The River: Chap 11 - Millerton | Story & Reflection

In Millerton, the traveler arrives in the thriving river town that feeds the world, where harmony with the river is a way of life. Reuniting with Silas, she discovers how Millerton prospers by aligning with the river’s flow instead of resisting it. Amid laughter, shared meals, and unexpected opportunity, she earns recognition not as “the other,” but as an equal—valued for her courage and skill rather than her gender.

As she begins her next voyage, she realizes that true mastery isn’t about control, but about relationship: to move with the current is to know and be known by the Source itself.

Background music by Liborio Conti.

Transcript

Welcome to The River,

A parable of the Holy Spirit.

My name is Judy and I am the author of this story.

I'm honored to walk alongside you here.

In this journey,

We'll meet Spirit,

The living creative pulse of the Divine that moves through all things.

Spirit is the source of all that is.

It flows within every cell of your body,

Weaves through every molecule in the world,

Lives inside every experience and hums within every person.

It's always present,

Always inviting,

Always guiding.

Before we enter the story,

Let's take a moment to center ourselves and listen.

Find a posture that feels natural and safe.

Close your eyes if that feels right.

Take a slow,

Deep breath in and let it drift out gently.

Let your shoulders soften,

Your jaw release.

Let your mind calm like still water.

Imagine yourself sitting on the soft edge of a riverbank.

Hear the water as it moves,

Subtle yet unstoppable.

Feel Spirit flowing around you,

Through you and within you,

Carrying a quiet readiness,

A soft openness.

You don't need to force anything.

Simply allow yourself to be here,

To receive,

To be present.

Let your heart and mind relax into the rhythm of this gentle current.

The river is ready.

Spirit is here.

And you are ready to meet them.

Let's begin.

Chapter 11.

Millerton.

Millerton was a town that plugged along at a comfortable pace.

Everyone seemed to have something to do and was busy doing it.

The slip where I stored Silas' canoe was at the docks,

Where I could see larger ships coming in and going out.

Silas hadn't told me where to meet him,

But I figured I could walk around until he found me.

I mean,

It wasn't that big of a town.

The courtyard was full of merchants,

Trading and talking.

I had never seen so much fruit and vegetables in one place before and everything looked so delicious.

Sometimes in other places the fruits and vegetables were small and thin,

But not here.

This looked like a booming farm community.

I was wandering around eating an apple I had bought from a vendor when I saw the mill.

Suddenly I remember Silas mentioning having to pick up grain.

Smiling,

I walked toward the mill.

It was abuzz with activity.

Grain came in,

Was ground,

And went out again as flour.

It was a good system and apparently business was booming.

I ran into Silas,

Who was talking with the miller.

There you are,

He said,

Waving me over.

Looks like you made it.

I did,

I replied,

Smiling at both Silas and the miller.

Silas turned to the miller and said,

This one ran the waterspout for the first time just to bring my canoe here.

She's why we'll be able to meet our deadline.

The miller looked at me with admiration.

Wow,

That can be a tricky section of the river.

Congratulations.

Thanks,

I said.

It was a chance for me to practice my canoeing skills.

Silas turned to the miller.

How much do we need to load up this time,

Bob?

Well,

We can send as much as you can carry.

Do you think you can fit thirty bags in here?

It'll be tight,

But I think we can do it.

Silas smiled.

Keep going on like this and I'll have to get a bigger boat.

They laughed and I laughed with them.

How long will it take for you to get the bags ready?

Give us about an hour to get them loaded onto the cart and we can take them down to the docks and load them into your canoe.

Sounds like a plan.

Silas put his hand on my shoulder.

You want to get something to eat while we wait?

Sure.

We found ourselves in the courtyard next to the iro stand.

The smell coming from the stand was intoxicating.

Have you ever had an iro?

Silas asked.

No,

I don't think I have,

I said,

Looking at the stand hungrily and wondering why I had never had an iro.

You're going to like it,

I think.

He stepped up to the stand and placed his order.

I must have looked lost because he looked at me and then just said,

Make that two.

Within minutes we were looking for a place to sit with our deliciously dripping iros.

What did you think of the water spout,

He said.

Um,

It was okay,

I mean I made it,

Right?

Silas was looking at me intently.

It's okay if you don't want to talk about it.

It's that way for me too.

Silas's face broke into a smile.

Mostly I just want to know if you broke my boat.

I laughed,

Relieved that I didn't have to try to put into words what I couldn't explain.

No,

I didn't break your boat.

If I had broken your boat,

I would never have been able to face you again.

I would have had to run away and change my name.

We laughed together.

Wow,

I said as I watched yet another cart full of fruit pass,

Headed toward the marketplace.

They have a lot of farming here.

Silas looked at the cart and back at me in mild surprise.

Millerton feeds the entire world,

He said.

Didn't you know that?

I shook my head.

No,

Are you saying that the food I've been eating in all of the other towns comes from Millerton?

