a short story i wrote

No-Body

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Here goes the short, shabby-kinda story i wrote a few days ago. Goes without sayin' it is a humble piece of fiction and any similarity to real people and events is purely coincidental. Also, it is incomplete. If i remember correctly, photographers cut a corner of their pictures when they send them out for copyright registration so they can prove with the intact, full version of the photograph that indeed they are the authors. So i guess i was a bit of a 'photographer' myself and cut short a bit of the story, in order to make sure it remains mine. It ain't much, but still...i put my pen and my soul into it.



Cause at times it's not a question of missing the forest for the trees, but rather of missing THE tree because of the grass and flowers.

The white tree in the black forest

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A whole bunch of people was going though a forest in search of a little hut where a wizard was rumored to live. They all wanted to go there because the magic and the wisdom he imparted were beyond compare. Many took different roads that so many times led them astray. None of them had any map with instructions how to reach the house of the miracle worker, so it was only natural for them to lose their way.

Some were paying attention to the grass as it shone beautifully with morning dew, other were busy smelling the flowers and makin' bouquets for themselves and those they thought were their friends, some others might have been picking up mushrooms not knowing if they were edible or poisonous. Others yet were carefully listening to the wonderful music sang by the birds in the trees. They got part of the tunes, but not all of them. There were also noises from some fearsome creatures which at times were the wizard's very own helpers trying to confuse them all so they wouldn't find him.

The forest though was full of friendly creatures that tried and reach out to the scared and confused visitors. But they also used another language, one understood by no one else but one white tree.The tree had grown over time from some very frail roots. The wind had carried its seeds from very far away. There was never anything special about it to make it stand out from all the other trees in the forest, except maybe for its color.

One day, as the wizard was strolling through the forest with his eyes up in the air in search of intricate designs in the clouds he tripped and fell near the tree and suddenly he realized there was something vaguely familiar in the tree's leaves and branches, but he couldn't remember what. He started to talk to the tree, because enchanted as the forest was the trees could talk and this one most especially. The tree had also heard about the wizard's gifts but treated it like a fellow tree and answered the wizard's questions with calm and kindness. The wizard grew so accostumed and so fond of the little tree that he would visit it every day and spend time with it.

Then, one evening, while the wind was blowin' hard and a storm was approching, just as the little tree had feared, the wizard became very upset with the tree for no apparent reason. The tree hadn't done anything wrong to its friend so it was a bit baffled by the wizard's words. Not soon after that the wizard left and the tree was now all alone in the cold to face the harsh winter weather. The little tree did think this was nothing more than a trick of the wizard to see how much and how deeply the tree cared and understood the wizard. So the tree, although deeply hurt, continued to believe in the wizard and kept on growing.

In spring, together with the warm rays of the sun, the little tree which was now starting to blossom suddenly heard 7 magical words sang by an amazing bird, words which were tellin' it the wizard was still around, but was very busy, so the tree had to continue its development without the presence of the wizard. The tree understood that and started to pay attention to all the other birds, elfs and magical creatures in the forest that were singing and talkin' to it. There were some animals that tried to scare the tree, but it would not listen to them. Things would get so crazy that on ocassion the tree was under the impression the whole forest was talkin' to it. At times the sounds were wonderful, but other times they were howling, fearful moans of invisible monsters. Some of them were produced by the very same creatures which by day helped the tree grow and by night tried to scare it almost back into soil where it had come from.

Time went on and no matter the season or the sounds around it, the tree was growing taller and taller. One autumn night the wizard came back and continued the conversations with the tree as if he had never left. The tree forgave the wizard and pretended to have also forgotten the hurt the wizard had caused it. Once more the wizard and the tree were having a good time, laughing and joking in what was in fact their forest, their garden. They even talked together to the forest visitors, letting them know how good they were getting along, but most of the forest people were too busy with their flowers and grass to pay attention. Some of them though became intrigued by what the wizard and the tree were saying and tried to find out more. They even came to suspect something was indeed a bit special about that tree, although they were not completely sure of it because there were also some other trees in the the forest claiming to know the wizard.

Same as on the previous occasion, the wizard once more left the tree in the care of its forest friends – by day and by night. Some really terrible nights and some horrible weather came upon the tree, but by sheer miracle it survived. The tree knew that from a brother or sister like itself was made the cross on which Jesus had been crucified. It knew that if it wanted to be like its Creator, it had to withstand any kind of weather – the scortching heat of summer or the piercing cold of icey winter.

During one of the heaviest rains created by wizard the tree even reached out to the forest visitors who were now aimlessly looking for the wizard, starting to even wonder if he ever existed at all because they, unlike the tree, had never really met him or talked to him. The tree, through all its pain, was trying to tell the forest people that the wizard wasn't only their imagination, he did indeed exist, but he enjoyed certain kind of games more than they thought him capable of. In those moments, not even the people who had been previously intrigued by the tree cared for its words. Same as many other people before and after they too made the tree cry tears full of sorrow and regret for all the lack of understanding it was receiving. The tree's growth hadn't been an easy one even before the wizard ran into it, but now things were even worse for the lonely tree. But, same as before, the tree forgave them as well, being thankful for all the help that it was receiving no matter where from and when.

As if the pain endured wasn't enough, at one point the wizard threatened the tree that many more tempests and thunders would follow. The tree, in an outburst of fury told the wizard some very harsh words which were also heard by a portion of the forest visitors. Having no idea about the complex nature and the full scope of the wizard and the tree's conversation, they all rushed to the wizard's defense and started to call the tree names and even tried to drive the tree out of the forest, which was in fact its home.

Little did they know that the tree's words were coming from the depths of it wounded soul still very much caring for the wizard. They were simply the tree's way of showing the magician that it too could play the kind of games he had been and those very same words were a way for the tree to confirm to the forest visitors they had been indeed talking to the wizard, a sensation they had been having. But they didn't understand any of the tree's efforts or intents.

The tree and the wizard soon made peace, because that was the only way for them to live and they decided it was better for the tree to go hide from all the forest visitors. At this point the tree had grown so large that it could no longer be ignored and some of the forest people bumped into it while they were busy with their usual activities of picking up fruits and flowers. They came to realize the tree could offer them precious information about the wizard, so they started to ask questions, but the tree became silent.

As it was makin' its way out of the forest and towards the cave the wizard had prepared for it, the tree was laughin on the inside about the pettiness of most of the quarels and squabbles of the forest people and it was murmurin' underneath its breath *if only you would have payed attention you would have seen that most of the answers to your questions had been right in front of your eyes all along. If only you'd go back in time and open your eyes.....* With every step it was takin, the tree was further away from the forest and its sounds, while the forest visitors were left looking for the wizard, some of them still looking at the grass and others picking up mushrooms, poisonous or not.....






Morals of the story:

1. in life, pay attention to what is truly important and not the trivial or the distractions

2. when dealing with people always treat them with respect cause you never know when you might need them and yesterday's foes could become tomorrow's friends

3. be extreeemely careful whom you offend and drive out because in this world beggars and princes have the habit of exchanging clothes and you might find yourself one day 'sumbitting to the authoritah' of the very person which you had neglected, rejected and offended not long ago

4. never miss out the white tree, no matter what the color of the forest.

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Credits and (c):

Photo 1 - Cole Thompson http://www.photographyblackwhite.com/lone-tree/
Photo 2 - Madkid & Shabs
Story - Shabby Shabs 2012


:D
 
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