The Great and Glorious Tree of Adeline

     It was all worth it.  Every single choice that led up to this moment...

     Little slender dirty fingers investigate a worn cloth pocket. Splinters penetrate my flesh, but I know it's safe.  My most prized possession safe and sound in my pocket.  Sitting in the same pocket since my Father handed it to me not so long ago.

     My Father carved it from the center of the Great and Glorious Tree of Adeline.  This world located within a tree was where I spent time dreaming and hiding. Thick branches used to hold me during life and death moments when my brothers would torment me, always causing me to climb higher into the majestic canopy.  But I didn't mind so much.  There is much to investigate: the sounds, the smells, and textures. 
     One particular day, the sun beat down, and I climbed higher than ever before. Even my brothers stopped the pursuit and tried to coax me back, but something in me drove me upward.  It was an exhilarating rush. I knew Destiny lie at the top just beyond the green haven.  After twisting branches and pressing leaves aside, my eyes beheld a grey mist in the distance.  A foul stench on the wind initiated a rising to commence in my heart. Before I could stop myself, I heard a cry exit my mouth. A fountain of tears overflowed. I could hear my brothers calling and soon after my Father. I melted back into the canopy.  The shock of seeing death for the first time, changes you.  There is a seed of burden that can kill you or make you stronger. My Father thought I would die.
      My tiny body began to slowly waste away. The days seemed to slow down. Day and night were all the same to me. Event though I sweated from the heat, my shoulders felt cold from the lack of a motherly embrace.  
     "Why did they kill her, Father?"
     "Because she believed," His eyes sparkled with tears and a humble pride.  
     The day the Great and Glorious Tree fell changed my life forever.  I recall the bright light that shot through it, straight down the middle.  At first, the tree only shuddered, but then flames burst out from the center as the great trunk split in two. Until that day, it seemed like nothing could break it's limbs or defy it's strength, yet on that day it accepted it's fate and from it's mighty trunk came a treasure; a beacon of hope.      
      I clasped my Father's muscular shoulders as he carved. All I could see were wood shavings floating in the air and dropping to the floor. The sweet smell of fresh wood and the repetitive smooth movements of his arms were mesmerizing.  I was intrigued.
     "Just a bit longer, my little dove". Father brushed curls out of my face as he smiled.  
     As impatience grew, I went to look at the once Great and Glorious Tree of Adeline.  It's branches were drying up.  I flopped down in it's ocean of leaves.  They still danced around me in the wind as though laughing.  
     "How can you be happy when you are dying? There is no hope for you."  
     Then I saw it.  The hole where my Father had taken a chunk  out of the world of Adeline.  With anticipation, I ran back to my Father in the barn. 
     "Perfect timing, my little dove. Close your eyes." 
     My quivering fingers investigated the wood carving.  It was two pieces intersecting. It was smooth and perfect.  I breathed in it's freshness once again. Yes, this was joy of Adeline in my hands.  I acknowledged the duty of the call from that moment forward.  I might have been small in stature-even vulnerable-but I was a fire of curiosity, adventure, and justice. This fire was part of my Father's legacy, so I grabbed a hold of it even though I was the most unlikely.  It was an honor to live the worthy call given to the Fire. I finally understood. I believed.
      My older brothers had already left.  They were honored to wear the bright colors of the  Kingdom they believed in.  Even though they were only 14 and 16 they were ready to die for it. I remember when Father read me the letter describing their aggressive and passionate fighting and their graceful fall.  It was in an instant. This confused my expectation.  It sounded like there was no slowing of time or even a chance for tears. The battle just waged on.  The enemy might have mocked for a moment believing in his victory, but what he didn't know was that the Kingdom could never be defeated. Every light that faded from the eyes of those dying for the Kingdom was walking into victory.  All they could see now were the colors of the Kingdom waving in the wind as celebration ensued.
     This is the image, I have in my mind right now.  Father's little dove is seeing the Kingdom colors mixing in the wind.
      "I won't let it go, Father."
     My thumb pressed into the crevices of wood as I repetitively checked to see if it was still there. Father told me to remember that right before this moment I was to begin counting little sheep like we used to before bed.  
    "It will be no time before you fall asleep," he had assured me.
     "1, 2, 3, 4, 5."
     I was wrong about one thing.  When you die, time does slow down and tears are shed spurred on from sadness and victory.  I was also right about one thing.  The colors of the Kingdom are already waving. I am victorious and so will be the one who finds the beacon of hope from the the Great and Glorious Tree of Adeline. 

Lemon Leaves

     No man would think before giving an apple away to a little girl. Every little boy would fight with a weapon of glory; his wooden sword carved by his own two little hands, which are covered in grimy mud packed on from play...

