The King, the Minister, and the Hungry Dogs

ACT 1: The Call and the Collapse

A fable-like realization: truth demands action. Systems fail when leaders fear truth. The protagonist sees his inner kingdom is crumbling under denial and ego.

The King, the Minister, and the Hungry Dogs
(As told by the Minister himself)

You ever have one of those days where everything goes wrong, and then a pack of slobbering, hungry dogs show up to eat you alive? Yeah, me too. Let me tell you about it.

It all started deep down in the dark belly of the kingdom. I was the King’s top minister—basically the guy who does all the hard work while His Royal Highness sits on his velvet chair making royal noises. We had a huge plan to bring peace, light, and maybe even indoor plumbing to the land. It was complicated, written on a scroll longer than a giraffe’s neck. Five circles had to line up—don’t ask why, just go with it—but one circle wouldn’t glow. It stayed dark. It stayed empty. Like my stomach during royal fasting season.

Now, the King’s shouting at me—“Hold it higher! Higher, you fool!”—as if I’m the problem and not the drooling beasts inching closer behind me. You see, we had these dogs. Not your average flea-bitten mutts, mind you. These were dogs of doom. Snarling, snapping, just waiting for me to trip, so they could pounce and turn me into minister meatloaf.

So there I was, scroll in hand, heart pounding, arms shaking like wet noodles, while the King cooked up strategy changes faster than a pancake on Sunday. Suddenly, the empty circle shimmered. Just a flicker, mind you, like when your TV tries to work during a thunderstorm.

That’s when His Majesty smirks like a man who knows a secret and says, “The plan was inside the plan all along.” Like, gee thanks, Sherlock.

Turns out, the thing we thought was broken just needed time. Not everything missing is gone. Sometimes it’s just late, like my cousin Larry.

And then it happened. The light broke through. The circle lit up like a Christmas ham. The dogs? They whimpered and slinked away like they’d just gotten grounded. And me? I stood tall, scroll aloft, shaking only slightly less than before.

And here’s the thing, kid:

When everything feels like it’s falling apart—when the dogs of doubt are chomping at your heels—remember this:

Even empty circles can glow.
Hold tight. Stay bold. And don’t let go.

‘Cause sometimes, what’s missing is just hiding. Not gone. Just waiting for the right moment to shine.