Authors Note: The more I want to start writing this story and the more I start searching for details to be as accurate as I can about the historical facts of Tolkien, Lewis and Oxford I realize how much material there is and how much reading I have in front of me. The trick will be to absorb the facts and site the sources but to keep in mind I'm working on a story, novella or some piece of fiction so The facts may be thrown aside if I need to invent things to keep the plot moving forward. I am starting to keep a notebook for Ideas and for facts I find useful. OK now finally, on with a bit of our story. Also this post is a few days early I am traveling and wanted to make sure I did not forget to get this done. Thanks again for joining me on this journey.
It is spring 1925, Just seven years since returning from the horrors of World War One. J.R.R Tolkien was moving into his office In Pembroke College, Oxford where he was starting what would be long tenure as a professor at Pembroke that would last until 1945 when he moved to Merton College where he continued until 1959. Tolkien was sitting at his desk and moving in the few items he had while thinking of the number of men who occupied this office over hundreds of years. How would ne match up to these Giants, these Dons of Oxford. In hind sight we know he would stand among the greats but it was a good question for this orphan and veteran to be asking himself at the start of his career. He rummaged around his desk looking for an ashtray thinking a short break and blowing some smoke rings with his pipe were just what the moment called for. After opening the bottom right drawer and seeing the previous occupant had indeed left behind an ash tray he found he could not close the drawer no matter how hard he tried there was something blocking the drawer. He pulled the drawer out and found a small worn wooden box with Runes on the outside that he did not recognize and a gold coin in the box. He was going to set the box aside and translate the runes later but he really did love new languages and alphabets so unpacking could wait, besides what if the Runes were timely and an elaborate prank by his friend Jack (C.S. Lewis Who was also starting as a fellow at Oxford this term) maybe the the Runes read Tollers... Meet me at the Bird and Baby (the name used by locals for the Eagle and Child Pub just off of campus) for pint at 5 O'clock. It would be rude not to turn up so he set to translating the runes thinking of a pint of bitters and how good it would taste after he one a game of riddles and Jack had to pay for the pint, but that is not what the Runes told him. After several hours of thinking and blowing smoke rings in that old office he had cracked the puzzle, but even though he could read the message of the runes he had no idea what they meant. It could still be an elaborate prank by Jack and his brother Warnie, but that pint he thought of earlier was calling him so off to the pub he went to show his prize to Jack and see if he was behind the mystery.
Next Post: A funny thing happened on the way to the pub....
No comments:
Post a Comment