The epic tale of Odysseus’ journey is that of every soldier, even reluctant ones like Edgar Drake.   We hear it echo in the tale told by the Man with One Story, later explained by Dr. Carroll as a personal account of the Greek War for Independence. We see it in Dr. Carroll’s quest to bridge cultures with music, and in even in Khin Myo’s many roles in both Drake and Carroll’s stories.

For this reason, Anthony Carroll translated the story for the Shan.  As music is a universal language, so too is the journey of Odysseus.  But, Dr. Carroll has become part of the story, part of the lore.  Like Odysseus, the legends of Anthony Carroll reflect that which each soldier personally needs in order to carry on, to conquer the fear.  The moment that Drake realized that the truth was secondary to the story, he too became a soldier with saga of his own.

At the end of the Trojan War, Odysseus and his men sail first to the land of the Cicones.  The Greeks succeed in raiding the central city, but linger too long and are routed by a reserve force.  Hoping to sail directly home, the flotilla instead encounters a severe storm, brought on by Athena, that blows them far off course to the land of the Lotus-Eaters.  These are not hostile people, but eating the lotus plant removes memory and ambition; Odysseus is barely able to pull his men away and resume the journey.

Like Odysseus, Drake is a pawn, blown about as expedient for those in power, but gains much himself throughout the journey.  Drake is useful to the army to get closer to Carroll, and useful to Carroll to achieve his desired ends, mysterious as those may be.

Drake has tasted the lotus and cannot return home.    Instead, he must finish the journey.  There is an emptiness, recently discovered within him, that he must fill.  For Edgar Drake, it is not wander lust, but rather a reluctance to return home after all he has experienced that his at the heart of his story. 

At the center of all the stories is Khin Myo.  Like Carroll, she is a creature of imagination, the Circe, Calypso, the muse, that aid in the progression of the journey.  Edgar sees her, at various times, in each of these roles.  Khin Myo provides a powerful motivator to moving Edgar forward on his journey.  Elusive, intoxicating, and ultimately unattainable, Khin Myo urges Edgar ever forward. It is Khin Myo who guides Edgar to Mae Lwin, who leads him through the jungle in the rain to be cleansed, who makes him understand the power of music and the best and most beautiful of human endeavor.  It is this that she refers to when she tells Edgar that she’s been there forever.  She has been his own imagining, part of his emerging story, just waiting for him to participate.

The unreality of the setting along with the shifting winds of alliances, friends and foes that compel Drake to grow into his role as a soldier, to write his own story rather than just facilitating other men's.  His journey does not end here, it is only beginning.

He began as a piano tuner, a facilitator for those who would play the music.  During his time with Dr. Carroll, he became the one who played the music.  This was his lotus, the power of self actualization that had been so woefully missing in England.  But his journey is not over, in fact, it has just started.  By releasing the piano, Drake tears himself away from the lotus.  Not only is it his last tie to the Western world, but it another step in his self actualization.  No longer is he mechanic, nor even a player of other men’s music.  Edgar Drake is now a composer of his own music, the author of his own story.