JC: Ed Biggers
Part 5: Stasis
Chapter 1
By
Lazlo Zalezac
Copyright (C) Lazlo Zalezac, 2004

… to be drawn and quartered with arms and legs bound in chains 
of obligation and pulled by love.

Even as we scream our pain and anguish into the empty cavern, we 
hear our cries echo back at us in a voice that sounds angry rather 
than anguished. "I want and I don't want this!"

When opportunities for growth arise for one member of a family, 
how can we support them while remaining true to ourselves? Not 
exactly a new problem, it is a more widespread dilemma of modern 
times. Should one person move across the country so that a spouse 
can have a better life and lose theirs in the process? Or should they 
ask that the spouse stay in their current situation to enable their 
growth? Is there a better solution to the problem that remains to be 
discovered? 

Neither a borrower, nor a lender be; for loan oft loses both itself 
and friend. So says the great playwright. Trite advice for facing the 
difficult challenges of life. Change often throws choices at the 
living that forces one partner into accepting a debt of love or 
dissolving the partnership. This can not be avoided. People have no 
control over the chaos of opportunities and misfortune that life 
throws their way. The belief that we have control is an illusion.

As opportunities come and go, each brings with it the risk of 
terminating a loving relationship. The fear that arises from 
knowing that a loving relationship is at risk at all times is 
tremendous. Jealousy and control are expressions of inept attempts 
to reduce that risk, yet they only increase the risk by throwing the 
debt of love in the face of the other. Love becomes obligation and 
obligation kills love.

"Comprise!" shouts someone from the sidelines. Yet how do you 
compromise when the choice is an either or? The choice may be to 
move across the country for a dream job for one member of the 
relationship or to stay where family surrounds the other member in 
loving support. It isn't possible to move the job to where you 
already live or move everyone to where the job exists. To leave 
one spouse behind to live with their family while the other moves 
to follow the job is a short-term solution that in the long-term can 
kill the relationship. You are damned if you do and damned if you 
don't.

The situations that can arise are numberless thereby making each 
opportunity unique. With no fixed answers, we cry into the empty 
cavern in anguish and hear our voices echo in anger. At night, 
someone will lie in bed saddened by the change that life has 
imposed on him or her. The other lies in bed torn at the 
unhappiness their choice caused in the other. Anguish, anger, 
jealously, and loneliness are emotions produced by choices made 
or unmade.

************* 

It was the first session of the forth year of classes. Ed looked at the 
student in surprise that such a question would be asked the very 
first day. It was his first time to teach in the Druid College and he 
had just covered the basic kinds of rocks. The student had just 
asked, "So what kind of rock will the dirt outside this building turn 
into?"

John had suggested that he use such questions to allow the students 
to explore the topic when he didn't have a quick or direct answer at 
hand. The case here was that he hadn't covered enough material to 
give an answer that would be understandable. The idea that the 
students might learn that not all answers were simple appealed to 
him. Ed looked around the class and asked, "So would anyone like 
to take a guess?"

Another student, looking about like she was nervous, raised their 
hand. After Ed pointed at her, she replied, "It would have to be a 
sedimentary rock."

Nodding, Ed said, "True enough as a first pass."

The first student raised his hand. After Ed acknowledged him, the 
student said, "There's a lot of organic material in the soil. Wouldn't 
it turn into oil?"

The discussion raged for the last ten minutes of the class. Each 
student added a small piece to generating an answer to the 
question. Many of the pieces were contradictory and Ed watched 
as they tried to reason out how soil would change to rock. They 
were not coming up with a single answer and it was easy to see 
that there was a certain amount of frustration building. 

A few minutes before the class was scheduled to end, Ed 
interrupted the discussion and said, "The actual answer is quite 
complex. It depends on the geological forces that are applied to the 
soil. At every phase of its evolution, different factors can enter that 
will change the outcome. It may start out undergoing a 
sedimentary process. Once buried, it may undergo a metamorphic 
process. I think the complexity of the answer is part of the 
attraction of this area of study. Hopefully, by the end of the 
semester you will understand the complexity and we can return to 
this discussion."

