After a while Tortoise took up again, “We cannot be seen receding. We cannot be swallowing up the vomit of the times of yore. No. The era of Hare and his sooty ways is over. He made us look dirty and always used us as his scapegoat. He was mired in mess and callousness but was in mulish denial. Damage and decay are his legacy. If one day someone had said: Hare has suffered a heart attack. Would we have accepted or believed the news? No ways! A big NO. We couldn’t have. Why? He couldn’t suffer a heart attack because he had no heart. He was heartless”.
One and all chorused, “Indeed, Hare was heartless! Hare was heartless!” Tortoise concluded. “Friends from all walks of life, the past events should inform us, teach us, guide us and arm us with the map to chart out the way forward. Let’s work together to revive and rebuild, to inspire and turn this lovely forest into a safe, peaceful and free sanctuary for all. We can all thrive in happiness and live in harmony. It’s doable. It starts with all of us. We are our liberators through our decisions, actions and visions”.
There was another round of applause. The rains soaked the soil of the forest like never before. What a hauntingly rare day it turned out to be
