Participatory Story! Come gather round the fire...

… and let's create a story together.

It was a fine June morning. The air was fresh and clean in the woods, with the pine trees lending their aroma, as the traveller awoke with a start.

But where was she, and how did she get here? Just yesterday she had been hard at work serving patrons at the Tavern, running here and there with tankards of beer and plates of good food, cleaning a table hastily before going over to the corner to mop the floor, and finally collapsing in her cot gratefully.

And now, she was - in a beautiful but unfamiliar forest. She looked at her clothes and was startled by the traveller's gear she had often seen others were but never donned herself.

Suddenly, she heard a rustle of leaves behind her. She whirled around and saw…

Re: Participatory Story! Come gather round the fire...

her old friend, Joy! One she had missed so much and for so long, awakening from a nap in the bed of old pine needles that lay on the other side of the giant tree. She was also donned in travelers gear for a long journey, it appeared. Joy's eyes lit up with surprise and the two friends joined in a warm hug and laughter…”What are you doing here Hope??!, Joy asked, as she grabbed her old friends shoulders and smiled…”Well, I am …

Re: Participatory Story! Come gather round the fire...

not sure if I am awake or dreaming?” she replied.

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And then Hope started to wonder…   “But, Joy, what about you?  What are you doing here?  Do you know this place?”

Re: Participatory Story! Come gather round the fire...

This place is a magical forest, we are brought here to learn from nature and the elements.  We must make a shelter and collect wild mushrooms and berries to help us “vision” our ancestors…

Re: Participatory Story! Come gather round the fire...

An elfin being with iridiscent white skin walked into the clearing wearing khaki clothing and took my hand motioning us to follow. Or did he or she speak? Was it a he or a she and could I hear him/her speaking in my head? The hand felt cool in mine as we started to hurry. We went down a slope with trees either side, making our way around mossy rocks. I could see a hut off to the left with vines growing around it. It seemed to back onto a large rock which disappeared into the slope.

The elf hurried on crossing a stream nimbly stepping from rock to a fallen tree and on to the far side. Joy and I kept up surprising us both. I began to realise that I was aware of Joy's thoughts and I knew what the elf wanted us to do. It felt odd at first then became normal as we travelled along.

I realised I was no longer fearful. I felt completely safe in the elf's company. It felt almost as if we were somehow related, like a brother or a daughter. It felt that close.   “We must hurry!'

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Here we are, the elf remarked in thought-speak as we emerged into what appeared to be the most wondrous elfin village. We didn't know where to look first, everywhere was colour, laughter, songs and delights.

You must be hungry, let us eat…

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I looked back at Joy. She was just as entranced as I was.

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And then I suddenly understood that thought-speak must be the way animals and many other beings communicate with each other, and just as I was pondering that idea, the elf let us know his name was Clarence.

I wondered if this was where Joy thought we were going to make a shelter and collect wild mushrooms and berries to help us “vision” our ancestors.  Perhaps after eating with all these elves…  I opened my mouth to ask her when the elf, Clarence, said, “Yes,” out loud.  Or was it?  Would our visions be coming to us in the same way as these thoughts?  I saw some raspberries and wondered if it would be all right to have one…

“Yes,” said Clarence again.

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I put one in my mouth just as I watched Joy picked up something that looked like an orange kiwi fruit.  She turned to me to say something and her face went white, her eyes reflected horror, she screamed and that was the last thing I heard.  Or did I hear it?  Or was it just in my head because everything else was gone but that sound.

A shrill, high pitched screech that wouldn't stop.  It started pulsating and modulating, but it was a constant cavalcade of sound that kept growing bigger.  I put my hands to my ears, or rather I thought I would do that, but I had no hands.  I had nothing other than this sound and my thoughts.  When I thought about it, I realized I wasn't even breathing, not even my heart and its feeling and sound of constant motion was absent.

Then, there was a sound.  It came from beneath the shrill that occupied everything I was aware of.  At first I didn't really think it existed, it was so quiet but it was there.  And, it came again.  It had no rhythm or time sequence, it just came and went randomly and quietly.  I begin to long for its next occurrence as it seemed forever i waited until it came again, and now I am waiting once more wondering if it will come as the rhythmic pulsating siren infiltrates every thought I seek to have.

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Then the forest began to vibrate. A rumble of clouds sped by and rain began to fall.
The colors of the wildflowers changed, in rainbow progression, and our vision seemed to undulate. Pleasure began to fill every part of my soul, as the new sounds encased me in a warm, soft, nurturing feeling…strangely familiar . A family of rabbits shot out from behind the raspberry vines, and Clarence grabbed his hat that was almost taken by the wind. He hopped down from the giant slippery mushroom covered with dew.

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I looked around and there were people everywhere. A dark skinned short statured round woman walked over to me  Who are you? I asked. We are your ancestors she said in a no-nonsense voice as if I should know. And of course I should have known. For someone so small she had a very large, commanding persona. A strong grandmother's persona. The nurturing feeling I had sensed earlier came from her. I felt I knew her as intimately as I had my own grandmother whose broad comforting lap I had sat in as a child. 

Looking around I saw people of many colours; red hair, black hair, light hair, dark skin, white skin,  and a few who looked very like Clarence the elf. I began to realise that I was everything and more than I had ever wondered. A thought crossed my mind. What if I wake up. If this is a dream, even a dream of truths, I could wake up and forget everything I had learned. The thought almost panicked me. I felt a knowledge that I didnt want to lose.