Class time was nearly over and Ed had one more major task to 
complete before class ended. After a quick glance around the 
room, he said, "Read the first chapter of your book for tomorrow."

His announcement was not greeted with the kind of groans that 
would normally occur in a college class after receiving such an 
assignment. Most of the students came to class expecting that and 
many had already read the chapter in anticipation of the 
assignment. 

When the clock showed that the class was over, the class filed out 
of room in the disorganized manner common to Druids. No one 
pushed or shoved as people walked at a pace of his or her 
choosing, adjusting it to the pace of the people around them. They 
weren't exactly quiet, as pairs or threesomes discussed the material 
covered in class in muted voices.  

When the students had finally left the room, John came up to the 
front desk where Ed was collecting his material. With a grin, John 
said, "They threw you a curve on that question."

"You can say that again. I've never had a student ask that question 
before," replied Ed. The closest he had come to that question 
usually arose when he discussed the formation of sandstone. 
Shaking his head, he said, "It's only the first day of class."

"So how do you like teaching here?"

Still recovering from the question and the insights exhibited during 
the conversation that followed, Ed answered, "I like it. This is 
definitely going to be a challenge. Of course, they just gave me a 
good question for the final exam."

Laughing, John replied, "Has anyone told you that you are evil?"

"Not lately," remarked Ed with a grin. With a wink, he added, 
"Usually I'm much better at hiding it."

The two men laughed as they left the classroom. Ed would be 
returning in half an hour to teach the next section of the class. This 
was the introductory class to geology and he would teach two 
sections of it this quarter. Another instructor was teaching two 
sections, as all students were required to study this material. Next 
quarter, he would have only a single class covering the next 
material. The third and fourth quarters were going to be easy since 
he wouldn't have a class. The next year of teaching would add a 
class to each quarter. When the first set of students reached their 
final year, he would be teaching three classes a quarter, but the 
odds were good that there would be very few students in any 
particular class. 

In the dining room of the fourth year students, Ed looked around at 
the students gathered there. They had changed in significant ways 
compared to how they had been the first day they had entered 
college. Only three students had dropped out so far and one of 
those was because of health problems. It was an amazing retention 
rate considering how it compared with other universities. The 
environment of mutual support, study groups, and focus on 
learning was having a beneficial effect. Reasoning skills that had 
been neglected until entering the college were now honed to a 
sharp edge. Ed remarked, "These kids are so sharp, I doubt that I'll 
be able to challenge them the last year of their education."

"You have experience on your side," remarked John, 
understanding exactly how Ed felt. There were times when these 
kids really pushed him to his limits. Taking individuals with the 
highest potential and developing them to the highest level possible 
had produced some very exceptional individuals. In a few years, 
they would become powerful leaders in any activity that they 
might pursue. Seeing the doubt on Ed's face, he added, "Don't 
worry. They may be able to reason, but they still need facts with 
which to reason about. You have those facts locked up in your 
head and that is what they need."

Smiling, Ed shrugged his shoulders as if to signify that he would 
see when the time came. The waitress showed up at the table to 
take their orders. Middle aged with too many years spent on her 
feet waiting tables, she viewed everyone and everything with the 
kind of jaded eye that sought out the worst. In a bored tone of 
voice, she said, "What 'cha want?"

Glancing at his watch, Ed saw that he had only twenty minutes 
before the next class. He said, "I'll take a cup of coffee."

The waitress, on the job for less than a week, looked down at him 
with a frown trying to remember where she had encountered Ed 
previously. Giving up, she asked, "Do you want me to bring a 
carafe?"

"No, I'm only going to be here for fifteen minutes," answered Ed. 
It took him a minute to realize that this was the waitress that used 
to work at the Possum in town. He said, "Sorry, I didn't recognize 
you. You used to work at the Possum, didn't you?"

"Yeah, I did. The pay here is better though," replied the waitress 
indifferent to his observation. She turned to face John and asked, 
"What can I get you?"