     A Father tossles his son's hair as he acts out stories of triumph. The little boy's shadow extends across the room carried by the light of the crackling fire.  At the dramatic finale, gaped tooth smiles fill the room. Mother manages a teary-eyed laugh even though she has just reviewed the lacking budget for winter.
       Their days start at dawn and end after Mother goes to sleep.  The last thing she does is close the cedar panes, quenching light to the outside world. The remnants of a flickering candle waste away.Creak. Creak.  Worn out feet climb into bed as the last piece of blackened wick dissolves and falls onto the floor.
     "Good morning, dear ones.  Today is a special day," Mother's kind voice beckons her little ones.  
     Little feet, that somehow have dirt encrusted between toes climb down an old ladder.  Lily, the family dog, is enthusiastically eating last nights leftovers.  The children stare, Their mouths are gaping as they gaze upon bread, eggs, milk, and Mother's special strawberry preserves.  Father sits by Mother, his strong features approvingly motion toward the table. Abigail, the littlest one of the family, climbs back into her bunk area as her two twin brothers, Samuel and Jonathan, race outside.  Abigail returns carrying a stained mound of cotton cloth.  Her three year-old fingers gently caress a bright red apple as it peaks out from in between the fabric folds.  She hands it to her mother, who smiles graciously.  Soon after, Samuel and Jonathan return.  From inside a dirty metal bucket, they pull out a medium-sized slimy silver fish.  A strong odor enters the room as they close the front door.  Father laughs heartily as he studies his twin sons' feet.
    As the main feast preparation continues, Lily leaves her empty bowl and rests her head on Mother's lap.  Sarah ruffles the dog's fur as she stands to start a fire in the stove.  Two pieces of coal roll onto the floor as she tries to toss them in the rusted stove.  Samuel, Jonathan, and Father all race outside as Abigail helps Sarah picks up the shattered pieces.  The warmth of the final days of summer cause Sarah to stop. She picks Abigail up and follows after her husband, David.
     With eyes closed, Sarah is able to recognize on the wind, the smell of fresh strawberries even though the odor of rotten corn and dead flesh is still burning after the incineration  of illness.  Abigail hides her face in Mother's apron.  An ache begins to build in Sarah's heart. pound. pound.  It subsides as David and the boys come running.  The boys' toy swords are swinging high in the air as Father follows behind with a pile of branches, twigs, and brush.  Rustling branches snag the door frame as they all hustle back inside. It isn't long before Father has a small fire crackling in the stove.
      Mother is just finishing setting gleaming white plates as a knock is heard at the door. At first, David ignores it, but the next knock causes dirt to fall from the ceiling. While his heart longs for a peaceful banquet with his family, he turns and walks to the door.  A mountain of gray and brown rags with two dark clear eyes smiles revealing stained teeth.
     "I beg your pardon missus.  I was passing through and...I see I have interrupted an important meal.  I am a lonely man, you see...." the mass of a man quietly speaks.
     Abigail hurries over to the man. 
     "Grandpa! You are just in time.  I saved this apple just for you." A giggling Abigail jumps into the mountains of rags without hesitation. 
     "She is correct.  You are precisely on time," Sarah adds.
     "A first time for everything.  Better late than never," leaky eyes take in the warmth of the welcome.
     "I knew you would make it, sir," David ushers him in.  He whispers to Grandpa,"thank you."
     "Mama opened her special preserves!" Abigail is bouncing up and down enthusiastically.
     "I see that." Grandpa's semi-concerned face looks at Sarah and David.
     "Nothing but the best.  We must store up like little bears for winter, my dear ones." Sarah pulls her three children close.
     "Yes Mama!" All the little children agree as they look longingly at the cooking fish and eggs.
     "Absolutely," Father agrees.  His eyes meet with Mother's. "I wouldn't have it any other way."
     Laughs can be heard from inside the house as they invade the thick pungent summer air.  The flies, which congregated on rotten crops and dead animals seem to scatter as the offensive joyfilled sounds echo, moving the ground.  The laughs become louder and louder as the morning turns to afternoon.  A sweet and gentle air sweeps across the farm rustling the dead corn stalks.  Little green shoots can be seen poking out of the ground ironically protected by death. 
     The little green shoots quiver as the ground shakes.  A small dirty foot crunches down next to it and light falls directly on it for the first time.  Within inches of it, two brown eyes stare wide-eyed in unbelief.  They disappear in almost an instant.  crunch. crunch. crunch. Screams overshadow the sounds of dead brush. 
     "Father!!! Mother!!! Everybody!! Come see. Come see!!!" Jonathan's excited screams of laughter shake the silent hot afternoon.  The sweet and gentle breeze increases to a strong wind, which continues blowing death away.