The Parable of Brothers and Thrones

Once upon a time, in a land far away, there lived a mighty king named Andwele who had twin man-sons. Adofo, the warrior, was the first born. While strong and brave in matters of battle, Adofo's mind was as sharp as the smoothest rock and even were both hands tied behind his back he would have difficulty locating his own backside. Akwetee, the son born second, was a brilliant strategist. Yet as powerful as Akwetee's mind he was cowardly and frail, which did not exactly provide the imposing presence necessary for a king to strike fear into the hearts of his enemies.

As the wise king grew old, because neither of his sons bore the requirements to be a successful ruler, he fretted over which son would be worthiest of his crown. Adding to his concerns was the one characteristic that both of his sons had in common. Where one was sturdy of body and the other strong of mind, both sons had big heads and even thicker skulls.

Even from their earliest days, Adofo and Akwetee knew their father would grow old and would have to choose which would be king. But rather than spending their time bettering themselves they put their individual efforts into making the other look bad. If Adofo made a spear that could fly the farthest, Akwetee would make one that was more accurate. When Adofo would demonstrate that he could pass wind the loudest, Akwetee would show that - while indeed silent, his were far more deadly. Adofo was crushed the night that Akwetee charmed his father with his his discovery of magic butt fire.

So it came to pass, when Andwele lay dying, he revealed to his sons his decision. Rather than choose between his sons he would make both of them kings. It was his hope that they would come together and combine their strengths. As much as Andwele wanted his kingdom to last forever he knew that all things of the earth were temporary things. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Where a parent can give direction it is up to the child to determine the path and where they wind up is ultimately their choice alone. Once relieved of this heavy burden Andwele, whose name means "God brings me" closed his eyes and let the Lord take him back home. Of course, the bickering between his man-brats quickly ensued.

Adofo wasted no time in enlisting the support of tribal warriors. It was the common people, who far outnumbered the warriors, who chose to side with Akwetee. However, living together under the single thatched roof of their father's royal grass hut became increasingly unbearable. Fights between the brothers, as to who would sit on the throne, became a constant source of fury.

As the competition between the brothers began to infect the kingdom, the ever increasing arguments threatened to spark a tribal war. Tribal elders, concerned for the weakness of a divided people cried, "Can't we all just get along?" But Adofo and Akwetee were stubborn and decided instead to split the kingdom in half and take their followers with them. Of course, now each king would need to build their own royal grass hut.

Adofo chose to build his royal grass hut beside the river, which he was convinced offered the most spectacular view. Not to be outdone, Akwetee had his royal grass hut built on the highest ground, which not only made his view more majestic it overlooked the grass hut of his brother. Where both royal huts were two stories high with equally sturdy thatch, Akwetee's hut was taller and was without a doubt more beautiful. Akwetee was sure of his victory, until he heard of Adofo's impressive throne.

Woven from the leaves of the shaman's sacred dream root plant and twice the size of their father's, Akwetee was certain that his throne was finer. However, when Akwetee's spies returned with stories of Adofo's throne being made from the potent Nkasa tree, Akwetee couldn't stand it. So, determined to best his brother's effort, Akwetee charged his most skilled craftsmen to build for him a throne of unchallenged magnificence.

Not only was Akwetee's second throne even larger than the last, his industrious people were clever in its design. With even thicker legs carved from even bigger Nkasa trees, its broad framed back was intricately woven and adorned with beads and shells. Certain there could be no other throne as splendid as this Akwetee instructed his servants to take the first and store it on the second floor. News of his younger brother's triumph made Adofo furious.

Adofo's second throne was even bigger than Akwetee's and where his brother had stolen his idea of using the Nkasa tree, Adofo's new throne was made of elephant tusk with a thick padded seat stuffed with the softest of feathers. Like his brother, Adofo stored his first throne on the second floor of the royal grass hut and settled into his new one. He waited anxiously for word of Akwetee's envy when hearing of his impressive second throne. Instead, his spies returned in wonder of his brother's third.

As the battle raged, each brother would take the previous throne and store it in the room above them. Determined to win the contest, upon hearing news of their brother's newer and bigger throne, the inferior models were hefted to the second floor and a superior model was built. Then one day, after both brothers had exhausted all ideas, each king sat on their latest throne in the company of their best advisors to contemplate what they could do next.

In the silence of both royal grass huts, as the consultants and their kings pondered, they heard a disturbing noise. It was a weighty, unsettling sound, one that made all look up toward the ceiling above the king's heads. The walls began to quiver and the ceiling began to sag. But before a word of warning could be uttered to either king, both ceilings collapsed and crashed down upon the brothers. They both died, squashed like bugs beneath the weight of their many stowed thrones, bringing to mind the important moral of their all too tragic story.

No matter how determined you are to prove you are better than someone else, he who lives in grass houses shouldn't stow thrones.