In a small town, not far from here, there lived an unremarkable man. He was neither tall nor short, neither fat nor thin. His face was not handsome and then again, he was not ugly. He neither walked particularly fast nor unusually slow. When he spoke, his voice was so normal that it was difficult to hear. The people of the town walked past him without noticing him, he was not their friend or relation, they had seen his face somewhere before but could not remember when and so forgot him as soon as they passed by.
One day a small child threw its wooden toy into his path and so he picked it up and returned it to the child. The mother of the child remarked to her accompanying friend that she did not know this man although his face was not strange to her, she thought that he lived in the town and could not understand why she did not know him. Soon, word had spread that there was a man who hid himself amongst them by being unknowable and they became afraid of him and spoke to each other that he was a dangerous person, making himself invisible. They called him a wizard amongst themselves and plotted against him and kept big sticks and sharp tools at hand in case he came to harm them.
If this had continued unresolved it may well have ended in tragedy, but luckily a man came travelling through town who had heard tell of this man and the fear of him that had settled on the people thereabouts. This traveller was a Guardian of the Cave and his sign was the Herbalist. He did not believe that the fears were deserved and recognised the dangers of rumour and suspicion. He went to visit the Unknowable Man without concern and asked him about himself. The people thought that the wizard would strike the Guardian down and so they were surprised when he returned unharmed. He told the people that the man was not a wizard but a musician and a composer of music who was a very quiet man, who, like many folk, found the world a difficult place and preferred to keep to himself. He brought them some written music that they might hear and understand him better.
Each year there was a concert of music in the town, written by the Unknowable Man and played by the local musicians, everyone came and enjoyed the beautiful music. The Unknowable Man sat at the back and as the audience left the square, they nodded to him and smiled and he smiled back.
The Guardians of the Cave 