Silent Strider Home Page

The Vagabond GIVE to me the life I love, Let the lave go by me, Give the jolly heaven above And the byway nigh me. Bed in the bush with stars to see, Bread I dip in the river - There's the life for a man like me, There's the life for ever. Let the blow fall soon or late, Let what will be o'er me; Give the face of earth around And the road before me. Wealth I seek not, hope nor love, Nor a friend to know me; All I seek, the heaven above And the road below me.

Or let autumn fall on me Where afield I linger, Silencing the bird on tree, Biting the blue finger. White as meal the frosty field - Warm the fireside haven - Not to autumn will I yield, Not to winter even! Let the blow fall soon or late, Let what will be o'er me; Give the face of earth around, And the road before me. Wealth I ask not, hope nor love, Nor a friend to know me; All I ask, the heaven above And the road below me. - by Robert Louis Stevenson

Shared Roads Well, you finally caught up with me! Good. That’s always a good sign in a young cub. Let me tell you, you aren’t done walking yet. So the elders told you what you are, eh? And then they told you there weren’t any Silent Striders living at their Caern? There’s a surprise for you. Well, then I suppose your education is left up to me. I prefer to talk while I am walking, though. I hope you had a drink of water before you started chasing after me. Look around. You see the pines stretching over the road, the brown water in the ditches, the gravel holding the dirt down, the rail fence over there? Take a good look. This is your inheritance. Not these lands, not that stand of trees over there – the sky and the roads, that’s what your sire and dam left you. Open sky above and dirt road below. Take a deep breath now, because not all roads are as pleasant as this one. But they’re your regardless, whether you want them or not. Once night falls, it’ll turn into a different sight entirely, too. Luna watches over you from above, but her light’ll stretch the shadows out until you see every movement of the night. Once it becomes night, we’ll do our walking on wolf paws. Human senses just can’t cope with the road in the darkness. We can also run faster that way, and believe me, we very well may have to. Let your hackles down, cub. I never called you afraid. But somewhere along the road, you probably will be.