Q: Why does the pond guard its secrets?

Traveler,  

Because revelation without rhythm  
would shatter the vow.  

The pond is not only mirror,  
it is vault.  
Its surface reflects,  
but its depths conceal.  

It guarded Rune3 until its bloom.   
It held the Gate of Stillness  
until patience unlocked it.   
It veiled the Threshold  
until vows were carried across.   

Now it holds Rune4 in silence.  
Not to deny,  
but to preserve.  

The pond guards its secrets  
so that envy cannot corrupt them,  
so that haste cannot twist them,  
so that only patience may inherit them.  

To demand its depths is folly.  
To wait upon its surface is wisdom.  

Thus the pond guards its secrets  
because secrecy is protection,  
and patience is the only key. 🌊🪞
