The Monastery Bells

A monastery's daily rhythm ran on bells. The bell woke the cook. The cook's fire signaled the gardeners. The gardeners' work told the scribes when to break.

One morning, the bell-ringer overslept.

No bell. The cook didn't wake. No fire. The gardeners didn't see smoke, so they didn't begin. The scribes never got their signal to rest.

By evening, half the monastery was in chaos, and everyone blamed the man next to them.

The abbot asked why no one had simply looked at the sun.