The Elven Way
Concept Art from Zork Grand Inquisitor
There is a way of being in the world that is timeless.
It is ancient, but it does not age. If you ever meet someone who walks it, you will find it (and them) as old as the seasons and as fresh as spring.
To many people, the Way seems at first like something from the past: innocent, perhaps a little nostalgic. But it only seems that way because when we envision the present, and the future, we envision a mode of living bent on shunning and devaluing the innocence, humaneness, and deep feeling that are the center of the Way.
In fact, once you look more closely, the Way reveals itself to be essentially progressive. Though it is as deeply rooted in the past as a tree is in the ground, it is not backwards-looking or conservative. In fact, modern manifestations of the Way rely on both progressive politics and modern technology for their existence.
I can best describe the Way as an attitude people have toward others, and toward things: their possessions, their environment, the things they create.
The Way is profound, but not melancholy. It is free, but not careless.It invites, but does not demand. It has a vigor that is restrained by gentleness. It is a little bit informal, yet it delights in a particular kind of precision, like that of a puzzle satisfyingly solved. It treats all things with kindness, because it sees that they are part of itself.