The rocking chair creaked rhythmically as its occupant lifted his left foot up, then down, in a gentle controlled motion.

“What will they do with this one?” reflected Old Father Time as he gazed meditatively down on Earth. “Look at them just look! Some inebriated; some skinny dipping - Brrrr.” He gathered his white robed arms tightly to his frail form. “Some not even aware of this momentous point in history; most still in bed. Humph! - no wonder I despair!”

His student glanced in his Master’s direction and felt a terrible portent of gloom. During the previous Millennium, Earth’s people had accomplished so much. Why was his Master so circumspect regarding their future?

Tertius remembered the last change on the Millennium glass from 999 to 1000 and their expectations for the Earth’s inhabitants on the first day of that short span of 1000 years. Now that era had come to a close and a new one was, once again, beginning.

Once again, he thought, would it only be once again? Surely not! The Earth would continue to spin on its axis once a day; it would move round the Sun once a year; the Moon would travel round the Earth once a month; this is how it is, nothing could change it, nobody could influence the perfect balance of Nature - could they?

Of the nine planets circling the Sun, Tertius found Earth the most complicated. Not because of its proximity to the Sun, merely ninety three million miles away compared to Pluto, the most distant, three thousand, six hundred million miles away and quite difficult to follow from their position, but because of the diverse creatures living there. Earth itself was only eight thousand miles across with its surface two thirds covered in water, the rest interspersed with mountains and valleys where people and creatures had made their homes.

It was these people that had intrigued Tertius in his initial apprenticeship to Father Time five trillion years previously. Tertius’s father had suggested that his third and favourite son should join Father Time for study and was delighted when the great Sage accepted the then young impressionable boy for training.

Tertius’ older brothers had chosen different paths; the eldest to circumfuse Mars as the planet was rapidly overheating - Primus was always the most adventurous; and Secondus to secure the four main moons of Jupiter, moving gradually away as its crust of thousands of miles of solid ice was slowly melting and pouring out the heavy poisonous gases surrounding the planet into its atmosphere sending its moons off orbit.

Initially, Venus had been the main interest of Tertius, being about the same size as Earth and next to Earth in the Sun’s system. He empathised with the lonely beautiful planet shining brilliantly before the other stars appeared. However, Earth was inhabited and that was its attraction now to the young apprentice. Where there were living creatures, thinking, feeling, complex beings, there would be much work to do; a challenge was beckoning and Tertius would be there.

Earth’s people had learnt much during the last thousand years. Their means of communication and their scientific knowledge had progressed rapidly together with their use of technology. Their species had survived despite global warming and their inability to control pollution.

Yet their senseless need for destruction had not been controlled and disease was still prevalent with subsequent suffering to the majority of people during their life span. Their life span had increased but the quality of life of many had not improved.

Food and water, shelter and warmth were still unequally distributed among the nations. Man had become aware of the existence of his brothers on another part of the planet yet he was unable or unwilling to help them live. They had made futile attempts to prioritise their values but their hedonism would inevitably destroy them, unless?

Tertius knew that they still had time to learn; at present they didn’t have vision enough to sustain the ALL. They had not learnt that every one of Earth’s people was as important as the next; they dare not risk themselves for the benefit of the ALL - they had become selfish!

Now, Father Time was an authority on the subject of selfishness as he had witnessed this phenomenon many times before. From experience he knew that it would take many years duration to ‘break the mould’, as it were, as a selfish generation breeds another even more selfish generation.

The rocking chair stopped suddenly and Father Time jumped up, stretching his arms above his white haired head. “A new Millennium - a new challenge, Tertius,” he enthused with a mischievious twinkle in his eye. “We must start at once and with luck we’ll be finished by the end of this first day of January in this year two thousand. Earth’s people will be given one more chance. I hope they use it well.”

This change of mood startled Tertius as, although he was used to his Master’s frequent irascible outbursts, a forthright manner meant business without delay. Together they hurried to the telescope.

“Now,” mused Father Time, “what’s it to be? Tornadoes in Turkey, earthquakes in Ecuador, famines in France, cyclones in Cyprus - all very destructive. Suffering has not really taught them enough about benevolence, has it? So any suggestions, boy? We want to start them off right, don’t we?”

“At the beginning of the 19th Century, Sir, the Austrian nation was defeated by that leader called Napoleon at the battle of Marengo - you see, Sir, they couldn’t agree then and at the beginning of the last Century was the Boer War and then the first and second World Wars”

“Enough,” fumed his Master, “are you telling me that my many years of research have done nothing to improve Man’s destiny?”

“I - I was just making an observation, Sir, that throughout, er, time, excuse the er um well, throughout the ages they have learnt little about living on their planet in harmony so perhaps a different approach, now that we have a new Millennium to deal with, might er.... be er.... worth a try.”

“We, boy, we have a new Millennium - I, boy, I, Father Time, have a new Millennium to deal with and deal with it I will. And as to the suggestion of a different approach, well, that was exactly my train of thought. Don’t dare to think that I am too ancient to try a new direction the very idea!”

He took a deep breath and glanced at Tertius to make sure that his audience was paying attention. “I have dealt with more epochs than you have seen stars my boy and don’t you forget it. Well right a new approach well um let me see.’’

Father Time again put his white fringed eye to the telescope trained on the planet Earth.

“I’ve got it!” He turned and hugged Tertius to the boy’s amazement. “I’ve got it! I’ve got it!” and he began dancing round, his long white beard swinging to and fro. “A gigantic rainbow, to completely circle the planet; a wide, ever increasing arc with colours more radiant than have ever been seen in this universe; a rainbow visible from all aspects and by all people; a symbol of hope - yes - hope is what they need.”

His face lit up with the prospect of a new challenge. “Yes, Tertius, my boy, that’s what we’ll do.”

Tertius beamed. A positive attitude was just what he was trying to achieve for his favourite planet. “Well, don’t just stand there,” reproved the Master, “grinning like a lunatic get the paints let me think mmm the recipe scattered drops broken light the moon will have to be moved and the Sun, of course, brought a fraction nearer and brushes - we must begin immediately.”

Father Time scratched his white covered head, once again in deep thought. “There’s the atmosphere, of course, I’ll banish the clouds just for one lunar month; we’ll store them in 117 BC - they won’t notice a few extra. Then there’s the problem of the ozone layer - tut, tut, tut when will they learn? It will have to be patched for now - we’ll need to borrow a few rings of ice pebbles from Saturn - just as a temporary measure until they get their priorities sorted.”

Tertius felt elated. There was hope for Earth at last.