Sequoia had wandered farther than any of the other kittens had. This was because she just couldn't get enough of the new parts of the Earth she could find. The more she kept going, the more newness she experienced. She thought, the Earth was so full of wonder and beautiful things. Some of these things were colorful, some had interesting scents, some were formed in a way that made Sequoia tilt her head and some worked in strange ways.
What Sequoia really sought after was that one place that could truly let her live in and feel the magnificence of the world, perhaps in a magical way. She'd known that there had to have been such a place somewhere.
Scarcely had she known that she'd found that place when she first came upon a forest. This forest at first looked dark and drab, but that didn't stop Sequoia from proceeding to explore it.
In a few words, the forest became enchanted to Sequoia.
The atmosphere of the forest appealed to her first. The air was misty and smelled of nature. The humidity intensified the fresh scent of the moist trees. The trees were tall; their trunks were wide and reddish in color. Dark green pines stuck from them high above. Other smaller sorts of trees were amid as well as many low shrubs and fluorescent moss. Beams of light streamed down from the spaces between the trees and made the forest floor glow.
Sequoia was in a reverie. She had never before been so captivated and so jubilant.
The forest was tenebrous, but in a way that made Sequoia feel secure. She was enticed by what she saw and what she heard; the damp ground crunching beneath her dainty paws, as well as the chirping and chattering of insects, birds and other small animals.
Sequoia nibbled on some leafed greenery she found that glistened in the dusky light. It tasted sweet. Blissfully, Sequoia continued on deeper into the woods.
Having discovered this forest made Sequoia feel remarkable. Clearly, she had made an accomplishment. This is what she thought as she rolled around in a patch of soft grass and weeds. They felt good on her back. She stretched out and she felt as though the thick air surrounding her was holding her.
Sequoia thought to herself that this was the kind of place her mother Thyme had wanted her to find. The kind of place that she felt she belonged, and...
Sequoia's thoughts were distracted when she suddenly looked upward at the tops of the tall trees, reaching for the sky. At that very moment Sequoia had a familiar feeling like that of one she'd had before. She wanted to be up that high so she could see the world.
But how?
For a short while, Sequoia paced around the trunk of a tree, continuously staring upward. She wondered, if she was not a bird and she did not have wings to fly, how could she reach that height?
Sequoia stood on her hind legs and placed her front paws on the tree trunk. She felt how mighty the tree was, and she felt small. She was after all, just a kitten and also the smallest kitten out of all her brothers and sisters.
Then Sequoia remembered what her mother had wanted for her and her siblings. She had wanted them to know how special they were, and that they were more than just kittens.
An urge caused Sequoia to bring forth her claws and clasp them into the bark of the tree. She stood there, clinging to the tree and then she knew, this was the way. This was the way of the cat, and this was why cats had claws. This was what Sequoia had claws for.
Because of her being so lightweight, she had no problem climbing up as high as she could get. She was strong after all, she thought. Her lightness also came in handy when she perched up the flimsy tree branches.
There Sequoia sat, higher up than she had ever hoped to be. The ground looked such a far distance below her and the sky above looked closer than ever. Now she could feel the power of the Earth, and she knew that she had that power herself.
The tree smelled homelike. Sequoia could see all around her and yet she was hidden. The tree protected her. The tree would soon become a part of her.
Sequoia's mother had proved that this sort of thing was possible. Thyme had made the herb garden her own and she had somehow became a part of it. Sequoia thought, this was something that could not be explained to anybody. It is only something that can be felt, then understood.
Sequoia didn't worry about how she would get back down. She assumed that somehow she would find a way, but at the time she was in no hurry. At the time she would have been pleased to stay up in the tree for all eternity. The tree could give her life as well as safety. She could sleep in it and feed off it, if perhaps she were to truly become a part of this work of art, and child of Earth. Perhaps her fur would begin to turn reddish in color.
The forest was filled with life, ambrosial and alluring. To Sequoia, nothing could have been better.
Truthfully, Sequoia was the most arbitrary of the kittens. It was not doubtful that someday her feelings would change. Not in the way of fading, but in the way that Sequoia would surely want more. She was the kitten who wanted to experience every part of the heavenly body she lived in. Earth.
Sequoia was not trifling, nor was she foolish. Her mother would have thought that Sequoia's soul, mind, and life were just dawning.
The forest satisfied Sequoia then, and that was all that mattered.