"I'll have the Egg's Benedict and some coffee," answered John 
amused at her indifference to Ed. He considered teasing Ed about 
losing his thing for Damsels. It would be interesting to see how 
long she was able to maintain her distance. 

She walked off to take care of the order. Ed watched her go and 
asked, "What is her name?"

"Sasha Zyzelewski," replied John. He had sat in on hiring her and 
knew that she had a troubled past. They had hired her despite the 
objections of the personnel director who had objected to her deeply 
ingrained negative attitude.

Ed nodded as he committed her name to memory. He would be 
spending most of his breaks between classes here and didn't want 
to be rude.  After a moment of silence, he said, "I'm curious how 
the next class will go."

"Probably the same but completely different."

Laughing, Ed sat back in his chair and relaxed. He said, "I need 
such reassurance."

John grinned and looked around the room at the students that had 
descended on the dining room. The waitress was busy taking 
orders, most of which were for coffee, juices, and quick breakfasts. 
The waitress, tired of running around, returned to the table at the 
first opportunity and set the coffees for John and Ed on it. She 
snarled, "We ought to put up a self serve breakfast buffet. I can't 
run all over the room like this."

"Good idea, Sasha," replied Ed as John said, "Do it."

The waitress stood there staring at the two men in shock, not 
having expected that response. Puzzled, she asked, "You want me 
to do it?"

"Sure," replied John. He looked across the room and noticed that 
one of the students had taken it upon himself to serve coffee to a 
number of the other students. This was nothing unusual, 
particularly since the students often overwhelmed the waitresses 
during the half-hour breaks between classes. He wondered how 
Sasha was going to take it.

She looked at the pair of men, noticing their smiles before she 
went back to her duties. When she saw a couple of the students 
walking around with coffeepots filling cups at various tables, she 
didn't know how to react. She glanced back at John and Ed for 
guidance, but they were just smiling as though nothing was wrong. 
She returned to the table and asked, "They are helping themselves. 
Is that allowed?"

John looked over at the students and asked, "Are they harming 
anyone?"

"No," replied the waitress confused by the question.

"Then it's okay," asserted Ed watching her reaction.

Squinting out of one eye in a facial expression that reminded Ed of 
Popeye, she said, "Explain that to me."

"If it harms no one, then do it. That is one of the rules of this 
campus."

"What has that got to do with them helping themselves?"

Grinning, Ed asked, "They can do it because it harms no one. In 
fact, I'd say that it helps you out."

The waitress walked away and returned to her work. As fast as she 
moved from table to table, the students were quicker. They took 
care of themselves and the other students around them. After about 
ten minutes, the waitress stood in the center of the room and just 
watched the activity around her. 

Ed drank his coffee and watched the student dynamics. They were 
excited about their new classes and were already sharing stories 
about their instructors. More than a few glances in his direction 
suggested that his teaching style was already a matter of 
discussion. John noticed and said, "Word is getting out about you 
already."

"Yeah, it would be interesting to find out what they are saying 
about me."

"Don't worry. They'll like you, they'll hate you, and they'll curse 
you at times if you do your job correctly. After they leave here and 
experience the real world is when their opinion counts."

Ed was silent as he thought about it. In Arizona he had never really 
given it any thought. Most of the time was spent just trying to get 
the students through the program. He gave them the best that he 
could and hoped that it helped them in their careers. Nodding, he 
said, "That's true."

Taking another sip of his coffee, John shook his head and said, "It's 
been so long since I taught basic physics, that I was terrified going 
into the classroom. Still, it has been a very rewarding experience 
teaching these young people. They are smart."

"Yeah, I can see that they are smart."

Curious, John asked, "Did you select an intern yet?"

"Not yet," answered Ed. It had been decided that each Druid would 
work with one or two fourth year students to introduce them to the 
kind of activities that Druids performed when serving in official 
situations. This would help them adopt their responsibilities 
without the kind of surprises that other Druids had felt on their first 
exposure to service.

