ABSTRACT
The planet of Pseudopodia had a society of advanced beings, who called themselves “the people,” as beings tend to do in their own language. These people had a wonderful anatomy: each of them was born with a unique collection of different-shaped limbs, which grew over time and were of great use both in helping them with a variety of chores and in amusing themselves. Some limbs were particularly suited for coring fruits, some for doing somersaults, some for climbing their version of trees, some for running fast, and so on through a vast variety of shapes. Some people had limbs with no known function. Such limbs were put to use wherever they could be, although their relative disuse meant that they never developed as fully as the limbs with established uses. Occasionally, however, someone invented a game or task for which the limb appeared perfectly suited, and such invention was always an occasion for great rejoicing, the date of the invention being celebrated for centuries afterwards, particularly by the people endowed with the limb, so that during historical periods of great creativity there were often more holidays than work days. Even without an official holiday as an excuse, people were likely at any moment to show off their talented limbs in some impromptu demonstration. An audience never failed to gather, applaud, and join in as each person “showed her stuff,” whether she be master of some rare limb or even an infant growing her first limb, for in Pseudopodia everyone was unself-conscious, having from birth a firm understanding that her talents were entirely admirable.
