{"id":16975,"date":"2012-10-10T16:08:49","date_gmt":"2012-10-10T15:08:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/?p=16975"},"modified":"2012-10-10T16:11:34","modified_gmt":"2012-10-10T15:11:34","slug":"mary-dawson","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/?p=16975","title":{"rendered":"Mary Dawson"},"content":{"rendered":"

Genes<\/strong><\/p>\n

Professor Silver sat at his computer studying data as usual. He was mapping the genetic make-up of worms.
\nThis was his life work and he was working with a group whose hope was to map the human genome and lead to advances in solving various human conditions. The phone rang; he ignored it but it rang on and he reluctantly picked it up.
\n\u201cProfessor Silver \u2013 look out of your window.\u201d
\n\u201cWhy?\u201d Professor Silver asked.
\n\u201cJust do it!\u201d The voice was harsh.
\nProfessor Silver did as he was told. There was a car with the engine running. He saw his 16-year-old nephew Simon Purser white-faced sitting in the back seat.
\n\u201cYour nephew is with us and will not be seen again unless you give us all your data. His father the Prime Minister has been informed that he is missing!\u201d
\nAn icy silence settled between the conversations. Professor Silver spoke.
\n\u201cVery well, when I hear he is at home I will put all the data on a disc and you can collect it.\u201d
\nThe reply came \u201cI will return him when I have the data and have scanned it with my people to make sure it is genuine.\u201d
\n\u201cVery well, it will be here for you to collect at midnight tonight and I expect to hear from Simon or his father by 1am tomorrow. I will not be here but the house will be open and the disc will be by the computer,\u201d said Professor Silver.
\nHe put the phone down and saw the car speed away.
\nOn the news the next week it was announced that Professor Silver had disappeared and his house had been left just as if he had walked out, a half-drunk cup of tea on his computer desk but no computer.
\nThe Prime minister was interviewed with his son Simon who said they had no idea of Professor Silver’s whereabouts.
\nTwo years later a well-known company released a statement that data on the human genome would be available to be bought in the next 6 weeks. The last test was being carried out and data had been adapted to create a formula for the first ‘perfect human’.
\nIn the lab the data had been fed in to the computers and the material assembled. Every one waited as the ‘GO’ button was pressed. Out of the huge sample bottle appeared:
\n\u201cA worm!\u201d
\n\u201cNo, no, this is impossible,\u201d the scientists shouted.
\nAt that moment the worm exploded, its guts covering all those present in genetic material that would scar for life!
\nJust at that very moment Professor Silver picked up the phone.
\n\u201cProfessor Silver, I am the President of the NOBEL PRIZE committee. You have been awarded the prize for Science, for your work on worms and the human genome that has already been used to solve several human conditions. We congratulate you for sharing your findings with others who will use it to the benefit of all mankind.\u201d
\nProfessor Silver smiled \u2013 for his reward was that cooperation and cunning had won against commercialism and competition.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Eggs<\/strong><\/p>\n

The day was dull, a limp sun hid behind the summer foliage. It was in the sculpture garden where she had met him. She walked into a dream, at the path’s end an egg-shaped shelter made out of fallen tree limbs. Inside the hollowed-out egg shape was a seat with soft moss as a cushion. She slipped into the space as lightness circled her body.<\/p>\n

She was walking down a worn path through the trees carrying a basket of mushrooms, a hazy song at her throat. He swung down from the tree, knocking her over. Huge hands grasping her but then there were two of them rolling upon each other, she watched, stiff with fear.
\nThe devil-faced one fled and the other dusted himself down and bowed to her.
\n\u201cAt your service madam, I am Jamelin, who are you, fine maid?\u201d
\n\u201cI am, actually I do not know who I am,\u201d she answered.
\n\u201cYou are in the King’s garden forest, not a place to be unless you are commanded with a task here.\u201d He wiped his hands on green lederhosen.
\n\u201cI myself seek a family of golden geese who are rumoured to lay nothing but golden eggs.\u201d<\/p>\n

A noise like a creature in pain, they run towards it, just in time to chase off the offender.
\nThe remaining goose is ruffled but intact.
\nThere in the nest is one golden egg, it sparkles and invites the viewer to pick it up.
\n\u201cThere it is!\u201d exclaims Jamelin and he reaches out.
\nThe goose has him by the arm. The woman reaches out and takes the egg and holds it against her breast. It feels like something familiar, like something she has lost, thought never to be able to hold again.
\n\u201cIt is yours because the goose did not attack you,\u201d says Jamelin.
\nIn fact the goose had stepped back and looked with a kind of love at the woman.
\n\u201cI must take a golden egg to the king or he will punish me,\u201d mutters Jamelin.
\n\u201cYou can have it, I think I am seeking something else, but I do not know what.\u201d She passes the egg to Jamelin. The goose goes back to her nest as if there is no more to be done.<\/p>\n

Jamelin cradles the egg and they return to the original path. Now night is drawn in, it is in silence they walk.
\n\u201cI must leave you here and return to the castle,\u201d Jamelin says, looking deep into her eyes.
\n\u201cI thank you and my wife thanks you!\u201d<\/p>\n

She is cold and realizes she has slept in the egg-shaped shelter.
\nHer thoughts are all mixed up . . . then she remembers the phone call that morning.
\n\u201cHello.\u201d
\n\u201cHello Leeann, it is James, I am ringing to tell you Lin gave birth yesterday, and we have a beautiful golden-haired child.\u201d
\n\u201cThank you for giving your eggs to us as part of the Gift of Life<\/em> programme.\u201d
\n\u201cThank you, we will call him Jamelin Lee.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Genes Professor Silver sat at his computer studying data as usual. He was mapping the genetic make-up of worms. This was his life work and he was working with a group whose hope was to map the human genome and lead to advances in solving various… Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":27,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[177],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16975"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/27"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16975"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16975\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16989,"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16975\/revisions\/16989"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16975"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16975"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16975"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}