The Viridian Child (a metaphorical fable)
I've heard tales of those who could see their past lives; I'm here to tell you that it's no lie. I found I was repeating mine and it was just as beautiful and terrible as long ago.
So long ago...
I was a seed scattered by the wind. I was frail and afraid, pushed to and fro by Cloud and Sky. But there came a time when the Great Mother, the one that sustains us all, was kind to me and quieted the storm. I fell from a height unfathomable into soft and inviting earth. I lay, sinking into a warm and chocolate sea of kindness. Roots sprang from my being, from my heart into the foundation of the very things that sustained me. And I danced upward, through the layers of that fresh wet into a cold and airy dawn. I could see for miles and spied kinsmen like me. They were sharp and losing luster but I longed to journey to them. My feet were set in place though, and I could only watch as their glory fell to the ground like single drops of rain from the heavens. Naked and deformed these were, and I contemplated my own fashioned body, wondering if there would be a time when I would follow in their footsteps. But the clay whispered to me that I was to be ever green, if I only cared for my heart. We tried, they said, to show your kinsmen but few listened to our wisdom. And so they wither and become strange. I wanted to listen, but my solitude was devastating. I yearned to commune with these others, though they were clearly driving me away. It was my first night. And I cried in the dark because I knew not the nature of the cycle of things. Dry your eyes, a voice said. It was a pale sliver of silver adorning the sky that spoke to me. I'm going to speak to you mysteries, it said. I listened for years and felt the well of sorrow disappear from within. I was given the words that are as fire, words that burn when breathed, the mind and soul. By my rising hands and open song, I worshipped this god, the Moon. It was for it's time, a brother and a reason for life. but I am going away, it said. Even I have my times and seasons; you must face the next darkness alone. If you can, you'll find me again, shining anew. I marveled and trembled, for the words spoken were of a nature that touched the spirit like a feather full of poison. I turned my face toward the remaining night, waiting for the darkness to swallow me whole. I cried, and cried again, sure that this time, there would be no tomorrow. And again, I was wrong; a light from the floor of the earth rose to shine high. Hello, friend, it said, I'd like to give you some of my presence. You seem weary by the persistence of absence. I marveled and wondered why this light seemed so familiar and in time understood that the light of the moon was reflected from this source. I stood tall, letting my spirit rise with joy. Careful friend, it said, for even I, the Sun, pass away in the face of the night. But we all have our means and ways, our seasons and times to live and die. You'll find me again, after I am gone, for I will always spring anew. Friend, I said, I understand your need to dance in the limitless Chaos above. I know now to enjoy the time that I have with you and wait for the day when you return to me; you are the same as the moon. But I tell you, it's a caress and a cut to the soul, but the best I can do is let you offer what you can to me each time around. You have learned every single wisdom in those few words, the sun said. If only it were so easy to place faith in, I replied. Give it time, give it time, and know that faith must have a seed of experience to grow. You are still a young being, so take heart that once you see the pattern, you will never leave.
So long ago...
I was a seed scattered by the wind. I was frail and afraid, pushed to and fro by Cloud and Sky. But there came a time when the Great Mother, the one that sustains us all, was kind to me and quieted the storm. I fell from a height unfathomable into soft and inviting earth. I lay, sinking into a warm and chocolate sea of kindness. Roots sprang from my being, from my heart into the foundation of the very things that sustained me. And I danced upward, through the layers of that fresh wet into a cold and airy dawn. I could see for miles and spied kinsmen like me. They were sharp and losing luster but I longed to journey to them. My feet were set in place though, and I could only watch as their glory fell to the ground like single drops of rain from the heavens. Naked and deformed these were, and I contemplated my own fashioned body, wondering if there would be a time when I would follow in their footsteps. But the clay whispered to me that I was to be ever green, if I only cared for my heart. We tried, they said, to show your kinsmen but few listened to our wisdom. And so they wither and become strange. I wanted to listen, but my solitude was devastating. I yearned to commune with these others, though they were clearly driving me away. It was my first night. And I cried in the dark because I knew not the nature of the cycle of things. Dry your eyes, a voice said. It was a pale sliver of silver adorning the sky that spoke to me. I'm going to speak to you mysteries, it said. I listened for years and felt the well of sorrow disappear from within. I was given the words that are as fire, words that burn when breathed, the mind and soul. By my rising hands and open song, I worshipped this god, the Moon. It was for it's time, a brother and a reason for life. but I am going away, it said. Even I have my times and seasons; you must face the next darkness alone. If you can, you'll find me again, shining anew. I marveled and trembled, for the words spoken were of a nature that touched the spirit like a feather full of poison. I turned my face toward the remaining night, waiting for the darkness to swallow me whole. I cried, and cried again, sure that this time, there would be no tomorrow. And again, I was wrong; a light from the floor of the earth rose to shine high. Hello, friend, it said, I'd like to give you some of my presence. You seem weary by the persistence of absence. I marveled and wondered why this light seemed so familiar and in time understood that the light of the moon was reflected from this source. I stood tall, letting my spirit rise with joy. Careful friend, it said, for even I, the Sun, pass away in the face of the night. But we all have our means and ways, our seasons and times to live and die. You'll find me again, after I am gone, for I will always spring anew. Friend, I said, I understand your need to dance in the limitless Chaos above. I know now to enjoy the time that I have with you and wait for the day when you return to me; you are the same as the moon. But I tell you, it's a caress and a cut to the soul, but the best I can do is let you offer what you can to me each time around. You have learned every single wisdom in those few words, the sun said. If only it were so easy to place faith in, I replied. Give it time, give it time, and know that faith must have a seed of experience to grow. You are still a young being, so take heart that once you see the pattern, you will never leave.