Long ago in the fiery pits of an ancient forge, the goblins worked day and night. The goblins didn’t know why they did this work; generations of them had been born into this life underground. When, occasionally, there was a goblin who wouldn’t or couldn’t do the work, one of the humans who watched over them would come down, in thick armour for they couldn’t take the heat like the goblins could, and throw the useless goblin into an oven and lock the door. It was a slow death for the fire resistant goblins and fear of that fate kept most other goblins in line.
Once, a goblin riot broke out, and the goblins tried to escape through the confusing maze of tunnels through which the humans came and went. Most goblins got lost. Some got so lost that they couldn’t find their way out. Most were eventually found by the humans and sent back to work. But one goblin kept going and found a tunnel that led to a big, heavy door. It opened the door to see stairs. Determined to find freedom above ground, the goblin ran up the stairs. The stairs circled around and around as they went up. The goblin ran and ran. The goblin ran for days, for months, for years. The goblin’s still running up those stairs, no longer a slave, but still not free.
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🎵 Life is a stairway, I’m gonna climb it all life long 🎵
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Photo credit: Cyril Fontaine