Fireflies

The Trials of The Jungle Begin

                  It's quite difficult to drive through twists and turns, right? You've always got to be prepared, alert. But is being cautious enough? Is being watchful enough? I hope you know it's not. It's not enough. Being observant brings your senses to working, makes you aware of the surroundings, events happening around, and helps you look at the road ahead, makes you acquainted with hints of what's coming next. But to go through all the roads, ahead and further, you need to ignite the engine. And this engine we're talking about is none other than our mind, our consciousness. This engine is of being able to believe that you can go through any hellfire. But the fuel here is hope, and the key, it's courage. It's risk. It's your own power unlocked. So now, we all know that to reach our destination, one gets the vehicle prepared. With awareness, hope, belief and courage.

And this is what these adventurers of ours were going to learn, were going to understand. To reach to the heart of absolute tranquility and peace, where all thirst is quenched, all desires are washed away making expectations disappear, making you happy. To the heart of freedom.

"Ouch!"

"Oh Lord!"

"Ugh"

"Seriously?"

And minute by minute Arthur kept interjecting with his wails and sudden disappointments.

"Amazon's scary. No offense to you Dominic but this place, it's a never ending jungle. I prefer the crowded London streets, and oh! I miss the bakery down the lane." Arthur wailed more. While Charlotte and Dominic tried their awful best to control their laughter, but when a bug bit Arthur, they did feel sorry for him.

"I didn't expect this place to turn out like this!" Arthur was close to tears.

"The person who expects nothing, shall always receive happiness." Dominic smiled.

"Alexander Pope." Charlotte remarked. 

"Perfect." Dominic grinned.

"And to ease you a little bit, let me take you somewhere." Dominic said with a twinkle in his eye.

They had run through the back forest of the house and were walking through the woods with lamps to guide, sometimes insects used to give them jolts of surprises in between, but hello there! Welcome to the jungle. 

Walking through the dense, their hearts thumped, with a different rhythm, a rhythm of excitement flowing through their veins. They were young souls free out in the wild. What will come next? Was a question that kept popping in their restless minds. But all the restlessness soon disappeared when their eyes couldn't believe what lay ahead.

Arthur's and Charlotte's breath hitched as they took in the environment. 

"All the bug bites were worth this." Arthur whistled.

"It's beautiful." Charlotte remarked.

Dominic smiled at both of them and introduced the wild. The glimmers, the shimmers, the sudden light and it's disappearance, the fireflies of the Amazon. Dancing around and on the tree branches like hanging lights. As they observed and took in the scenario, the unknowingly had a meeting with the first magic, the awareness. 

"Look carefully," Dominic instructed and made a weird noise, the fireflies all so shy, yet they came towards him and he caught one smoothly. 

"Easy there little one," He chuckled and showed the little nature's bulb to Arthur and Charlotte.

"Mantenha um espírito vaga-lume" He said.

"What does that mean?" She asked.

"Keep a firefly spirit." He said.

Arthur gave a questioning look to him.

"Open your book Arthur, and read ahead." Dominic commanded.

Arthur opened the book and read ahead,

'Now, you might be preparing to find freedom. You might have come across something which needs you to open this book and read ahead, well whatever it is always remember, when all's gone still one will stand.'

"This doesn't make any sense." Arthur said furrowing his brows.

"It makes the whole sense." Dominic said.

"What was left behind when Pandora opened the box?" He asked.

"Hope." Charlotte answered.

"Exactly. When all is gone, still one will stand." Arthur said processing the philosophy.

"And the fireflies resemble the hope in this culture of the tribal. When all, the sun is lost to the night, one will stand. The little suns of the night. The fireflies. A hope for light in the dark." Dominic explained.

And there, they met hope. In those dazzling fireflies. And hence began the job of the jungle. To take them to the freedom, to dare them, to challenge them and to see if they were willing to pay the price, and the price here, for each of them was unique.

But to get there, they had to prove themselves worth it. And the jungle was their testing grounds. Each one had to see, observe and understand how far their limits rested and will they be able to break them? Overcome them? 

And in all the quest, will they be able to hold on their friendship? Their promises and their vows? Only the time could tell. That night, in the nature's soil they slept peacefully. Just to wake up to the parakeets announcing the sunray's arrival on the grounds. 

"Last night was..." Arthur whispered.

"Magical!" Charlotte completed his sentence.

Dominic just smiled at them feeling proud at heart. Feeling blessed to be raised in the greens here, that he had always been provided the magical affection and care of the nature. Always being touched by the nature.

Suddenly they heard a yelling nearby.

"What was that?" Charlotte asked.

"Maybe the tribals on a hunt?" Arthur asked.

"No." Dominic replied.

They made their way towards the voice and hid behind the vegetation when they spotted a horror.

"You cannot stop the progress of mankind here! There will be clearance of this place!" A man in a thick british accent yelled at a tribal chief and the next what he did required Charlotte and Arthur to hold Dominic back who was outraged.

He shot the tribal and his men. And left like nothing happened.

"No!" Dominic yelled and went closer to the chief taking his head in his lap.

They talked for some moments and the chief rested forever. 

One could figure out the fury and rage in the bloodshot eyes of Dominic. And that was his first test. Will he be able to conquer the anger burning within him? Or will he allow himself to be consumed by the flames and lashes of his own avenging desire? 

"Salve o fôlego da selva." The last words of the chief kept ringing in his ears.