To the Sisters of the Sibylline Vine [DM]

[VeggieTales]

Afsana Madani, servant unto B'aara, the Mother,
To all the holy sisters at the priory of the Sibylline Vine, together with Cinquefoil Rose and the Grandmaster unto whom you have given your service:
Grace and peace unto you, and an abundance of cool and soothing water, wept from the eyes of the Mother, holy B'aara.

Unto the Mother I give thanks to have arrived in Ephia's Well, among so many faithful following in the path of the Wheel.  Unto her I have prayed, since my first conversation with Sister Xian and subsequently since my several conversations with Sister Bellasyn, for the day when your invitation would be raised unto the refugees, of whom I am one, to join you in your priory. And now that your invitation is raised, unto her I give thanks, and also unto you for reading this letter now. From the first moment in which I learned of your good work and your visions of the Heroic Pilgrim who is yet to come, I have longed to join you in both.

It is right for me to feel this way, for I have prayed unto the Mother each day and night since learning of your drink, and of the visions it bestows, and she given only gentle encouragement unto my heart.

My prayer unto her is this: that the wisdom you find in your drink is the same wisdom she knows; that as we follow in the path of the Wheel, I may follow with you. Alone, I am but one meek survivor, preserved only by her grace. Among sisters like unto all of you, I could give more unto the future than I ever could acting alone. Praise and gratitude unto B'aara, whether my hope is or is not to be met in the days yet to come.

You may have heard of my recent tribulation, endured at the hands of brookers. I want you to know that this, too, serves the Mother's merciful design, for in my suffering I was given many opportunities to speak of the blessings she has given unto me, and these words were given unto the ears of those who needed most to hear them. Among the Janissaries and also the Astronomers, my words were heard, even while I was in captivity. I cannot complain of my treatment by their hands, for when they realized I was a victim of deception, they became gentle and ceased to pry or urge me to break my vow of silence made in her name. I hope that my adherence to what was sworn, even when it brought hardship unto me, serves in my favor, and places me high in your consideration, though also I am certain there are others more deserving of it than I am.

Whatever you decide, I will continue to look upon you with admiration and hope that even if it is not to be in these early days of my life among the Well's voiceless, eventually sisterhood among you will be the path unto which the turning Wheel leads me.