The Gleam Within

Theo met me as I was walking back down the mountain to Owl Creek. He was empty handed, but looked very happy, as it he had been successful. He smiled at me. “Well, by the smile on your face, you look like you must have found gold,” he said.

 

“I did,” I answered him, and showed him the contents of my pack.

 

He whistled. “Good job!  I’m glad you found some. Why are you carrying it like that though?”

 

“What do you mean?” I was confused.

 

“Let’s get back down to the house, and I’ll show you what I mean,” he said, and set a pace my tired legs could barely keep up with.

 

When we got to the house, Theo called for Lissa to join us, and we all sat down in the front room. “Show Lissa your find,” he told me.

 

I did this, and she smiled and asked, “But why are you carrying it that way?”

 

I was completely puzzled. “Theo asked the same thing. But I don’t understand what you mean,” I said.

 

“Pick up a nugget,” Lissa told me.

 

I did, holding it in the palm of my hand.

 

“Now, relax, close your hand around it. Do you feel what’s inside it?”

 

I could feel something, yes. It was like the feeling I had when I first found the nugget- a germ of an idea, a flash of inspiration gleamed at me like the nugget had in the dark mine.

 

“Oh!” I said.

 

“That’s it. You’re getting it! Now just keep doing that. Do you feel it becoming a part of you? Reaching down inside you and growing?

 

I did.

 

“Good. Now you see what the gold can do. Reach for it, feel it, let it grow within you. When you are creating, let the gleam from this gold flow into what you are making, let it help you create. You’ll be surprised at what you can do with it when you have some practice.”

 

I smiled at them. “Thank you so much. You’ve truly helped.”

 

“Let me get you a bag for the rest of your nuggets,” said Lissa, getting up.

 

I turned to Theo, “How do you carry your gold?” I asked.

 

“Look!” He opened his hand, and I saw a gleam of gold in the palm, but it was like it part of his body.

 

“With practice, you will be able to do this too. Don’t be alarmed if the alluvial gold becomes one with you. It just means you have learned to tap it at will. Lissa doesn’t even need to be physically at the mine anymore to find the gold. Keep trying. You’ll get there too.”

 

Lissa came back with a little embroidered bag- despite the fact that the gold was weighing me down, I was surprised to see that there wasn’t a lot of it physically. It was just very heavy, very rich. “I keep these around for the people I host,” she smiled. “I’m so glad you were able to find gold!” She helped me transfer the nuggets into the bag- except for the one in my hand, which I was surprised to see was like Theo’s now – part of me.

 

“Good!” said Lissa. “You’re catching on fast.

 

The gleam from the nugget was begging me to go and write for a while. “I can see what you want to do!” Lissa laughed. “You’ll find pens and paper at the desk in your room. Dinner won’t be ready for a while. Go and write. I know that Theo always has to play when he gets home.” Laughing, she left for the kitchen. Theo and I looked at each other and smiled, and he reached for his fiddle as I headed for the stairs.

I had found the secret of my own spark of creativity- buried deep inside, in the dark, where the gleams from the gold shone brightly. I thought that may have been the easy part- finding that it was there. Now came the work- finding it again when I needed it, and leaning to use it.

 

Posted by She Wolf