Me and My Donkey

I walked down the track, and through the meadow. The flowers were full of butterflies and I thought again about the garden spirit, the butterfly man. I wondered if he or his cousins came to dance in fields of flowers like this one. A honeybee buzzed past, and birds flew overhead. I stepped into the shade of the trees at the edge of the meadow and into the woods. The track here was covered with pine needles and smelled nice and spicy when I walked on it. It was quiet in here, and cool. I could hear the birds singing and little creatures scampering in the leafy canopy above me. When I looked up I could see patches of blue sky. I could feel myself slowing down, enjoying the walk and the place. I tried to do a Zen thing and just be in the moment. It is hard for me, because my mind is always thundering along at a million miles an hour, but I thought about each breath of spicy air, and the texture of the tree bark, and the sound of the breeze and the birds.

 

By the time I came out the other side of the wooded patch, I was feeling centered and relaxed.

However, it was getting later and the track was showing no signs of leading anywhere but “over the hills and far away”, or like Tolkien’s road, going ever on and on. Unfortunately, while a wonderful adventure, this did not address the fact that in my happy hurry to get going, I had not brought matches, or food, or water, or a bed roll, or any of those practical things that I now seemed to need.

 

“Oh, BOTHER!” I grumped, my centered and relaxed feeling evaporating like dew on a hot morning.

 

“What is your problem?” I heard a grumpy voice from the edge of the trees behind me.

 

I turned around. All I saw was a little brown donkey.

 

“Don’t you have any manners? I asked what your problem was,” came the voice again. There was no one there but the donkey.

 

“Excuse me?” I said politely.

 

“Oh, are you hard of hearing? I didn’t know,” said the voice again.

 

“No, I can hear just fine. I’m just trying to figure out where you are,” I replied.

 

The voice chuckled. “I’m standing right here in front of you. You’re staring right at me. You know, for someone who talks to butterfly men, you sure are set in your ways of thinking. Just because I’m a donkey, you decide I can’t possibly be the one talking to you. I can see you’ve got a lot to learn.”

“Oh…” was all I could say.

 

“Now come on over here and put your bag on my back. It’s getting late and we have a lot to do before it gets dark By the way, my name is George.”

 

“I’m She Wolf. Only, really, since the Wolf who runs here is far beyond anything I could be, I’m just an apprentice She Wolf.” I slung my bag on his back and tied it down with the straps there, and we set off down the track. “So, George, where are we going?” I asked.

 

“Well, in a little bit, on the other side of the river, we will join up with the road to Owl Creek. We’ll get there sometime tomorrow, I hope. There are some camping things up ahead, along with some other things you’ll need once we get to the mine.”

 

“Oh, yeah, I’ve heard there was a mine to visit.”

 

“Yes, and you’ll need to know about it. There’s some information in that little leather case on the other side of my harness.”

 

I reached over and untied the straps holding the case on. As we walked, I read about the Alluvial Mines and mining. “Boy, there’s an awful lot of information here,” I said.

 

“Just take your time. Don’t try to absorb it all at once. Read it over again later, and try a few of the exercises later. That’s what everyone else does,” said my new four-footed mentor.

 

So I read it and thought about it and looked all around me for the rest of the way down the side of the very large hill.

 

At the bottom was the river. Right here it was fast and strong, not a good place to ford it at all. I said so to the donkey. “Maybe we should walk up and down a little ways, and find a better place to cross,” I said.

 

“Nope. You need to cross it here. Do you see that island?”

 

“Yes…” The island was in the middle of the river a little way downstream. It looked pleasant, with trees on it, and a sandy beach. The river around it looked a bit wild, though.

 

“Well, you need to get to that island. That is where the camping things and the other things you’ll need are cached.”

 

Oh. Well. I finally squeaked, “Over there?”

 

“Over there.” He confirmed.

 

“How am I supposed to get over there?” I asked.

 

“Well, the best way is just to get in the water and swim,” said the donkey. “It’s cold, but not that cold. Besides, after the walk you’ve had today, you could use a little bath.” He snickered.

 

“Smart ass,” I said, before I thought.

 

“Why thank you!” he preened, and snickered again.

 

When he saw that I was hesitating, he said, “Look, sometimes, you need to just have faith, jump in, and do something. I am telling you this is safe- well, sort of- and you just need to take that leap. I’ll follow along with your bag.”

 

I took my shoes and socks off, and my hat, and put them in my backpack on top of the mule, and waded into the water. It dropped off almost immediately, and I found myself up to my neck in ice-cold water, being swirled around wildly. At least there were no rocks here. I remembered my goal of the island, and tried to steer myself in that direction. Fortunately, the current seemed to go that way anyway, because I was having no luck trying to control my ride in the river. With the help of the current, I was soon deposited on the sandy little beach, sodden and coughing a little, but exhilarated.

 

The donkey walked out of the water beside me, and asked, “So, how did you like your little swim?”

 

“Strangely, I enjoyed it. It was a wild, exciting ride!” I said.

 

“Good. You’ll get plenty of chances to go again; there are branches of this particular river all over the place. It takes a little practice, but you do learn to steer through the currents and make it take you where you want to go.” He looked smug. “Yup, theRiver of
Creativity can be very powerful, and tons of fun, but it can also be frightening. Some people never get over their fear enough to even try it, let alone get used to guiding themselves through it. I thought you’d be the sort to enjoy it. Now, go look in those trees over there, and you’ll find the things we need for the night.”

 

I found a little tarp covered cache of camping things, along with some food for me and a nosebag of oats for my four-legged friend. The Enchanteur had remembered to include all those things I had bounced off and forgotten, like matches, a pocket knife and a canteen- I was very, very grateful.

 

There was a camping spot there already, so I made a fire in the fire ring and boiled some water for a cup of tea- the Enchanteur had been kind enough to leave me a tin mug and some of my favorite Earl Grey tea. I dried off by the fire while we ate our dinners. The donkey and I talked for a while, and I wrote in my journal about the events of the day.

 

Then I remembered the little metal mirror I carried in my pocket, and taking it out, had another look at it. The image had changed, just a little tiny bit. I couldn’t even pinpoint exactly what had changed, only that it had. I put it back in my pocket. Then I lay back on the bedroll and watched the stars that dazzle the clear Lemurian sky wheel overhead until I fell asleep with the sound of the River like a lullaby. 

 

Posted by She Wolf