John watched as Ed finished his coffee making a grimace as the 
tepid liquid assaulted his tongue with bitterness. As Ed set the 
empty cup on the table, John said, "Time for you to get to class."

Groaning, Ed stood and went down the hallway to the connected 
building where his class was to be held. Entering, he saw that 
about half the class had arrived before him. He wondered if his 
kids would make it on time. There were still five minutes before 
class would start so there was still time for them to arrive.

Kristie Prevatt, the girl that had lied to her parents about her 
acceptance into the school, was seated in the front row. She waved 
to him when he noticed her and he nodded back wondering what 
kind of student she would be. For a moment he considered making 
her his intern, but decided against it. 

When the clock indicated that it was time for class to begin, Ed 
went to the whiteboard and wrote his name across it in big letters. 
It was not necessary. All of the students already knew who he was. 
Turning back to face the room, he was disappointed that his kids 
weren't in seats. A student entered the room, three minutes late, 
and made his way to a chair in the middle of the room. Ed looked 
over at the student, irritated that he couldn't arrive on time for the 
first class, and said, "Please leave the room."

The student froze and looked at Ed in shock. Stuttering, he asked, 
"Pardon me?"

"I asked you to leave," replied Ed without a smile. 

"I was just three minutes late."

"Yes and you disturbed the classroom. Now leave," replied Ed. His 
tone allowed no argument.

The student left the room amidst considerable comments among 
the students remaining in the room. Once the late student was 
gone, Ed turned to face the rest of the room. The room become so 
quiet that you could hear a pin drop. Satisfied, Ed said, "Welcome 
to the introductory class to Geology. I hope that everyone is in the 
correct room."

After a pause, Ed began the same introductory speech that he had 
given the previous class. It was basically an overview of what they 
would be covering over the next twelve weeks. The school 
operated on a quarter system. This allowed the students to get 
formal introductions to more topics before selecting their final 
field of study. The two additional years of college allowed them to 
get an in-depth education in their selected field of study. 

When the hour was almost over, Ed asked, "Are there any 
questions?"

The room was quiet for a long time before Kristie raised her hand. 
After acknowledging her, she asked, "Why did you ask Howard to 
leave the room?"

"He was late," replied Ed.

"Still, it seemed kind of harsh," countered Kristie, "since he wasn't 
harming anyone."

"If I was holding a test today, how many people would have been 
disturbed by his late arrival? None? One? Two? It doesn't matter 
that there wasn't anything important occurring at the moment that 
he arrived today. He didn't know that. However, I have established 
a precedent that will last far longer than today. You and he learned 
an important lesson today before it would have harmful 
consequences."

The class was silent as they left the room. As Ed collected his 
stuff, Howard entered the room and said, "Dr. Biggers. I'm sorry 
about coming to class late today."

"Apology accepted," replied Ed without looking up as he picked 
up his material.

Howard stood there, looking as though he had expected more of a 
response. That was the problem with dealing with the instructors 
who were Druids, the students never felt like they were in control. 
Half of the faculty was made up of Druids and their classes were 
run with much greater formality than those taught by non-Druids. 
Interruptions, personal attacks, and minor disruptions were 
immediately halted. Finally, he asked, "Am I allowed back in the 
class?"

"Of course," replied Ed as he headed towards where Howard stood. 
Pausing as he reached Howard, he asked, "Interested in a cup of 
coffee?"

The question surprised Howard and he looked at Ed for a moment 
before answering, "Sure."

"Lead on," said Ed.

He followed the student to the fourth year dining room. Uneasy, 
the student picked out a table near the side of the room. The choice 
was not lost on Ed. As he sat down, Ed looked around at all of the 
students and asked, "So what do you think of your time spent here 
at the college?"

Licking his lips, Howard answered, "I've enjoyed it."

It was the truth, but Ed could see that he wasn't enjoying the last 
few minutes. Smiling, he said, "I guess that all in all you've 
enjoyed it, but the last hour or so has not been fun."

"You can say that again," replied the student without thinking 
about it. Even as the words came out of his mouth, he regretted 
having said them.