The grandmother smiled and said. You will learn a lot here and when you return to where you came from, you will remember what you need to remember, when you need to remember it.

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That thought brought me a deep peace. After the intensity of all I had been through, I slipped into a sweet and dreamless sleep. I felt enfolded in a love I had never known before, one I knew would always be with me.

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:: tippy toe, tippy toe ::
“Gosh but it's awfully dark in here.”
:: tippy toe, tippy toe ::
“Gosh but it's awfully quiet in here.”
::  tippy toe, tippy toe ::
“I'm not one bit scared, no siree!”
::  faint glow ::

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:: Nirilani opens the door, sees the faint glow inside ::

oh, hello, Paden Faerieleaf! Good to see you again. Hope I didn't startle you, coming in here so suddenly. Yes, it has been really quiet in here lately, let's get the fire going again…

:: points staff at the fireplace, sighs contentedly as logs burst into flame ::

Now, where were we? Ah yes, in a sweet and dreamless sleep…

I awoke with a start with a bright morning light in my eyes. I was on a high mountain peak, and the wind was whistling wildly around me. What a view! I felt like I could see forever in every direction…

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… The question was, which way to go?  And then remembering grandmother's words, “… you will remember what you need to remember, when you need to remember it.” 
 
I shut my eyes and listened with my heart as the wind swirled around me.  And then I knew with a certainty.  I pulled my cloak tightly around me and then headed …

Re: Participatory Story! Come gather round the fire...

straight east into the morning sun. it was no surprise to me that i was flying, it seemed that i had been doing it all my life. the sheer exhilaration of riding the wind's currents, the utter freedom of it, coursed through my veins like molten gold…

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… I was enthralled with the peaks and valleys below me as I soared past; mezmerized by the tree tops that blurred as I sped along.  Wait … what's that?  I circle back around to take a closer look.  It appears to be a reflection from something below.  I adjust my speed and with great caution, start my decent.  As I get closer I can plainly see that the reflection is coming from …

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a small lake, curiously still so that it is a perfect mirror of everything above. no, that is beyond a natural stillness, even the flowers and small animals around it are motionless, as if caught endlessly in a moment of time. what could this mean?…

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…as I gaze into the eerie stillness I have a sense of being watched.  I circle ever so slowly and descend with caution, scanning the landscape for any sign of movement.  Just before my foot touches down, I spy a small corner of fabric protruding from behind the base of a tree.  It appears to belong to the hem of a robe; a robe worn by someone concealing themselves …

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“Who is there?” I call out cautiously. The answer is astonishing…

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… As my feet touch the ground I am poised for immediate flight.  My ears strain, but I hear no sound.  From behind the tree comes a weathered hand that is holding what at first appears to be a tree branch.  As my eyes focus, I quickly realize that it's a wand; a magic wand …

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… which would explain the unnatural stillness I see around me here. But who is casting the spell and why?

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… as I'm asking myself these questions, the person behind the tree emerges to reveal what looks like a Lady of the Forest.  Her eyes are pools of ancient wisdom.  As she slowly steps forward, a smile creases her face, and she …

Re: Participatory Story! Come gather round the fire...

speaks.

“Peace to you. Do not let yourself be troubled by the stillness I am holding here. This is a sanctuary for the burdened in heart and mind and body who come here to experience a rest that they cannot find elsewhere.”

After a long silence, I realise that her words were not spoken aloud, but formed in my mind with clarity and yet a great gentleness, like a sweet pure bell…

Re: Participatory Story! Come gather round the fire...

…a sound that resonated into my very soul, carrying with it inexplicable peace.

I don't know how long I stood enfolded in this knowing; bathed in the revelation that …

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this stillness before me was an integral part of all reality, underlying the constant restlessness and change that I usually perceived…

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… in a gloomy light, but am just beginning to realize that it is part of the alchemy.  A catalyst for …

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all the magic I was just being to realise was surfacing in me, beginning with my ability to fly…

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… followed closely by the realization that I could recite poetry that I had never read, heard or committed to memory:

Behind him lay the gray Azores,
Behind the Gates of Hercules;
Before him not the ghost of shores,
Before him only shoreless seas.
The good mate said: Now must we pray,
For lo! the very stars are gone.
Brave Admiral, speak, what shall I say? Why, say, ‘Sail on! sail on! and on!

I can't begin to imagine what is going on!  Why I feel so strange, yet not one bit …

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not one bit afraid… almost exhilarated, but calm, ready, waiting,
I turn and see the woman of the forest watching me. She is also waiting, almost holding our breath. She looks away along the track towards the skyline. 
Dust is rising and I can feel the the thud of horses hooves through my belly. As I watch with anticipation, something about the rider seems familiar. His head is bent, communicating with his stead… almost like .. something familiar from the past…

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… something that resonates into my core; my very essence.  I am overwhelmed.  Not with dread, but with a feeling of joy.  Pure, undulated joy.  It has brought to heart and mind a memory of …

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My brother, my longlost brother, joy o joy.  He had gone, not seen for 8 years. I always felt I would see him again. It must be him. Nobody else has that look, that feel. My twin soul….

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… when I look into his eyes – the very windows of his soul – I know beyond a shadow of any doubt that it is him.  But wait.  Something is wrong!  He does not have the same recognition when he looks into the pools of my eyes.  He does not know that it is me; his brother who has missed him desperately for eight long years.  I can not begin to imagine what has transpired that would …