Barbarians

It’s so like us to scoff at kings and princes, as if this were a genetic legacy that guided us more powerfully than the stars from the time when we were serfs, when we were punished for our dignity and took our strength as our only guide. It’s hard to decide whether we want to be rulers or to rally with the other barbarians. We tear down our own fortifications, burn our own cities, and cry for the suffering of the people.