Ed laughed and sat back in his chair pleased to have heard the 
unvarnished truth for a change. He asked, "So, are you and Kristie 
an item?"

Howard tried to follow the shift in conversation, but couldn't. 
Confused, he asked, "Kristie?"

"Yes, the rather attractive young woman that was sitting in the 
front of the class. She questioned me about why I sent you out of 
the class."

"Oh, that was nice of her," replied Howard. 

Their discussion was interrupted by the arrival of the waitress. She 
glanced down at Ed and asked, "Coffee?"

"No thank you, Sasha. I'll have a chocolate milk," replied Ed 
knowing that if he were caught drinking iced tea or coffee by one 
of the wives that he'd be in trouble. 

"I'd like coffee," said Howard wondering if he should go with 
coffee or milk. 

The waitress took down the order and went to fetch their order. Ed 
watched her leave and noticed that she went to a table filled with 
cups, coffee urns, milk, juices, and cereals. Other students had 
already spotted the table and were gathering around it to get 
coffees. It didn't take her long to return with their order. On 
reaching the table, she said, "Here's your drinks."

"I see that you set up a self serve buffet already," remarked Ed.

Sasha looked over at the table and said, "Yes. The students raise 
their hands to get my attention if they want a hot breakfast. Sure 
makes my job easier."

"So what do you think of our students?" asked Ed.

"Strangest bunch of college kids that I've ever seen. They are all so 
polite and helpful. I haven't seen a single example of a hang-over 
since I arrived here."

Turning to Howard, Ed asked, "What do you think of that?"

"I don't know what to say," replied Howard. In the culture that 
existed in the school, to act in any other fashion would have been 
brought the immediate attention of a Druid on the student. The first 
year of school had been tough, but so many bad habits, rude 
behaviors, and wrong thoughts had been changed for the better. A 
few bad habits still existed, such as arriving late to class, but even 
that was slowly getting corrected under the watchful eyes of the 
Druids. 

The waitress shrugged and said, "Well, I wish more people were 
like these kids."

Smiling, Ed watched the expression on Howard's face. The poor 
guy was totally confused by this talk with Ed. After taking a sip of 
his chocolate milk, Ed said, "That is my desire for the future as 
well. Perhaps with the help of these young people, we will live 
long enough to see the day when people are polite to each other 
and help when others have problems."

For the first time since he had met her, Sasha smiled. She nodded 
and returned to her work. Howard had noticed the exchange and 
asked, "Is that what you really want?"

"Yes, it is," answered Ed.

"Never going to happen," remarked Howard.

Ed smiled at Howard, knowing that the young man was telling the 
truth as he saw it. Instead of arguing, Ed asked, "So what do you 
think is the intent of this school?"

"Well, if John is telling us the truth then it is to help make the 
world a better place."

"How will you know if the world is a better place?"

"When people stop harming each other and the strong stop taking 
advantage of the weak," replied Howard feeling proud that he 
knew the answer to the question.

"Oh. You mean when they are polite and help each other rather 
than destructive and taking advantage of each other?"

"Right," agreed Howard with a slight hesitation as he considered 
Ed's restatement of his answer. 

Ed was silent as a puzzled expression crossed Howard's face. It 
was several minutes later that Howard hit himself on the forehead 
with the palm of his hand. As a grin spread over his face, he said, 
"Making the world a better place does not necessarily mean 
making it a perfect place."

Nodding his agreement, Ed replied, "You are right. Just because it 
isn't perfect doesn't mean that it can't become a good place."

Howard was silent for a minute and then asked, "So are we 
supposed to go out and talk to people in order to convince them to 
be good?"

Shaking his head, Ed answered, "No. That won't do any good. 
There are too many people that can't be convinced by talking. You 
have to lead them to it."

"Why?"

"There are three types of people that you can not talk into behaving 
well. The stupid, the religious fanatic, and the evil."

"Why can't you talk to stupid people?"

"They aren't smart enough to follow the logic of what you say. You 
have to tell them what is right in very simple terms. If they don't 
agree, then you'll never be able to change their mind," replied Ed. 

