Many moons ago there was a jolly apple farmer. She lived in a small village surrounded by apple orchards, as her parents and grandparents had. The farmer took great pride in her apple business, and was a very prominent member of the village community. One day, her neighbour mentioned a chance encounter with a stranger from a far off land. The stranger too had been an apple grower, and he told a sad tale about a demon that had struck his homeland without warning and destroyed most of the apple trees.
The apple farmer and her neighbour became very concerned. They called a meeting of all the apple growers of the village to talk about the stranger’s tale and to take measures to prevent the same fate befalling their community. The head of the village and regional governors were also summoned to the meeting, and a great deal of discussion was had about how best to prepare.
Led by the jolly apple farmer, the group decided to seek help from the local prophet whose predictions had helped local villagers in the past. She told the prophet about the demon mentioned by the stranger, and asked him to advise the village on how best to protect themselves against it.
The prophet stared long and hard into his crystal ball. Eventually he looked up, and with a furrowed brow, he asked the jolly apple farmer to convene another meeting of the concerned villagers so he could tell them what he had foreseen.
The day of the meeting arrived and the group listened earnestly as the prophet spoke. He described a diverse agricultural world outside the village that was plagued not by one, but many different demons of all shapes and sizes capable of causing severe damage to many crops. As it happened, the demon the stranger had spoken of was one of the nastiest. Born of the fire, it had blighted apple crops all around the world but had not yet reached the regions around the village.
As he addressed the group, the prophet used an interactive display to show pictures, graphs and charts so that the group could understand the types of damage different demons could cause. Often, the information was complicated, and he was stopped several times and asked to clarify different points.
After his presentation, the prophet sought the views and experiences of members of the group, and asked how they felt about what he had told them. Together, they compiled a list of the nastiest demons based on their proximity to the village and the ease with which they could be kept out or fought off if ever they appeared.
At meeting’s end, the jolly apple farmer was very pleased. Not only had she learned all she needed to know about demons that threatened her apple trees, but she had worked together with the other apple growers and members of her community to protect themselves. Together, they built a resilient industry that continues to thrive to this day.
}, author = {Cook, D and Liu, S and Hurley, M and Siddique, A,B and Lowell, K and Diggle, A and Paini, D and De Barro, P} }