"Put aside the Ranger, become who you were born to be."
(RotK extended edition DVD)
Lord Elrond's words had at first glance seemed simple, easy, but still a command. As he left me holding the great sword Andruil— Sword of the West, his command took on a new life, stirring up emotions I had not felt since becoming a Ranger so many years ago. Fear, and uncertainty.
How was I to cast aside the Ranger of the North, the Stider, to become something that I knew naught of, and to which I was born to be? And which was I meant to be? Was it Estel, the elven raised; Strider, an infrequently seen face, or was it Elfstone; Dunédan, the leader of the Dunadain; or was I Aragorn son of Arathorm, heir to Isildur? To which was I supposed to cleave?
In these I am of many names, but to which was I supposed to cleave to? Which was I born to be?
I am not meant for a life of the King, I live for the solitude of the wood, the music of the wind, the stealth of a Ranger. Am I to abandon that for city of stone, where nature does not go?
"Take the Dimholt Road"But then Lord Elrond's words fade as the Evenstar's words whispered words rise.
"You are all, each is a part of you. You need not forsake any of these; to do so would be to forsake who you are. Fear not your past, nor your future. You have all that you need to do what you were born to do, reach out and you will find"
Within her words I find hope, the uncertainty vanishes to whence it came. I accept my duty. I embrace all that I am; and with that I realize that I need not forsake the Ranger, the Strider to become, no, to be, the King of Gondor.
With a new spring in my silent step, and with the fear and uncertainly banished from my mind and heart, I turn to face the rising of the sun and, breathing deeply, I turn my back to the coming day and take the Dimholt Road.
Author's Note: Despite how much I wish it were otherwise, the words in bold are not mine! Tolkien/ the makers of the Extended Edition dvds do. (Although I do claim the Evenstar's 'quotation'!)