Episode #37: 2 Christopher - Chapter 16 - Plow

Jan,15 2026

<-#36: 2 Christopher - Chapter 15 - Nitrogen#38: 2 Christopher - Chapter 17 - Education ->

On a small change overlooked, and the mercy of not knowing yet

16:1

I write this now from much later,

when the weight of years has taught me

what to look for.

16:2

But at the time,

it seemed ordinary.

16:3

It was in the years after the war,

when machines returned faster than men,

and steel followed soldiers home.

16:4

A merchant came through the region

with a new plow.

16:5

It was lighter than the old ones,

and its blade curved differently.

16:6

He spoke of efficiency,

of speed,

of breaking ground faster.

16:7

Most listened with suspicion.

16:8

Christopher asked only one question.

16:9

"How deep does it cut?"

16:10

The merchant answered proudly,

"Deeper than before."

16:11

Christopher shook his head slightly.

16:12

He said,

"Then it will teach the soil to leave."

16:13

The merchant laughed and said,

"This is progress."

16:14

Christopher replied,

"Progress must learn restraint."

16:15

But the merchant had another attachment,

less impressive in appearance.

16:16

It rode behind the plow

and followed its path.

16:17

It was a simple harrow,

its teeth set shallow and wide.

16:18

The merchant said,

"It leaves more on the surface.

Some call that waste."

16:19

Christopher asked,

"What happens to what is left?"

16:20

The merchant shrugged and said,

"It dries."

16:21

Christopher nodded and said,

"Good."

16:22

He chose not the deeper blade,

but the shallower path.

16:23

He had the fields plowed less deeply,

leaving stalk and stubble behind.

16:24

Some complained.

16:25

They said,

"It looks untidy."

16:26

Christopher answered,

"Order that bleeds the land

is not order."

16:27

That season,

the soil stayed darker longer.

16:28

Moisture lingered.

16:29

The wind passed over

without lifting as much.

16:30

At the time,

I noted it only as preference.

16:31

Years later,

I recognized it as principle.

16:32

For Christopher had refused

to skin the earth

when others learned how.

16:33

He had chosen to slow the plow

when speed was worshiped.

16:34

This was before dust had a name,

before storms taught their lessons publicly.

16:35

And I understood too late

that wisdom often enters quietly,

wearing the shape of a small adjustment.

<-#36: 2 Christopher - Chapter 15 - Nitrogen#38: 2 Christopher - Chapter 17 - Education ->