Being Human

[first lines]

The Storyteller: This is the story of a story. Once upon a time there was this story, and the story said to itself, how should I begin?

Hector: Try the usual way.

The Storyteller: What, in the dark with a man and a woman, in a story that is still to tell itself?

Hector: Well, you've got to start somewhere. Say, long long ago... Or, far far away... Or, another time in a different distant country... Or just, once...

The Storyteller: That's good. "Far away", so you know the place is close to your own heart. "Once" is nice, so we know that it always happens. Hmm, Once there was this hero...

Hector: [wryly] Some hero.

The Storyteller: Some man then. Any man. Say, a man, a woman, and some children. Don't forget the children.