26th November 2011
Coats of many colours

I love medieval and biblical stories. You know, stories about life in ancient times, when things were so much simpler and in my opinion, more romantic. Perhaps because of the fact that all our present-day high technology and scientific gadgetry did not yet exist, most of the events which took place were more natural, closer to the heart, and reflected a greater manifestation of human nature than is evident today.
In several and different ways, we are forever being told that if we want to know where we are going, we have to be aware of where we are coming from; a people without history is like a tree without roots, we are told. History repeats itself, they say, and we must learn from our mistakes. If the above are true, a story, which I once heard somewhere, comes to mind and may be drawn upon as reference to guide us in the way we conduct ourselves today, with regard to our leaders and our comportment toward each other.
“Oh boy! There he goes, rambling again,” you say. “What’s he trying to get at, this time? Can’t he make himself clear, right from the start, so that we can know what it is that we’re going to spend our precious time reading about, this week?”
Well, by the time I’m through, I expect (I hope) that it will be clear, what I feel like sharing with you, and that you will have found my little story at least mildly entertaining:
Back in the dark ages, there existed a kingdom where the king died, without leaving an heir to the throne. The inhabitants found themselves without a ruler; as a matter of fact, without a governing body of any kind -- no game warden, no kingdom treasurer with his subservient tax collectors, no ambassadors to deal with the neighbouring kingdoms, no one to see to the regulation and dispensing of services to the populace, etc. -- the country was without direction, in shambles.
There were however, two nephews of the dead king, who each decided that he should become the new ruler, and the nobles nearest and dearest to him be put into positions where they would help him to govern the country and take care of the people.
“If I am declared king,” Peter promised his contingent of barons, at a meeting which had been convened in the great hall of his castle, ‘I shall make you all powerful men, overseeing the populace in all important matters, and your riches will increase a thousand-fold, from your share of the taxes which we shall collect from them’
“Upon my ascent to the throne,” Paul was at that very moment addressing his entourage of nobles, gathered at his chateau for a conference, “you will all be made members of my court, and given suitable governmental posts, whereby you may use your influence to augment your fortunes and fill your treasure chambers. But,” he added, “my cousin Peter and his friends seek to seize the throne and acquire this power for themselves. We must prevail over them. To this end, I count on you to assist me in building an army which will defeat them in battle and ensure our victory.”
“We must go out among the people,” Peter was saying to his lieutenants, as his meeting was drawing to a close, “and enlist as many as we can, to join our army and fight on our side, in the inevitable battle which will no doubt ensue, for control of this land. Make them whatever promises that need be made, to have their support on our side. Which promises we keep, is something we shall decide at our leisure, in the aftermath of the battle, once we have vanquished my upstart cousin Paul and his cronies.”
“But, my lord Peter,” this from Sir Joseph, sitting across the table from his leader, “when we have amassed this army, how are we to tell who is for us, and who is not?”
“We shall clothe them in coats of red,” replied Peter, ‘so they may be identifiable, and not mistakenly slay each other in the heat of battle. I am aware that we shall need numerous bales of linen, and that will be costly. We shall require lots of gold coins to feed and clothe our army. Go out to the merchants within this and the neighbouring kingdoms. seek their aid, by way of donations to our cause. Let them know that, in return, great avenues of trade and commerce will be open to those who come to our support in this hour of our need, from the moment of my coronation as king.”
And since similar strategies had been devised at the war-table of Paul and his men, the people of the kingdom soon found themselves being solicited, day after day to join one or the other of the two armies, in view of the impending conflict. Paul and his friends had opted to clothe their warriors in coats of yellow and very soon, the affiliations of the various inhabitants of the kingdom began to be apparent.
Everyone was eventually clothed in a coat, coloured yellow or red, denoting clearly the army on whose side he was prepared to fight, in some cases even die for. The division within the kingdom became very pronounced, extending even between members of the same family, Brothers began fighting against brothers, and sons against fathers, albeit that the day of the decisive confrontation, of the great battle to settle the matter between Peter and Paul, along with their henchmen, had not yet arrived, or its date as yet even decided upon.
Gone were the days when the people wore coats of blue, or green, or white, or whatever colour they chose, without some sinister significance being attached to it. And with that, gone were also the days when neighbours mingled freely with each other, held out helping hands to each other with cheerful smiles, bonhomerie and goodwill, and lived in a land where peace and harmony prevailed.