Dame Nature

The Olmecs have many depictions of jaguars. They were thought to be the snakes of land; Able to lurk in the shadows, camouflaged, and patient. These cats can slide through the brush almost silently as if slithering on their bellies. The fangs framing their mouths are remaining remnants. Remnants hinting to more than just a resemblance to the snake. Pointing to an evolutionary story. An evolutionary strain in us all, proved by our obsession with taste and our innate dual nature. Mark Catesby once noted, after a hurricane, snakes will devour their own kind, If the circumstances require it. She had never personally seen this, but never doubted it. Jaguars will attack their own as a show of dominance. Survival in the hierarchy at any cost is the Serpents heritage.

The Jaguar represents the sign of the 14th day in the Mayan Zodiac. It is believed zodiac signs originated from Babylon. The Mayans zodiac is based in time. The Tzolk'in calendar had 13 cycles of 20 days, each day representing a sign. The Jaguar represented the fourteenth day. The individual would have been highly intelligent with a sixth sense. A born leader. The individual is deep and highly spiritual. The individual is known to be honest and reliable, however they tend to also come across as calculating due to an enigmatic nature. The Olmecs have many depictions of the jaguar. Similar to the Mayans, this may represent a person born on the 14th day. A priest, ruler, or person of importance, a leader that warranted depictions after leading them to better times.

For a culture that was interested in time, math and science it is an interesting contradiction to see time as circular. It puts the individual at the center, going emotionally deeper than just measurements. She believed it showed an interest in the human as a whole. Time is circular if you are concerned with life cycles. It encompasses an intrinsic and extrinsic look at the human life cycles,
with a special focus on the human brain.

As a child we play, we have fanciful ideas, we grow, we work, We make connection, we grow into ourselves, then we grow old. Once older we tend to reminisce to the beginning. Although, time moves forward linearly, humans have the ability to think of another time and place at any time, in any place. Individuals can be living in another time or place at any age, at any time. Stuck there, though time is moving forward. At the same time, our bodies deteriorate making us need help like the children we once were.

Time is primely important to life. Getting times right for planting was critical. Time is everything and nothing to the human race and brain. Knowing the cycles, kept life progressing and people well enough to make something out of it. However, we can look at a love one and never see a change, even with time moving forward. We can be taken back to the beginning with one sight or smell of something. We can be as confused and scared as a child even at our end. We can grow and pass on knowledge to another along with our hopes that they be better than us. We do this with a hope the next generation won't struggle as much as those before them. By using the help offered from those of the past. Creating a circular cycle.The Mayan counting system of dots and lines of 260, matches with the female gestational period. Everything was about time and people. About life cycles. They were a culture obsessed with time, and yet knew at times, time could mean nothing to an individual because they were distracted by another time. A contradiction that goes hand in hand. A pairing of psychology, math and science. Much like herself she understood this.  She dedicated so much of her time to the past. Studying what others had left to us. She moved forward each day hoping it would be enough. Hoping her desired outcomes could be achieved in her lifetime. Having a goal come full circle.

How perfectly ironic that the Mayans are known to history for being one of the most accurate calculators of time yet they are known to history for stopping in time. Disappearing from history. A living contradiction for our history books.

Time only stops if you can't procreate or you can't pass on your knowledge. If knowledge is carried forward to others a cycle continues. It is always circular for an individual. With an heir, time is truly  linear, in that it moves forward, but you are still given back to the earth in the end and the cycle still repeats with the knowledge or things being passed on. With no heir, knowledge and items are recycled back in, helping others. This creates the circle. We are obsessed with time and things, but we are ultimately nothing. The zero in a life cycle. Nothing is personally ours in the end. We leave it at death. Same as when we began. We loop back to our original point. The starting dot.

She heard the jingling of keys being picked up. Colel had discarded them on his dinning table last night. She looked at the clock she had two minutes until her alarm went off. She began rushing to get ready. Awkwardly stumbling in the dark, she rushed to dress. She wanted to look like she was an early bird like him. She wanted to appear eager to start learning. Hastily she sat on the edge of the bed that creaked slightly as she put on her socks. The antique rot iron bedframe protesting her weight as it tried to support her, but sagged tiredly.

