Chasing Fire

Landslide - Part 13

There is a point in a person's life when all the pieces fall together and form a picture of the future. Noralee was watching this like a movie reel playing in her head. She could see her bliss in the years ahead. A man like Bear Brown was rare. He had a real heart. A Bush Heart. One that was wild and pure. If he said he was going to do something for her, then he would do it without fail. She had never met a man she could depend on like that or one that loved her purely because she was herself. His touch was amazing. The warmth of his soul coming through his fingertips. She felt herself slipping over the edge into a warm landslide of love for him like rainwater washing down the side of a mountain. He wanted to wait before they got any closer intimately, but wait for what she wondered and laid awake all night in the treehouse with him sleeping beside her.

"What are you waiting for?" She thought in the dark with the wind breathing low and soft in the trees.

He slept peacefully, almost with the full relaxation of a small child. She noticed he like to sleep on his stomach and tried to take up most of the small bed. She didn't really mind. It was soothing to have his warmth next her. One abandoned arm was flung across her chest and she didn't want to move for fear of waking his deep slumber, but she found once he was in a deep sleep nothing would wake him. She slipped out from under his arm carefully and sat on the window sill and looked out at the deep, dark heart of the forest. Things were moving around below her and she was thankful she was up high. She could hear cautious paws stepping surreptitiously on fallen branches. Owls hooting and if she listened carefully, she could hear the stream rolling over the rocks nearby. The forest seemed even more alive during the night and she loved this place. She had never been the outdoorsy kind of girl before, but she was getting a taste for it. Bear's enthusiasm and unbridled freedom made her crave the wilderness. It was becoming a part of her and replacing her memories of city life. The traffic, nights with sirens blaring at all hours and the blazing lights everywhere. Here she could look up and see every star in the sky. She never knew there were so many before. "I really love it here. Although, I have forty thousand dollars in student loans to pay back, otherwise I could live here forever."

She couldn't sleep all night thinking about how to make her old life and this new one fit together. Watching the dawn take control of the sky, she felt a little sad this trip might have to come to an end. It would be like leaving an idyllic paradise for the structured concrete jungle of a prison. She couldn't see Bear leaving the forest and living her way for very long. And a big part of her didn't want him too either. It would be cruel to expect him to come with her. She volleyed the thoughts back and forth until she was in the worst mood by the time he woke up.

Of course, he woke up smiling, bright eyed and bushy tailed, ready for the new day, while she was tired and frustrated. "What is wrong? Did you sleep any last night?" He looked at her with sympathetic eyes. She had never met someone who could express his dearest emotions with his eyes. It was like his soul was so full that it emanated from his eyes.

"I am really worried about my future. I have a lot of college debt. I need to find a job and start paying my way out of it. Just like everyone else I suppose. We go to Universities to have a chance at a better life, but we end up being slaves to our own ambition. I realize now the way things are in modern society makes no sense. None of it makes any sense to me, anymore. Why we live like we aren't going to die one day. Take now. Pay later. I love being here with you, but I have obligations to fulfill. I am trying to sort out how all of it will work and it is kind of depressing." She really did feel the weight of that mountain of debt hanging over her. She could feel the rumblings, although it was far away, but she knew she would be covered over soon and spend a good part of her life digging her way out.

Bear raised one arm over his head, his sleek bicep in full glorious view making her smile a little. His silky hair resting on the pillow, making her want to go over and play with it while she forgot about her mounting problems. He patted one hand on the bed, inviting her to come lay next to him. She could feel a big smile spread across her face because he was so damn cute in the morning. She could never get sick of looking at that handsome face waking up next to her. It was peaceful, sublime and calm. Slinking off the window sill, she slid next to him on the bed. He instantly wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close and smoothed her hair gently.

"When you have a mountain to move, you can't pick up the mountain all at once. You must start with one rock at a time. Never focus on the mountain because it will defeat you with its size. Remember all mountains are reduced to the size of a grain of sand over time. It takes a heck of a long time, but eventually the mountain will be no more. Focus only on one rock at a time until you can get stronger and start taking boulders out. You can find your peace while moving that mountain." His voice was strong and his unusual accent when he pronounced his w's was more distinct when he whispered. She loved his unique way of speaking and settled her head on his chest cozily. "It will all be alright, Noralee." She smiled at the way he pronounced her name even, as if the n was silent as in Oralee, but she loved him for it. He was different in all the right ways and if she was planning on falling down the mountain of love for him, she decided to let the landslide wash her away with his Zen like acceptance.