Week 13 Story: Letter to Lancelot

Letter to Lancelot

Dear Lancelot,

I have seen you pass by my chapel on your journeys for many years now, and I thought I should write to you finally. There is much you need to know.

Yesterday, I watched your battle against the knights on white horses. You fought well—much better than any other of the knights on black horses. But no man can fight forever, and eventually you succumbed to the pressure of the hundreds of white knights. Once you were forced to leave, the white knights overcame the black knights and the castle you were defending was lost.

I bet you are feeling surprised and ashamed. Up until this battle, you have only been met with success—you are truly the best earthly knight, and you excel in every earthly endeavor. I feel pity for you, because your talent is ultimately your downfall. Your achievements have made you quite proud.

Pride is a terrible sin and weakness once you leave your earthly quests, choosing instead to embark on holy ones. The knights you fought on white horses had chosen the path of holiness, and that is why you had no chance of overpowering them. The other knights you were fighting with chose black horses, symbolizing their earthliness and their unconfessed sins. 

To have more success on your heavenly adventures, you should repent, confess your sins, and humble yourself. I saw what happened to you earlier this year when you had a vision of the Holy Grail at my chapel, though I don’t think you knew I was there. The Grail is so holy, and you carry so many heavy sins, that you physically couldn’t stand to be in its presence. You laid on the ground the whole time. If you can’t stand to be in the presence of the Grail, think about how much worse it will be when you meet God.

Remember to be humble always.

Sincerely,

The nun in the chapel

 Author's Note

This story is based off of two stories from the King Arthur unit, "Sir Lancelot's Vision" and "Sir Lancelot and the Five Hundred Knights." In the first story, Lancelot passes out near the stone cross of a chapel and sees a vision of the Holy Grail. He is weighed down by his sins though, and can't follow it into the chapel. In the second story, Lancelot comes upon a field where knights on white horses are fighting against knights on black horses. He takes the side of the black knights because they are losing, and ultimately gets defeated. I decided to make this story from the perspective of the nun in the chapel Lancelot visits after his defeat on the battlefield. In my version it is the same chapel as the one Lancelot has the vision of the Holy Grail by. I thought a letter might be an interesting format just because I haven't used that style to write a story yet.

Story Source:  King Arthur: Tales of the Round Table by Andrew Lang and illustrated by H. J. Ford (1902).

Image Source: The Earthly Paradise by Edward Burne-Jones (1890s).