She had some questions about portions of the new book. New symbols were introduced. The second book added a calming to the information. She couldn't explain it, but the way it was being presented was Different. A different voice was explaining. It definitely had to be another author. The information perfectly fit with the first book, complementing it like the books were in a tango. Before exiting the dark still sleepy room, as she looked back in, she noticed the only thing illuminated was the man and woman dancing in the painting. A perfect sign. Enough light from the side of the blackout curtain flooded in and bounced off the paint. It was all a dance. She was ready to dance. She was here. She had now.

"I'm up too, good morning.", she said entering the dinning room holding the two books.

"Your fly isn't fully up and I think your shirt is inside out, but I'm not a fashion guy. It's okay. Walk with me. I need to take care of some things on my property."

"The lighting in the room was difficult. I couldn't get the blackout curtain up.", she replied embarrassingly while zipping up her pants fully. She ignored her shirt, although it bothered her.

"hm.", Colel seemed to be making adjustments in his mind as he started walking to his front door.

"Anyways, Do you know the difference between a council, a brotherhood, a terrorist group, a sect?", he asked.

"Yes, I believe I do."

"Oh good. As a teacher I thought you would. It saves us time. It's a fine line at times. What a community considers themselves might be different than what a community considers them?', He went silent.

"Yes."

"The 'brotherhood' is more of a council. This is an important distinction. Do you know why?"

Not wanting to answer foolishly she asked, "Why?"

"They implement and follow laws, laws outside of the laws of places they are located, but the members adhere to these laws."

"You make it sound like a cult."

"No, a council. I just said that. Follow me. A cult usually has a religious ritual base. They have a leader who people follow. This is a group of like minded individuals pointing to history for backing their existence and ideals. They only ever meet to advise, consult and manage. They are managing mankinds presence into the future. They see themselves as protectors of order. Manipulations are reserved for only those they have ruled against. They may divvy out tests, consequences, or rewards at will if the council decides it. They see themselves above the general public in intelligence and knowledge of past and present things. In some ways, they are. Obviously this causes fractures. This adds another layer of danger. It's selective and has grown to incorporate a few competing councils."

She felt like a child doing word searches while all the adults were doing crosswords. She was cheating and getting answers so she could fill in any of the blanks at all. Then realizing, even the word search was proving difficult.

"So I'm looking for a council?"

"No, you aren't. You are trying to learn about a council while trying to stay off their radar."

"Are you in this council?"

"It's not that simple?"

"You are?"

He appeared to be fighting himself for the right words. He ignored her question.

"It's a council to the members in it. To others it's a terrorist group. To others it's a protective group, like a police force for justice not carried out in the courts. It's a council with high pull and power to carry out decisions or get answers by different means. Much like the female serpent book and male serpent book, most of the population have no idea the council exists. Or that they have a hand in most major events.Those who do, well, most never become part of it. There's really only one, but others humor themselves. One member was kicked out of the council. He is a member of a real competing council, but that would be the only real immediate threat. Anyone he brings into his is a threat. His knowledge of the council is a threat. However, it hasn't been agreed on yet to get rid of him. Loyalty runs deep in the council. Some members hope for a reconciliation at some point."

"What is his name?"

"I can't remember?"

"You can't remember or wont?"

"You can't contact him or go see him or interview him."

"I came all the way out here Colel. This is serious. Please take me serious. I shouldn't have to remind you of my work."

"You are going to break your necklace if you keep fiddling with it like that."

The lines on his face softened as if taking a breath with him and settling in more comfortably.

"You are right. Sorry, we have to go slow, sharing all this with another is new to me. I have to get to know you. I have to do this my way for both of us. For the books. For the history of it all. For safeties sake. He has a name, but right now it isn't important. I will tell you by the end of the trip."

"Okay, the brotherhood is a council.", she repeated.

"Yes, the brotherhood is a council. That's the lesson for this morning."

"You know, I started to understand that from what I  read last night. It's not that strange, elders acted as councils in many tribe's and still do in places even today."

"Yes, but the brotherhood has origins from a cult. It worked very hard to become a council. To free itself. However, this transition in some ways switched the practices. The council is far more treacherous than it was as a cult. It doesn't claim to be a brotherhood, but in practice I would say it tends to appear to be more of a brotherhood in who it favors. But, it is a council."

She stopped and looked around at the beauty of his acres. Realizing the expanse of his property. Seeing Colel was feeding chickens, she copied his actions trying to be useful. He seemed to also be preparing to fix part of his fence. She knew she'd be useless in helping with this task. She saw the stillness of his place mixed with the chaos. So much history around here. The stillness and chaos has never changed. The things this air, land and water have been a part of. She wished there was a way to date air. She squatted down and picked up a fistfull of dirt, releasing it into the air. Watching it blow away.

