Tales from the Tavern

Don't Ever Give Up

"Don't give up."

That's what my grandfather would always say, "Don't ya give up, lad. Don't ever give up. Better times are coming."

I remember one day we were out working the fields, harvesting corn for the Ruler's storehouses, hot sun beating down on our backs, the Foreman's whip lashing above our heads. I could hardly work that day. I'd just learned that my father, conscripted a year earlier, had died in one of the Ruler's many wars, cut down for a cause he didn't believe in. The Foreman didn't even give us a day off, just sent me and my grandfather -- my father's father -- out to the fields with everyone else.

My grandfather was nearly eighty at the time, by far the oldest serf most people had ever known, and the oldest man still able to work by more than two decades. I was young, not yet into full manhood. His back was bent with age, but he held his head up while he worked, eyes gleaming. They had tears in them that day, but there was a fire glowing in their depths, a fire I'd never seen before. He never let the Foreman see his tears, and I don't think he meant for me to see either. Still, even though I saw that, I still thought him close to heartless; certainly he wasn’t hurting like I was. In hindsight, he was probably hurting even more. But through it all, he kept working, never giving in, never stopping.

I longed to give in, to give up. The knowledge that I'd never see my father again burned in my heart, consuming me in grief. I wanted nothing at all, nothing except to forget my troubles, and if death freed me, then I would meet it gladly. There was no more point in living. I tried to quite several times, but my grandfather never let me. Each time he saw me stop working, and a second later he'd be leaning over me.

"No, lad," he'd say. "Today's not the day. Don't let 'em beat you, lad. Don't let 'em win."

He'd hold out his hand, waiting until I took it so he could help me up.

The days got easier after that; my grieving heart healed little by little, but still there came days that were tougher than others. My grandfather was there for each one, giving me strength to carry on our hopeless task, his gravelly voice whispering in my ear.

Then came a day worse than any that came before, worse even than my father's death. I woke before dawn as usual, but found that my mother and my younger sister had vanished in the night. I cared for my sister above all else, and her absence was a blow that sent me tumbling back to my pallet in despair. I thought she'd been taken by the guards, taken to satisfy the Ruler's cruelest pleasures. I couldn't function, couldn't move. I just curled up and cried.

The door to our hovel opened, but I didn't even look up to watch the guards enter, coming to drive me to work, so I was surprised when I felt my grandfather's gentle touch brush my shoulder. I turned slightly to look at him and found dark pouches under his eyes as if he had not slept. But he was also smiling. That smile was too much to bear; I shoved him away, cursing him, screaming that he was a heartless bastard. He grabbed my mouth, covering my cries and dragged me into the fields. We'd hardly reached the first stalks of corn when guards hammered down the door of my home. Only then did I stop struggling.

"You gave up." My grandfather's eyes were accusing now. "You stopped fighting them but you’d still fight your own grandfather? I'd thought you better, lad, I'd thought you better."

"They took Sali and mother," I snarled, "And you just smile like nothing's wrong. What did you expect? Your own granddaughter, old man!"

"The guards didn't take 'em, lad. I did. I led them out."

I stared. "What?"

"I took Sali and your mother to the Underground, lad. They're safe."

"Oh."

"I told you. I told you things get better if you don't give up. And your turn's coming today. I would’ve taken you last night, but there wasn't room. You've gotta go, though."

He glanced over to the Foreman. I followed his gaze and found the guards had left my house; their captain was speaking to the Foreman. Both men were looking right at us, and while I watched, the captain nodded his soldiers into motion. My grandfather grabbed my arm, spinning me until I faced him.

"Two miles into the forest, there's a river. You know it?"

I nodded, trying not to glance over my shoulder at the guards.

"Good. When you’re there, go upstream 'til you reach a waterfall. There's food in a stump right along the bank at the bottom. A cave behind the falls to hide in. Then tonight, go wait at the top. Someone will come and say 'corn'; you gotta tell them 'barley'. Go with them; they’ll watch out for you."

He glanced up. The guards were closing quickly.

"Go! Hide in the stalks. Run!"

"But Grandfather, wha-"

"Nothing else, lad. Run!"

He pushed me away and turned towards the guards. Just before they reached him, he glanced over his shoulder and called out. "Don't ever give up, lad!"

His last words. The guards fell upon him. He pulled a club from beneath his shirt, knocked a few of them senseless, following his own advice to the last. I turned and ran, not daring to watch the end.

Since that day, I have always carried my grandfather's advice. I have refused to give up. Even when things looked hard, I did not give up. I got lost in the forest, and was two days late to the meeting with the Underground. But they were there because they did not give up on me. I found my mother and sister. Eventually, as I gained age and wisdom, I learned to lead the Underground in their  struggle, and led us into open rebellion.

We suffered defeat after defeat, but we kept fighting. More men broke free from the yoke and joined us, and we kept fighting. Slowly the tides turned, and we fought on. Finally we broke the walls of the Ruler's palace. Confronted by our fury, the Ruler, less of a man than us, gave up. He fled, leaving his last guards to do his fighting. He didn't make it out of the palace before we caught him. We executed him on the spot. He gave up, and then he lost. We did not give up, and we won. We have conquered, though many challenges will rise against us. Through them all, we must never, ever give up.