Well,

Most of it,

Silas said.

Most of the bread,

Most of the fruit,

Most of the vegetables.

Most of the food comes from Millerton.

I sat back in my chair.

Oh my goodness,

I had no idea.

How does a town that's so small feed so many people?

It's the river.

They've learned how to work with the flow of the river instead of trying to make it work with them.

For instance,

The mill.

The mill grinds the grain for most of the bread in the world.

It runs 24 hours a day,

Seven days a week.

The wheel that runs the grindstone is powered by the river's flow.

There are places further up the river where the flow is a little gentler,

So they built farms there with automated irrigation systems that direct the water from the river without interrupting its flow.

There are places further downriver where current is stronger,

So they use that to create electricity for the automation that the farmers use.

Nothing they do interrupts the flow of the river.

It works with the river.

The leadership of Millerton decided a long time ago to build the town around the river instead of building the town and trying to make the river run around it.

It's about what comes first,

The town or the river.

One must be essential and the other must accommodate.

Putting the flow of the river first and just building around it has made Millerton a very profitable and important town.

I had no idea that one town could do so much.

I also didn't realize that someone could master the river without ever leaving home.

I don't know why,

But for some reason I thought that you had to travel the river to become an expert in it.

Some are given to travel the river and others are given to master in place.

It's about knowing where you're supposed to be and not trying to live what others think you're supposed to be.

Hmm,

That makes sense.

Oh,

Oh wow,

We've got to go,

Silas said after looking at his watch.

They'll be waiting for us.

We left and walked to the docks where,

True to his suspicions,

The workers from the mill were waiting for us with a cart full of flour.

However,

Instead of 30 bags,

They had 50.

Oh,

Oh,

This will never fit into my canoe,

Silas said looking around as if to size it up.

Then he looked at me and smiled as if finding the answer to his problems.

Have you ever thought about buying a canoe and delivering goods up and down the river?

Um,

I looked around awkwardly.

I mean,

I've thought of it a couple of times,

But I'm not nearly as good as you are.

There's a difference between being the best and being good enough to do the job,

He said.

You'll never be the best if you don't start doing it consistently.

Do you think you're good enough to do the job?

I think I'm good enough to start doing the job,

I said.

Hmm,

And what would hold you back from helping me carry this grain to the next town?

Uh,

I don't have a canoe,

He laughed.

Fair enough.

How about this?

I can pay you for bringing my canoe here from the last town.

It should be enough to buy a starter canoe,

One big enough to carry maybe 20 bags of flour.

When we get the flour to the next town,

You can sell it and either save your money or buy a bigger canoe.

What do you think about that?

I would actually like that.

I'd like to revisit some of the places I walk to.

It's a plan,

Then.

There's only one canoe shop in this town.

I can go buy your canoe and bring it around while you make sure the flour gets loaded into my canoe.

By the time you're done with that,

I should be back with your canoe.

Okay.

I was a little nervous about what I'd just agreed to.

I still didn't feel like I was good enough at using a canoe to be on my own,

But I agreed with Silas that I needed more practice,

And I sure wasn't going to get that practice walking from place to place.

It was then I realized that mastering the river is a process,

Not an event.

The river is a living thing,

Constantly changing.

Mastering the river is about learning how to be in relationship with another being,

One that is never the same,

Yet always the same.

That thought shocked me even more than the idea of being good enough,

Because in relationships,

One both knows and is known.

In a sense,

One masters the river and is also mastered by the river.

I realized at that moment that I had already been mastered by the river.

That realization didn't frighten me.

It gave me a strange sense of comfort.

If the source cared enough about me to know me well enough to work with my flow instead of against it,

He must want to be known that well too.

I smiled at the thought that I may just have stumbled upon the greatest treasure,

To know and be known by one who loves me.

In Millerton,

The river wasn't something to conquer.

It was something to cooperate with.

The people didn't fight its course,

They built their lives around its rhythm.

And maybe that's the real mastery.

Not dominance,

But harmony.

Not forcing the flow,

But finding your place within it.

As you sit with this story,

Take a deep breath and ask yourself,

Where in your own life might you be trying to make the river run around your plans instead of building around its natural flow?

How do you recognize when it's time to stop striving to be the best and start trusting that you're already good enough to begin?

What relationships or callings in your life invite you to co-create with the flow rather than control it?

How does it feel to imagine being both known and loved by the source completely without needing to earn it?

Millerton reminds us that mastery isn't about control,

It's about communion.

When we align with the flow,

Life multiplies around us,

Just as the town's abundance came from honoring the river's current.

If this chapter spoke to you,

I'd love to hear what it stirred.

Where you found your own Millerton?

You can share your reflection in the comments.

Each story adds another ripple to our shared current of discovery.

If you'd like to help the river continue flowing,

You can follow me here on Insight Timer.

Every gesture of support helps these stories find more hearts downstream.

Until next time,

May you remember,

You don't have to master the river,

Only move with it.