The Golding

by Sonya Deanna Terry

  ‘And yesterday a psychic told me that here in the States we’re going to plunge into a financial crisis,’ Betty from the USA wrote. ‘She predicts it’ll happen sometime in September, and all I can say is I sure hope she’s wrong. Things are bad enough. Can’t bear the idea of my friends and family having to cope with another thrashing.’

  One of the Fortnighters had posted a question about the book’s prologue. What did Rosetta and other Fortnighters think the author meant here when he talked about sounds that could actually be tasted and textures that were able to be heard? Rosetta flipped back to the page that followed the ‘Silv’ring’ poem and examined Lillibridge’s cryptic introduction:

  <><><> PROLOGUE <><><>

  Beyond ancient history, before the bubble-transience of Greece of yore and of Belladeneire’s people (a cell of creation wherein majestic diminutives fevered away at their mission) wove a solid world where senses governed life for those who embodied them. Here, where depth of bodily sensitivity divided this realm from many others, the devas dipped and glided through myriad darknesses. Only momentary was light’s feathery touch. Only once certain receptors dared to accept was music beheld in all of its hues. The place in time where expansive sensing might be summoned at will was no longer a part of devic life. It had faded into the far distant future.

  Command of the fuller senses had found discomfort in the realm of belief. Non-acceptance was an enforced ethic of body kings. Bodies were obliged to feel music in one allocated area, to hear texture with certain receptors, but to never wholly succumb to them. Such magic would release bodies from their sabotages. Body kings were not equipped to withstand such disorder.

  Other worlds, vaster worlds such as the Carousel Star, where Carousellians’ voices, high and haunting, sung welcome, had not the force of persuasion to teach earthly incarnates fuller senses. Senses to them were lilac-lemon-silver. Bell chimes hushed to dawn, then sunset entwined in a rosebud so delicate it might burst into tears. Madness was all the bodily rulers could call it, from their limited points of perception. Oftentimes the devic sprites would stumble across Carousel but would, just as fleetingly, pirouette out again to the rhythm of the stars. The merfolk wept, but their tears were shed unhappily. They had lost their inspiration to cry for gladness, so it was then and there that they disintegrated into the tide of obscurity, aeons later remembered only in the dreams of wise men and in children’s utterances, which younger souls housed in older bodies dismissed as something known as non-sense: another term body kings used when denying reality’s presence.

  Body kings: dark and menacing, and responsible for a kingdom built by their own paper-fragile words and deeds, delighted in existing singly and scorned the support of clans. Their thinking was not to be invaded by the melding of monadic whispers. Gold, the division of the senses and the introduction of separateness had become dependable weapons to hold above heads. These barred bothersome thoughtforms built of bliss, which sprites created unconsciously.

  Unsaid mysteries surfaced in future millennia through writings, teachings and experiments borne of the Enlightenment. Nonetheless, naught was solved as to why certain ancients were imprisoned in solidity. The answer to who guarded the Dream Sphere Key: this too appeared unreachable for it lay just beyond Elysium’s waking consciousness, as taunting and as frolicsome as the autumn breeze.

  Not long after she’d read this, a lengthier post arrived, from Conan Dalesford of all people, the inspirational author she’d been discussing earlier in the evening with Royston. The post read:

  Greetings from Alice Springs!

  Thank you, Rosetta, for challenging us with your blog questions.

  A warm hello to my fellow Friday Fortnighters. Allow me to introduce myself. I am an alpaca farmer with a penchant for books. I take great pleasure in both reading (and writing) them! I have been fortunate enough to meet Rosetta Melki personally through the Crystal Consciousness store on my most recent book-signing tour and was afterward treated to a lovely meal by a reader who missed the event, at a pub that specialised in surprisingly good vegetarian fare. Sydneysiders are expert at making their interstate visitors feel welcome!

  May I say, Rosetta, that your website is a credit to you. As a dyed-in-the-wool Lillibridge fanatic I am delighted to have found an area in which I can compare notes with other readers. Viewing insights from those within the various Our True Ancient History reading groups is also a treat.

  I have noted that a number of readers are confused by the abstract nature of the prologue. Some argue that Lillibridge deliberately made his prologue evasive to conjure the fantastical dreaminess of Elysium. I will take this a step further by saying that I believe Lillibridge wrote it as such in order to convey the ethereal aspects of sprites’ powers.

  My interest in The Silvering lies in references Lillibridge makes to the ‘fuller senses’. Prior to body kings’ enforcements, sprites did not need to visit the Dream Sphere in spirit form. Their soul-selves were melded into their physical bodies and moved together in harmony.

  Please note that I write this from the viewpoint that the book’s described events actually occurred here on Earth.

