Reblogged from Jim Webster, aka Tallis Steelyard:

It has to be said that at the Shrine of Aea in her Aspect as the Personification of Tempered Enthusiasm, our congregation is not burdened with excess wealth. Thus whilst it is Maljie’s duty as temple warden, at every service, to pass amongst them with a collection plate, in case somebody has the urge to give, you can tell her heart isn’t really in it. Our usual assemblage of mendicants live in perpetual penury as it is, and if there is anything on the plate at the end of the service, we normally just add to the sum from out of our reserves and send somebody out to the pie shop with it, on the grounds that that way everybody will get something to eat.

But there are occasions when we have more formal services, with congregations consisting of the great, the good, and the generous. Here Maljie, like any temple warden, is on her mettle. The plate is not actually rattled, nor is it thrust in a threatening manner under the nose of the recalcitrant, but her demeanour hints that these are both options to be explored if the urge to give falters. In this she is merely displaying the benefits of her training, generations of her predecessors have mastered the art, and she is currently training the next generation who will one day succeed her.

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