Instructions
by Neil Gaiman
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fkvu...

Touch the wooden gate in the wall you never

saw before.

Say "please" before you open the latch,

go through,

walk down the path.

A red metal imp hangs from the green-painted

front door,

as a knocker,

do not touch it; it will bite your fingers.

<Walk through the house. Take nothing. Eat

nothing.

However, if any creatures tell you that they hunger,

feed them.

If they tell you that they are dirty,

clean them.

If they cry to you that they hurt,

if you can,

ease their pain.>

From the back garden you will be able to see the

wild wood.

The deep well you walk past leads to Winter's

realm;

there is another land at the bottom of it.

If you turn around here,

you can walk back, safely;

you will lose no face. I will think no less of you.

Once through the garden you will be in the

wood.

The trees are old. Eyes peer from the under-

growth.

Beneath a twisted oak sits an old woman. She

may ask for something;

give it to her. She

will point the way to the castle.

Inside it are three princesses.

Do not trust the youngest. Walk on.

<In the clearing beyond the castle the twelve

months sit about a fire,

warming their feet, exchanging tales.

They may do favors for you, if you are polite.>

You may pick strawberries in December's frost.

<Trust the wolves, but do not tell them where

you are going.>

The river can be crossed by the ferry. The ferry-

man will take you.

(The answer to his question is this:

If he hands the oar to his passenger, he will be free to

leave the boat.

Only tell him this from a safe distance.)

If an eagle gives you a feather, keep it safe.

Remember: that giants sleep too soundly; that

witches are often betrayed by their appetites;

dragons have one soft spot, somewhere, always;

<hearts can be well-hidden,

and you betray them with your tongue.>

Do not be jealous of your sister.

Know that diamonds and roses

are as uncomfortable when they tumble from

one's lips as toads and frogs:

colder, too, and sharper, and they cut.

<Remember your name.

Do not lose hope — what you seek will be found.

Trust ghosts. Trust those that you have helped

to help you in their turn.

Trust dreams.

Trust your heart, and trust your story.

When you come back, return the way you came.

Favors will be returned, debts will be repaid.

Do not forget your manners.

Do not look back.

Ride the wise eagle (you shall not fall).

Ride the silver fish (you will not drown).

Ride the grey wolf (hold tightly to his fur).>

There is a worm at the heart of the tower; that is

why it will not stand.

When you reach the little house, the place your

journey started,

you will recognize it, although it will seem

much smaller than you remember.

Walk up the path, and through the garden gate

you never saw before but once.

And then go home. Or make a home.

And rest.

#################

"I cannot say what feelings an artist experiences in front of an empty canvas but whenever I have to start a game I cannot stop thinking that, today, right now, I have the very fortunate possibility of playing the most beautiful, the most fighting and the most profound game."

--GM David Bronstein

##################

"In their holy festivals the Mayan priests competed in a game similar to modern jai alai, but as they grasped and hurled the ball, they believed that the slightest error would cause the sun to fall from the sky. That's the kind of attention I'm talking about, as though your own life were at stake--or, rather, not your own, since you might be a potential suicide, but the life of every person dear to you. All else is secondary. Strategy, tactics, the study of openings and endgames--useless in this kind of attention."