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Belarus Is Like a Fairy Tale

18
Belarus Is Like a Fairy Tale

Light elves and hardworking gnomes rebelled against the orcs.

For a long time, I tried to comprehend, explain to myself what is happening in Belarus. Why are events developing so strangely? Where does such an obvious and uncompromising separation of good and evil come from? What is this anyway? And, finally, I realized: the point is that there are three types of people, three completely different races.

There are "elves." They are smart, honest, bold, beautiful, and creative. They believe in freedom, goodness, and justice, value their own and others' lives, and want everyone around to be happy. Their favorite pastime is magic, with which they heal people, create amazing artifacts and works of art.

There are "orcs." They are strong and cruel, but dull and do not like to think, preferring to follow orders, obey, and control. Unable to create anything of their own, the orcs are forced to feed on what they take or receive from others for their services. Their element is war, and they, in general, do not care who to fight with.

And there are "gnomes." They are hardworking, pragmatic, and a little pessimistic. Some consider them cowardly, but in fact, gnomes simply do not like to stick their nose out of their caves and get involved in fights that they consider not their business, preferring to do simple, useful things because the main thing for them is work.

When the orcs conquered the country, the elves could not come to terms with injustice, but violence is contrary to the very nature of the elves - they feel that, by shedding someone else's blood, they can turn into orcs themselves, and this is the only thing that really scares them.

Therefore, elves take off their shoes, standing on a bench, draw posters, stand along the roads, hand in hand, hold flags, have round dances, and sing soulful songs about freedom and happiness in the evenings.

The elves once gave them flowers, hoping to awaken conscience and compassion in the orcs, but the orcs know how to experience and understand only two emotions: fear and anger. The orcs despise them, taking the peacefulness of the elves for their weakness.

The orcs humiliate, beat and intimidate the elves, try to subdue them, partly enjoying it, partly due to fear of not following the leader's order, getting expelled from the orc pack, and starving to death.

Orcs are especially enraged because they cannot just take and kill elves or expel them forever from the country. After all, without the elves, all magic machines and mechanisms will stop, there will be no one to heal and feed the orcs.

It seems that the confrontation between the orcs and the elves is a dead end because it has been going on for many days, the situation has not changed, and neither side can prevail. But it only seems because the main thing is happening far from prying eyes, in the gnomes' caves.

Gnomes have so often gone through difficult times that they are more inclined to think about the present, not about the future, and about themselves, rather than about others, but the concepts of good and evil are not alien to them either. They do not want to fight with the orcs, do not want to risk their work, do not want unnecessary trouble, but the more the orcs become wild and the more dignified the elves are, the more dwarves come out of their caves and stand shoulder to shoulder with the elves.

They go out singly or in small groups, but there, in deep caves, with every blow of the Orc's club, with every false word, with every threat, not rage builds up but gloomy irritation that is about to splash out.

No one knows exactly when this will happen and how many elves will suffer until then, but when this happens, we will not hear beautiful tunes - only the hum of footsteps from thousands of feet and the clanking of metal because the gnomes do not have beautiful flags and witty posters, but they have hammers, axes, crowbars, and huge heavy machines.

Beautiful battles between good and evil happen only in films, so everything will end quickly, casually, and even boring: the most zealous orcs will simply be trampled, those whose hands are covered in blood will try to escape, and the rest will swear allegiance to the new the leader without even batting an eye. And then..

Then there will be difficult and, at the same time, joyful time. A time of renewal and creation,a time of mourning for the dead and hope for the future. But that's a different story.

Vadzim Zhartun, zhartun.me

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