The Lake

Once upon a timeless time, there was a beautiful clear lake.  For all of time birds and animals have bathed and drank from its banks, children have played and dived into its depths, mothers have washed the family’s clothes and washed themselves during their moon time.  There are so many stories about this lake, strange creatures that may have lived in it, Gods who have stepped into it or drank from its cool depths…..mermaids, pirates, unicorns……Children still swim there and babies are still washed there. The village was going through a difficult time, a twisting and turning of life…Kings became slaves, barbarians became rulers, lovers fought, children acted like adults while adults acted like children, the medicine people worked in the mines and the fields…..The world was upside-down.
During one particularly dark night, the earth shook to its core….Storms ravaged the skies, and water spilled everywhere.  As the dawn began to break there was calm for a while, and as the sun broke over the mountains early in the morning a small child stuck his little nose out of the door, and took a peak out.  He stepped outside and took a deep breath in, he walked gently down to the lake, his eyes were still half shut from sleep as he screwed his eyes up with his hands, he scooped up some water and took a sip, then stopped, and stared deep into the clear depths of the lake.

The morning carried on, people tidied up the mess of the night, people yawning, washing, scratching, eating…The boys mum look up to see where her son had got too, she walked towards him sat by the lake and asked what he was doing…he said ”look mama” and pointed to the lake, she peered into the deep water and tears filled her eyes as she gazed, her heart swam in the deep lake.

More people came over to see what they were looking at and all of them stopped and stared at the scene before them with wonder and awe.  By mid morning, everyone in the village was looking into the lake, by mid day all of the neighbouring villages were staring longingly into the lake, all smiling, some laughing, tears rolling down some of the others cheeks, a beautiful glow came about..Like the glow of a woman with child…

Behind them stood dark shadowy figures, consumed with anger and fear, strong and powerful souls who lost their light a long time ago.  A small girl turned around to see who was standing there and not looking at the prettiness before her, she saw a shadowy figure lurking behind her, she knew who he was, he took from her something no one should ever take.  She stood for a moment….Thought for a minute, then walked towards him….”come on” she said quietly, “It’s ok now, come and look” the shadowy figure shuffled his feet, looking very awkward he took a step forward…gingerly he walked towards the lake with the little girl, grief filled his heart and he began to cry, he didn't think his heart could bare it anymore, filled with anger despair, sadness, and the light and innocence of the little girl he stole from…his was took a long time ago too…as he reached the lake he looked around him, all around the lake people were crying, holding each other, smiling, they looked beautiful!
He looked down, his eyes blinded by the tears burning his eyes, he wiped them with the back of his sleeve and looked into the lake…his eyes widened, breath caught in his throat….and he glowed.
More shadowy figures came to see what was happening…a widower turned around to see who was behind her and a sudden recognition of one of the young girls hit her…she lost her husband to a violent mugging that went terribly wrong….part of the widow wanted to push her away and scream and shout...WHY!! She looked back to the lake….then back to the girl…..”You stole time with my husband away from me, something I will never get back……..but now is the time to forgive…….come…” she stepped aside and let the girl in….her heart was pounding, she had often seen the woman about the village, and always she hide in the shadows away from the guilt…she looked into the water and fell to her knees…she searched frantically for something in the water, then she saw him…and she smiled, she stood up and put her arm around the widow and they cried together.
By the late afternoon, nearly the whole world was looking into the waters
A glow was noticed, from behind them, some people started to shuffle and turn around, from the mountain tops came a troop of glowing people! These Elders had been living in these mountains for over 500 years.....one of them stepped forward and walked in-between the people, as they moved aside to let the elder in he stopped, he looked at the man next to him, saw the dried tears on his cheeks, then looked knowingly into the lake, “oh.....I see...” he said, and stepped back, and calmly walked back to his group.......
The elders spoke;

”What you are looking at is a vision of our world that we have been holding for you....”

“A world of great wisdom and grace, where all people live in harmony with each other and the rest of creation, and all of Great Spirit’s creatures.  A world of love and joy....a world where we take care of the Great Mother as we live in peace on her belly”

“It has been said that there will be a time when everybody will be able to see this vision, and hold it for themselves......that time has come”

“We ask that each of you look deep into the lake and watch your own vision manifest, dream, visualize....then kneel down and drink some of the water, let it permeate your body, let it be a part of you, let it manifest in your life”

An ancient and sacred tree lived near the lake, children called it the Tree House, the elders called it The Tree of Life.  Deep within its roots a rumble emerged....deep within its cracks a light shone....there was a deep earthly sigh and out stepped a foot, then a leg, then a body...”Look!” shouted a small boy.....a figure dressed in dark clothes and furs stood shielding his eyes from the evening sky, black feathers hung around his shoulders and back, he jumped up on a huge boulder and spoke...

“Greetings!”

There was a wave of murmurs in the crowd.

“I am the keeper of the Underworld” his voice was of gravel and soil..Rough like the earth itself....

"I come bearing news from my kingdom, there is chaos.....there is pain.....there is fear....we are all moving into the vision you see before you...a great light....a light so bright we have never seen before, the darkest hour is before dawn, and as we move closer to the light, the shadows become darker and so we are a part of this chaos....We need to hold the visions the elders spoke of, the shadow will get darker, but it will also shrink! and soon it will be gone, and end to chaos...hold your vision and bare witness to the receding of the shadow”

“Hold every moment in your life as sacred....let love be your ritual....let nature be your teacher...listen to your children and your elders...and shine as bright as the sun”

And with his last words echoing in the air, the last beams of the setting sun shone down, temporarily blinding the people, when the people could see once more the elders and the strange exotic man were gone.
The people turned back to the lake...held their visions....scooped up water to drink....and got on with their lives...carrying their light within them.