--==* The Magician's Birthday *==--

I am old...so old I cannot count the pages of my

life.

I fear that they already use excessive

space in the Tome of St Peter,

and equally in the Log of Chiron,

for my life has not been the ideal.

So tell me, you who call me good: Is it so?

Honor demands than even a magician be

honest at the time of his coming;

thus we shall have a birthday and ask: Am I good?

I ask of thee, my comrade: Am I good?

Yes, you reply, indeed you are good,

for in you I find trust.

I ask of thee, my brother: Am I good?

Of course, you say, for in you there

is strength and support.

I ask of the six maidens: Am I good?

Of a certainty, they chorus, because

you treat well and honestly toward us,

and we feel secure.

I ask of thee, my goddess: Am I good?

Yes, she answers, you are good,

for you think little of yourself,

while being generous of others.

And finally, I ask of myself: Am I good?

Aged though I am, and tired of my burdens,

and full to bursting with the knowledge

of that which I have done...and not done,

yet I do not know if I am good.

However, I must believe it to be.

For belief is a gift given by others...

...and it is my birthday.

If only every day were so.