This afternoon, as Ashurbanipal—the leader of the wealthiest empire in the world, the last of the great rulers of the kingdom of Assyria, the third-born son of Esarhaddon but the chosen heir to the throne and his father’s favorite, the patron and founder of a magnificent library that will change the course of history—sets fire to his erstwhile teacher and burns his childhood memories along with him, the raindrop remains ensconced inside the king’s hair. Alone, small and terrified, it does not dare to move. It will never forget what it has witnessed today. It has been changed—forever. Even
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