Fable Of The Living Fire

Once there was a living fire that knew no purpose besides burning and blackening the world.

Like a wild beast with fur and claws of yellow flame and a loud, crackling roar, it spread and devoured all that it touched, growing bigger and bigger the more that it ate and, though good people brought buckets full of water from sea and river and well, there was never enough
people or buckets or water to vanquish the terrible, blazing creature.

But there were plenty of tears; so many good people weeping and sobbing over the destruction
of their houses and property.

“Oh why are you doing this?!”, the people pleaded with the fire.

“What else should I do?”, the fire replied, “Fires burn stuff, don’t they?”.

“But there are lots of good things that fire can do”, said the people, “It can bring light at the end of a candle or housed in a lantern; it can bring warmth in a fire place or cook under a stove or even bring wonder to children when fireworks explode in the sky and then those people who are in darkness or cold or hungry or need cheering up really love fire but you are a fire that only brings misery and darkness and even cold when you burn peoples houses and leave them homeless”.

Eventually, the fire did listen when it was taught all the great and good things that fire could do.

Not only did it light and warm houses and cook food but it also did exciting things like power steam engines and rockets to the moon. The living fire was still powerful but, rather than being a monster,it was a friend to everyone.

Infact, people liked the living fire so much now that they even built bonfires just to feed it.

“This is great”, thought the fire, “If I had burned the whole world then I would have run out of food and starved but, now that people like me, they bring me wood to eat”. And so the living fire and the people lived happily ever after.