"Okay, I'll buy that. What about the religious fanatic?"

Smiling Ed answered, "If what you say goes against their religious 
belief, they will cling to that religious belief even if it means their 
death."

"You don't think that you can reform evil?"

Frowning, Ed shook his head and thought about the evil people 
that he had met. There was no way to convince the serial killers, 
pedophiles, and predators to change their evil ways. They knew 
what they were doing was wrong, but that knowledge didn't stop 
them. It only made them more careful in how they went about 
performing their evil acts. He answered, "Not in a million years."

"How can you say that?"

"They know what they are doing is wrong. They don't care and 
there is nothing in this world that can make them care. There is 
only one person that is important to them and that is them. They 
will lie, cheat, steal, and seek any opportunity to cause harm." Ed 
sighed and looked across the room and said, "There are some 
people that have to be removed with force."

Howard stared at Ed as though he couldn't believe that Ed didn't 
think that things could be achieved peacefully. Shaking his head, 
he replied, "There is good in everyone."

"Not in everyone. Those without good in them are the evil ones."

Chilled, Howard was silent for a moment as he considered the 
reply. Were there people without a trace of good within them? The 
idea was frightening and caused a shiver to run up and down his 
spine. Looking up at Ed, he asked, "So why are you telling me 
this?"

Smiling, Ed said, "You are my intern and will work with me over 
the next year."

"Oh," answered Howard more uncomfortable than ever.

Pausing in the middle of raising his milk for another sip, Ed said, 
"The clock."

Howard glanced at the clock and saw the time. Face flushed, he 
exclaimed, "I'm going to be late."

Ed chuckled as the student stood up and rushed off to his next 
class. Still shaking his head in amusement, his reverie was 
interrupted by the arrival of Beth, Little John, and William. The 
two elder children looked upset. Little John looked at his father 
and said, "We were late to your class and a student told us not to 
go in."

"Yes, you have to be on time," replied Ed watching their reaction. 
He wondered if they weren't going to be late to their next class.

Little John complained, "I have biology before your class and I 
tend to loose track of time. It's not fair!"

Beth added, "I have history before your class. I got caught up in a 
discussion with another student and didn't realize that we were 
walking in the wrong direction."

William didn't say a word, but just sat there smiling at his brother 
and sister. He wasn't required to attend classes yet, but visited the 
ones that appealed to his interests of the day. Observing his 
amusement, Ed asked, "What is your excuse?"

Frowning, William just shrugged his shoulders. The lack of a vocal 
answer was expected, but this was a clear attempt to avoid 
answering. Ed countered, "You should tell me so that I know."

William looked away from Ed and whispered, "I don't know how 
to tell time."

Raising an eyebrow in surprise, Ed asked, "Oh, that's an excuse 
that I would have accepted."

Beth and Little John stared at their little brother, surprised that he 
would admit to not knowing something. Usually, if he didn't know 
something he went to look it up. Little John said, "I'll teach you 
how to tell time."

William just nodded and watched his father. Ed said, "You two are 
another matter. You just told me that my material wasn't as 
interesting as your other classes. I'm hurt."

Beth looked over at her father using the same facial expression as 
Kelly when she didn't believe him and replied, "Somehow I don't 
believe that."

Ed smiled and shook his head at the similarity between mother and 
child. Winking at William, he said, "You told me that your other 
classes were so interesting that you couldn't break away to come to 
my poor little class."

Little John replied, "If you keep teasing her, she's going to tell 
Mommy Ling."

Ed reached over and rubbed the head of Little John in a friendly 
parental manner as he said, "She's going to tell Ling that I didn't let 
you in class because you were late anyway."

William stood and waved goodbye as he left the table. His older 
brother and sister watched him leave the room, suspecting that he 
was going to attend the class on logic with the first years. When he 
had left the room, Beth turned to her father and said, "He's smarter 
than Little John and I put together."

Curious, Ed asked, "So who do you think he will serve?"

The kids looked at each other and, together, replied, "I don't know. 
All or none."
