Civil U and Civil D

1. Me

They say I am too young. They say I am not reliable. To me, I just have to prove them wrong. I am a light-tan skinned boy. I am told a story of how I become adopted in my current family and the story goes like this:

During the second great war your mother and I took shelter in the northern border of Kantu, this country is the south-most country. The war was a conflict based on the two neighboring countries Shun in the west and Taiku in the east. Their main points of control was the middle. The other nation that connected the east and west countries to form a diamond shape was in the north called Fu. Fu and Kantu, us, remained neutral countries while Shun and Taiku politically argued over everything. They wrote pacts and laws which include imports and exports of goods and also territorial use. The most overlooked idea was the limit of resource razing. Taiku razed their land completely in order to grow exponentially while Shun conservatively used their resources in order to maintain a "balance" in their environment, population, and economy. Now you see, Punpon, my father used to always tell me that if you care for the things you love you can become united just like the Shun people are. If you do not care for the things you love and lose sight loving and caring then you become like the Taiku.

So during this time of war the Taiku invaded the northern border of Kantu, where we lived. Your mother and I fled west towards the country Shun in order to take shelter. In the process we happened to come across a lovely child. That would be you. You were wrapped up in a brown cloth which was very fluffy on the inside. Your mother pleaded us to take good care of you. With that, we did as your mother requested. Now your second mom and I don't regret it because we learned that we could not bear children of our own and we had to do what was right. The thing I wanted for you most was to give you a future Punpon.

That's where it all started. That's when I began to question what kind of future I should proclaim for my foster parents, my real parents, and for the future, my future. Each day that passes I seek to learn and master something new. The best thing about gaining new knowledge is when you start to understand it and it becomes something fun and precious to you. The second best thing about it is the ability to expand the knowledge and also passing it down or sharing it to those who don't possess the knowledge you have. The worst thing to experience is when you are caught breaking the law and you are being publicly humuliated by an elder of the village. There are three elders in each village. These elders are chosen by their influence and potential for the village.

My birthday is tomorrow and it's the day I finally turn 12, the day of September 15. I have heard from the older boys that when you turn 12 your life changes a lot and you have more responsibilities.

It is the early morning and I am out trying to find my family some meat. I am mediocre at hunting and also at hard labor work. The newest labors I've been introduced to are woodcutting, woodcarving, and construction. The labor that I've been taught previously are skinning, fishing, and trading. The most fun job to me would have to be trading. When I am a merchant I get to chat with the consumers. This is my favorite part of the job because I make new friends every day I am a merchant. The second favorite thing about this job is learning the economies demands. In the economy right now I know that ten gold pieces are worth about two weeks of food and water. In this village called Bunshin each family builds their own lodge and takes care of their property. The most rich properties are the ones living near rivers or lakes. These bodies of water can be tapped, used to drink, and can also be used for farming and cattle.

As I approach the riverbank I spot two grey rabbits. Beforehand I strategically set up three deadfall traps opposite from where I am approaching the rabbits. If the rabbits decide to run through the side I have a wall blocking the way with a straight-away path leading them into a net. The only thing I hadn't planned ahead was a villager intercepting my game. It all happened so quick that I realized maybe I wasn't mediocre at hunting. That maybe he was a natural born hunter, the villager who calls himself Thūn.

He stealthily watched me prepare all the work, but quickly claimed the game I have been watching all morning. His appearance is of a light brown gown, skin-tight leather shorts, and a red-orange feather headress. Thūn carried a slingshot in his left hand and ammunition in his small brown pouch dangling from the waist of his leather shorts. He seemed of a middle-aged man, most likely in his 30's.

Thūn approaches me silently. He claimed both the grey rabbits, but handed me one. He winks at me and speaks in a calm voice. "You did good to corner them so I will share half of the game. But because you were too slow to hunt I have to take one for myself." With that he walks onward and gathers lumber into his hand-made ransack on his back.

"Excuse me. Can you teach me how you did that? How you moved like the shadows and swiftly, but silently executed both grey rabbits at the same time." The words I spoke aloud were of true admiration. My eyes felt like they were glistening and gleaming when admiring Thūn.

With all the admiring and acknowledgement Thūn only shrugged it off and walked away in a cold silence. He intended to ignore me while I try to learn something new from him. Yes, gain new knowledge for myself. That is all I desire. The day continued on and began to rise in temperature. It has already passed the afternoon. Thūn and I decided to journey with each other today since we are now woodcutting and gathering lumber, both for the village and for ourselves. He tells me that he, alone, must provide for his family of three. It seems as if he hunts and gathers resources on a daily basis. It all goes like this:

He hunts while the sun rises and gathers wood and water while the heat starts to intensify. Within these times, from about 4:00 in the morning to 12:00 noon, he gathers a week of supplies. He sells about a quarter of the supplies to help the village economy and keeps the other three quarters of supplies for his family.

"What is it that you seek from me young boy?" He speaks unexpectingly and breaks my train of thoughts.

I clasp both my hands together and plead to him. "I wish to seek your knowledge Thūn."

He laughs hysterically as if I had told him a joke. "My boy, I agree you must learn but why have you asked me instead of seeking a proper teacher?"

I cross my arms and stroke my chin, like an old wise man would do as he processes his thoughts.

"Because my family can't pay to put me in school so I help provide for the family."

He lets out a heavy breath in protest. "What if I disagreed to your request, young boy?"

I ponder about his question. "Hmmmm." I take a few more seconds to form reasons and answers. "If you disagreed to teach me your ways I would prove to you that I would be diligent with the time you spend teaching me. We will be working alongside with one another for a month or so anyway. So we have plenty of time to become friends." The old geezer smirked at my response and let out a long, heavy sigh.

"You're an intriuging young boy. You have the will and the perception of a great king, but of course you aren't a king." A smirk escaped his covert expressions. "But that is of no worries, I am not a king myself." We both chuckle and continue on with our day and night labor.

We end the evening with a construction project. Of course we aren't done with it entirely because this will be the first major change to Shun. This building is supposed to take us 3 years to build and we started the project 2 years ago. The rumors I heard about the use of this building is the expansion of education. If I remember correctly it is the new subject known as science.