  Once the body kings arrived, a kind of magical warfare would have ensued, where sorcerers would have worked on violating the laws of nature. By clipping the ‘celestial wings’ of those native to this planet, body kings were able to extricate sprites’ soul-selves from their physical bodies. The sorcerers among these gold-obsessed invaders callously removed sprites’ access to the higher realms. In doing so, they ensured that sprites, in their solid bodies, were unable to exercise the synaesthetic qualities of colour-hearing, music-seeing and fragrance-feeling (expressions of the fuller senses). Body kings did not manage to keep sprites earthbound entirely. Those of devic origin were still able to return to the Dream Sphere when asleep. At night, once sprites woke, their soul-selves returned to limited bodies that no longer held the power of sensory expansion. Decreased intuition made them vulnerable to capture.

  When enslaving sprites, body kings would confiscate all heart-centred magic. They stored this magic, or beauty-creation as it was known, in hollowed-out vessels fashioned from crystalline mineral.

  Once drained of their beauty-creation, elves and gnomes were forced to mine gold. Faeries were imprisoned within the palace grounds, sent to live in marble pyramids and kept in check by pterodactyl minders.

  As a less evolved species, body kings could not fathom what it was to co-operate within communities. They lived by a tenet of separateness. Retaining this cold isolation resulted in that fear-motivated and destructive element named greed.

  I feel strongly that in these current times neglect of the heart is the basis of all earthly problems. From the time in our prehistory that Lillibridge chose to convey, a pattern has emerged. Our collective memory tells us that Earth’s people have been robbed of their former bliss.

  When we are born, we are full of expectation and innocent love. As we evolve further into this world of imbalance, we learn that we cannot trust. We learn that fear is our protection against hopes getting crushed. We live much of our lives guarding our own survival, frightened that our rights to food, shelter, health, wellbeing, and to life itself, will be snatched away from us, or from those we love. And so, fear closes down our ability to empathise. Distrust has led to giving ourselves permission to dislike others within our planetary family. Discriminating against universal siblings, though, means the brunt of sufferance is shared equally. No-one escapes it.

  I believe that The Silvering will mark a time of healing. The healing might well be directed at our kindness barometers: our tender, broken hearts. Our ability to acknowledge the connection we have with everyone else who shares our world has been compromised by body-king instilled beliefs that we are separate, imperfect, damaged, and unworthy of love.

  Gold-tainted prejudices will fall away when we find a way to live through our hearts. And through doing this, we will bring about a return to limitless compassion and contentment.
When all conflict-sparking behaviours dissolve into higher forms of expression, we will create quite effortlessly an environment in which the Currency of Kindness is able, once more, to flourish.

  I feel sure that when all hearts are unashamedly open we will discover new abilities that have, for aeons, remained hidden within our DNA. We will discover our fuller senses.

  And magic will return to the earth.

  —Conan

  Hi to all from Mumbai!

  Conan, I couldn’t agree with you more. At present, however, trying to get the world’s population to exercise total trust would not work. Being a hundred per cent trusting in a world that knows untrustworthiness would surely result in disillusionment. Surrendering to total faith in humanity could only occur if we all, in unison, achieve an enormous level of respect for each other. I can virtually hear other Friday Fortnighters saying, ‘But that’s what I already do! I respect everyone who crosses my path.’ Everyone? Are you an enlightened being then? I’m sorry, but only someone who’s attained disciplined mastery over their mind and emotions can claim that. The rest of us are wired to judge.

  Ravi

  Wendy from Scotland here!

  While we’re locked into body king belief systems, we’ll continue to obsess over lack.

  Sadly, it is the majority of the world’s population that lives in poverty. A teensy-tiny, wee percentage of the population have scrooged their excessive fortunes thus damaging severely the flow of exchange. They’ve created a kink in the hose of plenty!

  At this point in our evolution I think we’re still, as Buzzie Bavasi once said: ‘...living by the Golden Rule. Those who have the gold make the rules.’

  Wendy

  Wow! What wonderfully thought-provoking posts!

  Thanks, Conan, Ravi and Wendy for your heartfelt insights. Conan, I’m delighted at your knowledge. Your mentions of Our True Ancient History in a 2007 article was our inspiration for studying it. Since you’ve examined OTAH for a number of years, I guess we could say you were a Friday Fortnighter even before Friday Fortnight existed!

  Any chance of you becoming a guest blogger? Owing to your extensive research, I can say with all honesty that your contributions would be greatly valued.

  And if you do accept our invitation to write the odd blog for us (no pressure—really!) then a topic I’d love to learn your thoughts on is the ‘Silv’ring’ verse at the beginning of the book.

  Could it be possible Lillibridge alluded to reincarnation? He was a reverend after all, so it does seem odd. And, at the risk of sounding a bit loopy, I’ll pose this question: Supposing reincarnation is real. Supposing the people Lillibridge wrote about do happen to be incarnated in our current timeframe. Is there any way we would recognise them other than looking for certain letters in their names? The mention of these letters seems rather vague, considering a good number of us in existence right now happen to have this ‘i/e’ or ‘o/r’ combination. That being said, I think it’s a fascinating idea, a parson exploring the idea of rebirth. I’d love to hear your insights into what Lillibridge might have been hinting at.

