The Forest

Raindrops

Jack, filled with an anxious energy, stood staring quiet at the glitter swarming around their feet like he had been given something he never knew he had.  It covered Jule in bits of fragrant color that warmed his innocence as he kept in tune with the same melody he now hummed.  

"How long will it stay here?  The glitter..."   

He felt unsure of what to do next without a clear message from her.

"They'll stay here until they are found."  

He sighed in relief and she watched him cure his misguided thoughts.  Her words became a soft memory as a story unraveled within moments in front of him. 

"Do you remember...a long time ago, the trip you took fishing with your grandfather?  You were just a little child and so excited to go.  It rained all day on that day."

"I think I remember.  I remember trying to pick up the raindrops, but I couldn't." His head shaking at the thought of such a silly idea.

"He wanted to show you everything he knew and pave your mind with a conscious you would eventually follow on your own.  Grandpa said the raindrops were falling just for you. Every single one of them."

Jack laughed in agreement with a nod, quickly making a symbolic reference of it all.  And hesitating his next few words, he cautiously retraced his recollection out loud and remembered the will of a little boy not intending to give up. 

"It seemed like I was there forever  trying to pick up those raindrops.  And when grandpa finally realized what I was doing, he tried helping me, but neither one of us could do it."  

"What did you say to him?"

"I asked him...what if they were diamonds grandpa?"

"And he told you that you would be a very rich man."

"Yes.  Then I asked him...what if they were stones?"

"And he said I might hurt someone," he nodded convincingly.

"And he was right.  A stone can be a weapon, a sanction, a consequence and a regret.  And on an enemy, a luxury of revenge.  On a friend, a betrayal.  Sometimes it's even a satisfaction or a score.  And an obvious weakness."

"And the leaves...he said if the raindrops were leaves, then all the trees would be bare.  But there was something else."

"Did it make you feel sad or happy?"

"It made me feel happy.  He said the raindrops started and ended with a reason.  And in between the beauty of watching them fall, was a secret."

Jack searched around for Jule like he was missing something or just trying to capture a glimpse of his presence to reassure himself he was still there.  He found him listening to a story he appeared to already know, still wearing the glitter proudly, like armor in his defense.  

"Grandpa told me we wouldn't be able to pick them but I could look for them if I wanted.  And if I found them, I could do something with them."

"The raindrops?"

"That's what he said.  That's when I started looking for them everywhere.  They landed in puddles I jumped in and mud I played in.  They were on the flowers I picked, and even in grandpa's tackle box making everything float."

"I'm surprised you can remember everything he said."

"Well, there's more I suppose."

Jule dusted his leg with a show of comfort and subtle impatience, sitting down next to him like a small statue at his feet until he could remember more. 

"Sometimes memories have a way of silencing the presence of where you are standing now.  They can even stop your world for a few minutes if you let them.  But you can choose to make them an anchor to guide your way forward if you like." 

The forest seemed to echo the same pattern of thought, calm and quiet without any external influence.  And her image was becoming wise to a boy in a forest who was beginning to grow up before her.  The man that waited for him would end up knowing the reason for the rain and what would become of it.  He would remember the secrets uncovered in between like they were yesterday's mud and pretend diamonds.  He would mold the ones he loved and cherish the ones that lie still in the night sky waiting to be followed. 

 "There is always a path to lead you exactly where you want to go and you will find it.  It's a destination that will always pursue you.  Sometimes it's the one you follow when you don't know where to go.  And sometimes it controls with a persistent menace until it has exhausted you of every ounce of effort like an elusive end to a start you will never find."

Jack bent down and carried Jule up to his arms, clenching him close beside his body to return the gesture of worth.  Gentle words spoke through the nostalgia of emotion that became a source deep within him.  He felt closer to understanding where his dream was leading him.  

"I'll take you everywhere with me Jule," he whispered.