Post by nasrin on Dec 28, 2008 1:22:45 GMT -5
Despite her intention to doze off and her attemptsto block out the conversation, Nasrin couldn't help but catch Manju's simple yet profound question. And though she showed no outward sign of responding, it certainly gave the sandbender something to contemplate as she rested.
Why didn't the Si Wong natives leave? The most immediate answer she could muster was simply... this was home. The desert was a harsh and unforgiving place, where it was very easy for careless people to die and where your very neighbor might cut your throat to save their own. There were very few resources worth trading, and for many each day was a struggle just to survive.
However, despite all this, Nasrin had come to believe during her 27 years of life and extensive travels across the desert, that every man, woman, and child born in the Si Wong carried within them a sense of pride that they could face the challenges of this land and live. No matter how much people might wish for greener pastures and flowing rivers, they would not trade the land they knew for a life of luxury. This was the land that the rest of the world forsook because they could not tame it, but this was the land that the Si Wong natives called home.
******************************************************
Nasrin ruminated on that thought for over an hour, never truly falling asleep until eventually Gansukh slowed down to catch his breath and she stepped up to keep the sailer moving. Nasrin powered the ship for about a half hour longer until they spotted some sand-blasted white tents on the horizon and decided to stop by what appeared to be a merchant camp for some shade and perhaps some news.
The veteran traveler had a good idea of their asolute location in the desert based on the readings from the sailer's "compass" and the cardinal direction interpreted by the sun's location, so she figured that they weren't too much farther from a permanant settlement where she might contact one of her boss's underlings. However, she was still in no hurry to make that meeting.
Nasrin brought the sand sailer around to the edge of the camp, slowing her speed to a non-threatening cruise so as not to alarm the inhabitants. She eventually stopped filling the sails with the air currents of a swirling dust devil and let the sand bring it to a sudden stop. As a frequent pilot of these vessels, Nasrin knew to lean back against the sudden decceleration, but she was curious to see if Manju would have such intuition.
"Feel like stretching your legs?" she asked the rest of the crew as she hopped down from the bender's platform.
Why didn't the Si Wong natives leave? The most immediate answer she could muster was simply... this was home. The desert was a harsh and unforgiving place, where it was very easy for careless people to die and where your very neighbor might cut your throat to save their own. There were very few resources worth trading, and for many each day was a struggle just to survive.
However, despite all this, Nasrin had come to believe during her 27 years of life and extensive travels across the desert, that every man, woman, and child born in the Si Wong carried within them a sense of pride that they could face the challenges of this land and live. No matter how much people might wish for greener pastures and flowing rivers, they would not trade the land they knew for a life of luxury. This was the land that the rest of the world forsook because they could not tame it, but this was the land that the Si Wong natives called home.
******************************************************
Nasrin ruminated on that thought for over an hour, never truly falling asleep until eventually Gansukh slowed down to catch his breath and she stepped up to keep the sailer moving. Nasrin powered the ship for about a half hour longer until they spotted some sand-blasted white tents on the horizon and decided to stop by what appeared to be a merchant camp for some shade and perhaps some news.
The veteran traveler had a good idea of their asolute location in the desert based on the readings from the sailer's "compass" and the cardinal direction interpreted by the sun's location, so she figured that they weren't too much farther from a permanant settlement where she might contact one of her boss's underlings. However, she was still in no hurry to make that meeting.
Nasrin brought the sand sailer around to the edge of the camp, slowing her speed to a non-threatening cruise so as not to alarm the inhabitants. She eventually stopped filling the sails with the air currents of a swirling dust devil and let the sand bring it to a sudden stop. As a frequent pilot of these vessels, Nasrin knew to lean back against the sudden decceleration, but she was curious to see if Manju would have such intuition.
"Feel like stretching your legs?" she asked the rest of the crew as she hopped down from the bender's platform.