyche' - existance, soul, mind, Self.

It's funny when Liralen disagrees with Speaker-to-Minerals, she really
*does* feel like a little, human woman going toe-to-toe with a Kzin.  But
it's awfully refreshing to come across someone that says exactly what they
think, and respects anyone that says exactly what they think without
resorting to handwaving.  It's nothing new for a 5'10" woman that
regularly takes out 6'6" 250 pound men when they beat up on her even
smaller sister soccer players.  But it's always a bit scary to have to be
that pure in her speech and self-knowledge, and to have to live up to that
respect.  She can only try, no?  Thanks, StM, for making it easy to try.

Sitting alone, before a computer terminal in an empty building, Liralen
looks at two quotes  "Intolerance of intolerance is an intolerance." and
"There is a tendency, on the Net, to be abusive of those who embrace a
religion that is not inclusive."  and a question.  "Do you believe in Right
and Wrong?"  Finally, she types, "Yes.  I believe in Right and Wrong, but
it seems to be a standard that is orthoganal to the rest of the world.
Right, in my mind, is to be entirely informed of any particular situation,
to know all that there is to know about it.  It is to be humble enough to
listen and weigh and learn from those who have some experience and
authority to teach about the situation, and to have enough self-knowledge
and confidence and to listen to my heart to take and weigh that knowledge
for the decision.  To look for *all* the paths to an answer and weigh them
by their merits and then, if there are a number that still look good, find
the fun one and go for it.  It's also good engineering." she giggles at
the stop.

"Wrong is to come to a snap decision because others have already drawn a
line, wrong is to blindly follow a Rule, wrong is to follow a stereotype
to its 'obvious' conclusion, wrong is to act in knowing ignorance, wrong
is to close ones ears or rail against all who might think that you're
wrong.  Wrong is to act without care.  Those are what I believe Right and
Wrong are for me.  Which means that there are many Rights and probably as
many Wrongs for any particular situation..."

-----

And Blammor's eyes close and he smiles a small smile and hugs Caithelin
again simply because it feels good to exist for a while...

"Thank you." he says softly.

----
Blammor
li@Data-IO.com