The tale of the Fountain of Giving...
In a beautiful forest, surrounded by tall trees, singing birds, animals large and small, stands a stone fountain. From its depths flows the purest waters, never ending, always providing refreshment, life, to whosoever should pass by. Most would leave behind a pretty coin, or string of flowers, or a song, or other token in thankfulness to the Fountain for being there, in all of its mysteriousness, there to save them from assured death if not for its presence.
But then one day, a newcomer entered the forest and found the Fountain. The newcomer was so enthralled with the Fountain that he wanted it all to himself. He built a wall around it to keep everyone else away. He became the Fountain's captor.
Each day, the captor drank from the Fountain's waters, gazing upon its beauty. In the beginning, he, too, would provide tokens of thankfulness to the Fountain. However, over time, his symbols of love and thanks began to wane, even as he continued to drink of the waters every day, and sometimes every night.
Because the Fountain was no longer receiving any tokens of love; not from him and not from any others, the Fountain's waters began to diminish. The water eventually stopped flowing and the Fountain lost its beauty.
The Fountain's captor no longer wanted to be near the Fountain, but discovered that if he left the Fountain alone long enough, the Fountain would replenish small amounts of water over time. He drank the water greedily, steeling away what he could, grumbling at how unsatisfying the Fountain had become and its poor state of being, never wondering why it's beauty was fading and waters receding.
Soon, however, the Fountain faded too much for the captor and he left. Over many sun and moon cycles, the wall began to crumble, revealing the Fountain to the forest once again. The birds, the animals, and even new wanderers came near the fountain again.
While the Fountain's basin collected rain water, it remained as still as glass. Wanderers would not drink the water, but they would toss coins or flowers, make wishes, tell tales, and talk to the Fountain, never asking for anything in return.
Until, One day, the Fountain's basin was full once more. In the middle of the forest, surrounded only by those that favored her company the most, slowly, like a bubbling spring, the Fountain came to life. Her spout began to flow and she became the Fountain of Giving once more.
