The Story of Plato the Platypus
Our story begins one day when the animals of E-VOUS Island saw a fiery egg falling from the sky. The egg landed in the sea with a deafening hiss and a geyser of steam. As the cloud of steam cleared, a small egg washed to shore. Beneath the gentle lapping of the waves and the warm glow of the sun, the shell weakened enough for a pair of legs to burst out onto the sand. All the animals gasped, backed away, or ran for cover. Was the creature an alien? Or perhaps some new creation of the sea or the sky? No normal animal would fall in flames or give birth to itself so independently. The other animals feared this new inhabitant of their island.
In the coming weeks, they watched the strange being stumble blindly around the beach, sleeping in the sand, and rocking unsteadily upon its new legs. The other animals maintained a safe distance, but watched the creature’s progress with interest. It was not long before the animal emerged from the top of its shell and revealed its true form. It was strangely pleasant looking in an unusual way – something of a combination of all the other animals, like a distant cousin to them all.
The duck-billed furry creature crawled from the beach to a garden near the southern river and seemed to find everything there fascinating. He would chase butterflies and crickets and wind-blown leaves. He spent hours on end exploring his new world. After a long day of crawling, he would fall asleep sitting up, exhausted from all he had learned.
Soon the young mammal hatched fully from his shell. He searched further inland and until he found a serene pool. There he could spend his time in deep contemplation. Instead of exploring the world around him, he explored the world inside his mind. He examined his thoughts about the nature of the universe, where he came from, and the meaning of life. Each time he discovered an interesting idea, he wrote it down. Perhaps his mental journey would be worth revisiting in the future.
To the north, he eventually found a peaceful plateau in the desert. The arid, windy climate put him in a creative frame of mind. He felt inspired to communicate his ideas to others. In the distance he noticed other animals watching him and he wanted to reach out to them. He used pages from his journal to craft small birds that could fly on the wind and carry his messages to the other animals far below.
The inspiration and creativity he found on top of the plateau made him seek even higher altitudes. In the west, he found a mountain range that touched the clouds. At the peak of the highest mountain, he surveyed all the lands stretched out beneath him and traced the path that had brought full circle to the edge of the island where he had washed ashore. The journey had given him a self-awareness that allowed him to understand his full potential and begin to harness the resources within himself and around him.