"It is a council.", she says again.

Colel smiled appreciating his star pupil.

"So what questions do you have after your initial reading?"

"Is there another book or part that is missing from both books?"

"Why would you ask that?", Colel seemed a little shocked and flustered. She didn't know him, but it looked like flustered. Definitely flustered.

He put his hands in his pockets, taking a break from the fence mending. He was replacing a portion of wire. She was watching him, unsure of how to help. He paced near the fence a couple times, nudging his shoe tip in the dirt.

"You caught that right away huh?"

"Well the last page in the female book and there is..."

"Oh, you got further than I expected. You really have studied this stuff ? You have an eye and intuition for it, I see that.There is a portion that could be added to each, but you have seen the two original books. That's the important part."

"A child portion or addition."

"Yes, but authenticity is questioned by some."

"The symbol on page two, it is supposed to be combined with the one in the other book right? Can we copy them to see what the resulting image would be?"

"Can't copy it, it would be too harsh for the books. Please tell me you haven't been copying your book?!"

"No."

"Okay good, okay. You can picture it in your mind."

"Can I trace copy it, scan it without using a light?"

"No scanning. You can trace it."

"Have you ever done this yourself?"

"I have the other portions, I know what it looks like. It's Kukulcan(quetzalcoatl) one way and a jaguar snake the other way, when combined. Solar and lunar. That is the original symbol of the council. Portrays the dual nature."

"Will I be able to see the other portion? What is the symbol now?

"Maybe. Now it's a circle with two dots. One inside, one outside."

"Maybe?"

"It depends on you. I haven't decided yet. Anything else?"

"Yes"

"Is this how this partnership is going to go?"

"Most likely yes, but I'm not sure what you mean exactly. If you mean cautious and directed by me than yeah."

"What is your significance with these books, why are you the keeper?"

"I am a direct relative of one of the authors. It's been in my family. Except normally a brother and sister became the keeper or overseers of the books. My family had no girls other than my mother, aunts and grandmother. That's how you ended up with one of the books."

"I was meant to be a keeper" , she felt the goofy childish need to cheer, shout and possibly do a little dance. After which she felt the entitlement rush in. "I'm like you?"

"Not exactly."

"I'm like you!"

"No, now stop it, that's not exactly right."

"Kinda right, I'm like you. I need to know more about all this, if I'm to do my job right. Do I have a decision in taking this on or not?"

"If you mean devout and obsessed, you may be like me, but you are not a direct link to an author of the book. You have studied, but you have not lived this."

"I dont understand something. How can there be a council if no one has seen these books?"

"Direct links and a few new chosen members by direct links. The elite in our societies.  No one new has seen the books. A few might know of them. There are levels, a hierarchy."

"I've been looking for the council, and it finds me, I can't believe this. I'm a council member."

"No you aren't. Not yet."

"Is the U.S. president?"

"You are getting way too far ahead. Stay focused. I'm not convinced yet you know enough or are the right....."

"The right, what, person? Our families trusted me. That means something. This all means everything to me. My whole life since I heard all the stories. Ask me something. I know a lot."

"I know. That's something. The people in this council don't just study it or haven't just researched it. They live it. They adapt a modern version of it to the world. They practice it and live with in a bubble formed of it. Do you understand?"

"Yes Colel, I do.", she met his gaze and held it trying to reassure him she understood. She stopped being playful. She was so close to gaining access to the world she has sought after ever since she could remember. It was all happening so easily it frightened her. Nothing in life was ever easy, she was waiting for a catch.

Although she was useless in fence mending outside of handing Colel appropriate tools she did help tremendously with the cleanup. That she could do.

She wasn't sure what Colel was looking for in her. What would she need to prove.

"I want to show you around today. When we get back we will go over the books together. I will show you other personal artifacts that have been passed down in my family. I will share with you one case taken on by the council and what was done. The members are number people, statisticians, people good at analytics. They watch the stocks and understand business. They watch global deals and the individuals making them. Does that sound okay for the rest of our day?"

"Can you tell me about the case then show me around and then go over the books and show me items?"

"I wasn't asking you about the sequence?"

"Yes, that will be fine. Didn't ask me to reschedule or rearrange it? What more can I say."

This was her way of protesting, but it changed nothing. When he thought she wasn't looking she saw Colel smile and shake his head. He scratched the back of his head with his hat. She felt he was starting to like her.