  RM

  Dear Rosetta,

  I would be honoured to be a guest blogger in the future—it would be my privilege.

  You raise valid points in your mention of Lillibridge’s ‘The Silv’ring’. I have emailed you a copy of a purchase I made at an auction in the early ’70s during my antique collecting days, a page from a lost journal that apparently belonged to Lillibridge’s teenaged son, written on 8 July, 1768.

  You have my permission to upload this to your website. In the third of his four paragraphs, which mostly record the mundane task of selling firewood at markets, the boy states:

  Father and I are puzzling over the last message from The People of the Sea. They say that when the sprites and ‘the three silvered’ Gold’s Kin return to the Earth to usher in The Silvering, they will retain their ancient names, although these names will be hidden somewhat; mixed about and therefore disguised. Father was most interested to hear that these names will also contain the letters ‘e’ and ‘i’ or ‘o’ and ‘r’.

  Here is what I make of this. Since each of the people Lillibridge documented already had these letters in their names, then the mention of these letters recurring might have been a clue to the recurrence of all letters. Perhaps their entire names are present as lexigrams inside their new ones. A lexigram is a word, name or phrase hidden in other words, names or phrases. Lexigrams are similar to anagrams in that they involve word jum­bling, but the difference is anagrams contain all letters (in the word/name/phrase) whereas lexigrams contain only some. For example:

  Assuming Eidred is incarnated in this world today, her first, middle and second names, this time round, might read something like:

  ‘Lindy Maree Fields’

  L I N D Y M A R E E F I E L D S = EIDRED

  Pieter might now be known as: ‘Terence Kieran Dunlop.’

  T E R E N C E K I E R A N D U N L O P = PIETER

  A crazy thought, certainly, but worth thinking about, if only for the fun of it.

  Ancient druids believed an underlying language existed within lexigrams. Call me a naive idealist if you will, but a minute or two ago I examined the title of Our True Ancient History in search of lexigrams. What I found was:

  Heretic Theory

  Lillibridge was accused of heresy when he broadcast his theoretical history in sermons. Hidden in the name ‘Edward Lillibridge’ is:

  Liberal Rebel

  It’s amazing what can be found within titles and names. Have a go at analysing your own name, Fortnighter. Go on!

  You might well be surprised at what you find.

  Kindest regards,

  C O N A N D A L E S F O R D

  (Alcor)

  Thank you Conan. Or should I say Alcor? (Wink!)

  This is all so intriguing! I love the chapter of the book you wrote last year, in which you discussed research on the druids’ belief in unseen meanings within words. Friday Fortnighters, I recommend you place Conan Dalesford’s Thoughts on Tomorrow’s Tycoon War at the top of your To Be Read list. I guarantee you’ll view the world quite differently after reading it.

  Until next time, RM

  * * * *

  That same night, as thunder threatened to shake the house down, Rosetta opened the second envelope that she’d taken in from the wheelbarrow earlier in the day. It was a letter from a New Zealand group of solicitors, Messrs Brown, Wiley & Haverston and it read:

  Dear Ms Melki,

  Re: The Estate of Daniela Sophia Bentley

  We are writing on behalf of our client, Mr Robert Mark Bentley, to advise that, according to our records, you are the biological half-sibling of our client and biological daughter of the late Mrs Daniela Sophia Bentley. We regret to advise that Mrs Bentley passed away on the 7th of April 2008.

  Our client advises that in the December of 1969, seven days after your birth, you were adopted by a Mr & Mrs (George and Athena) Melki in the city of Christchurch and that his mother was thereafter unaware of your whereabouts.

  In his efforts to locate you, our client consulted our firm on the 18th of April, 2008, concerning the division of the late Mrs Bentley’s estate...

  The letter slipped from her fingers.

  She’d found her, a mother she’d never known…all too late…and a brother, a blood tie, a sibling of her own.

  Much of the shock had ebbed by the time Sidelta leapt onto the sofa with a subdued meow. Sidelta padded across and placed her front paws on Rosetta’s knee. Ruffling Sidelta’s velvet ears, she sank into her imagination, closing out the ruby glow of the lamps and reflecting on the longheld dream of one day meeting her mother, now little more than a sad, filmy mirage.

  Half of an overseas estate. What would that mean for her and Izzie? Could it really be true, or had she lapsed into sleep and dreamt of a windfall? An error, surely! Why would the woman who gave up her baby daughter thirty-nine years ago consider her in a will?

  Ro
setta reached for the letter again and whistled out a sigh. ‘Guess I’m off to New Zealand.’

  Sidelta purred in agreement.

  THE END

  of Book 1

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  Character List

  18th-century England

  CORNWALL

  Reverend Edward Lillibridge

  Instigator of Our True Ancient History

  Ned Lillibridge

  Edward Lillibridge’s son

  Prehistoric Norway