�����Looking at the fish bowl, the sun reflecting from it, I saw the fish was well, swimming in the coolness of his crystal pool. I grabbed my straw garden hat and walked out of the back door to tend to the vegetable beds.

�����The chiming of the four o�clock bell heralded suppertime. Afterward, the girls helped with the dishes and finished their schoolwork.

�����Our older daughter was off to her job at the local apothecary shop(2) and the youngest took a walk to the neighborhood park to meet her friends. With the children out of the house and my husband in the barn working on the old truck, I thought I would settle down with a book.

�����I read a few pages and I thought I heard someone speaking. Rising from my comfortable chair, I walked into the garden room a few feet away. I opened the back door and looked around. I thought it might be one of the youngsters from next door. There was no one there. The Vespers(3) bells were chiming.

�����I returned to my readings, the cat curled up next to me. I scanned a few more pages, not paying much attention to the words. I was very confused as to why I heard someone talking to me yet there was no one there.

�����My husband came in as the Sun was leaving its summer trail of bright colors across the western sky. The girls returned home from work and play and my quiet time disappeared quickly. The evening was very warm but enjoyable with talk of a day well spent. We retired to bed as St. Michael�s bell tolled eleven.

�����I was restless that night, waking several times. I couldn�t help but think about the voice I had heard the day before. Looking from the window, I watched the blinking of the stars across the midnight sky. The Mead Moon(4) hung low in the night, the color of warm honey.

�����The voice intruded upon my dreams several times that night.

�����As the Matin(5) bells chimed, I heard a scratching sound by the open window. Getting up from my bed, I walked toward the sound and there I saw a wounded sparrow wedged between the ivy in the windowbed(6). I opened the screen and picked up his tiny, bloodied body into the palm of my hand. He was terrified. I think he knew, in his own way, that I would help. I took him to the lavabo(7) and put some aloe juice onto his torn wing.

������Oh, those darn cats!�

������Please don�t blame the cats.� I heard the voice again.

�����Looking around, I saw no one. Since the bird could not fly, I let him borrow a spare birdcage so the wound could heal. He made himself at home.

������I�ll check up on you later little bird!� I called out to him as I went about my daily business of housekeeping and gardening.

�����While in the garden, I spotted a ladybug on a cabbage leaf. She was a brilliant, fire orange and had nine black spots across her wings. �Hello, Miss Ladybug, how are ---?� No sooner I uttered the words, a blackbird swooped down and gobbled her up!

������Bad bird!� I yelled, shaking my fist as he took flight.

������Please don�t blame the bird.�

�����I ignored the voice, shook my head, and went on with my gardening.

�����Weeding through the herb garden, a hornet struck full force into my cheek, twice.

������Confound it, these nasty bugs!� I screamed, the stinging pain moving toward my right ear and down my neck. Quickly, I reached down for leaf of lemon balm to soothe the stinging. Spitting in some dry dirt, I made a paste of mud to cool the area.

������Please don�t blame the hornet.�

�����This time the voice was a pleading one. Sitting down on the garden lawn I needed to find the source of this mysterious voice.

�����The Sun was shining brightly and the church bells were chiming too loudly, or so it seemed. It was a little past the noon hour and it was very hot. Because of the stings, I felt a little light-headed. I sat in the shade, next to the pond, mesmerized by the doctor snakes(8) playing tag over the water and the daddylonglegs(9) prancing across the damp rocks.

������Whew! That darn Sun!� I thought to myself, splashing some cool puddle water(10) onto my face.

������Please don�t blame the Sun.�

�����Before I could say a word, the voice spoke on. �I know it�s hot but at this time of the year it is the Sun�s blessed duty to heat this part of the universe.�

�����In front of me stood an exquisite white stallion. He looked spectral(11), yet he seemed very real. Centered at his blaze, a white orb glowed as he spoke. He was magnificent. I felt drawn to him, unafraid.

������Who are you?� I questioned.

������I am the part of your heart�s spirit that abides among the flora and fauna. I have come forth, as beckoned by our Sky Father, to help you understand the ways of Nature and of Life. Please listen to what I have to say and then, go on with your duties.�

He began �
������When we were fashioned by Creator God, all Nature abided together, in peace. Throughout the centuries man has learned to fear. Because of fear there is a lack of love among all peoples. That is not so among the animal and plant Kingdoms.�

������But humans are the greater creature,� I stated.

������So it may seem to you and those of your kind, but not to the rest of the universe.�

�����The orb on his forehead glowed brighter and larger.

He went on�
������There has always been dominance of mankind over the lesser creatures and many times, as history has taught, over each other. But it is we, the lesser, who hold the secrets of wisdom and balance.�

������Oh, please, I don�t understand.�

The stallion continued�

~ �Think of the butterflies and bees�
they look at the lush blossoming earth and feast from it ~

~ Watch a waterfall in a river�
it teems with life, allowing the earth to glorify itself ~

~ Look at the deer�
they feed gently in the meadow while allowing it to grow and bloom again ~

~ Observe the plants and trees�
they turn toward the Sun on the cloudiest days, seeking the light of nourishment ~

~ Wonder, through your mind�s eye, at the great whales�
they feed on the tiniest plankton in the world�s deepest waters ~

~ Hear the jungle cats dining on the zebra...
their bodies return to earth and help to resurrect it.
It is a balanced cycle ~

~Winds know where to blow~

~Lightning knows how to break a storm~

~Tides follow the magick(12) of the Moon~

~The Sun lights and warms each day~

������What am I to learn from all of this?� I asked. A gentle voice of serene magnificence emerged from the mighty stallion.

������There is a simple answer to your question. It is your fear that dims your mind�s light. Do you remember blaming the cats for hurting the fish and the bird? The cats were simply being cats. Then the bird ate the ladybug. That�s what birds do. Then the hornet stung you. That�s his place in life. These creatures were not wishing bane(13) upon anyone or anything. You were the one who misjudged each situation. The animals and insects were simply reacting to the environment around them. Therefore, you can do no less than these.�

�����The stallion�s words hit hard.

������So, you�re saying that I�m reacting to situations with a closed mind and self-centered spirit?� I tried to be polite as I was put in my place.

������That�s correct. It is the intention of our Creator for every creature to enjoy life, including you. Plants and animals can, without question, but somehow humans refuse. Humans complicate things. They think they know better.�

�����As a flash of light, I was beginning to experience the grace-filled gift of Understanding.

������I suppose we do think of ourselves as infallible and tend to place blame on everyone and everything but ourselves. We try to make our lives better on our own and give up when we fail. We make no room for the love and happiness the Universe already has gifted to us.�

������That�s right. Go on,� said the stallion.

������Well, just as the simple insects and great mammals are secure in their lives so must we learn to be with the help of our Great Father. I must learn to abide in peace with my fellow-man and with all creatures, as was intended at the beginning of our universe.�

������I think you�ve gained much,� said the mystical figure. �Please, continue.�

������There is great insight in what you say great stallion. I believe it is the protecting love, wisdom, and bright blessings of our Sky Father that you have brought to me and I thank you.�

�����Observing the mystical creature, the orb on his forehead reflected so much light I could barely see him. Mighty wings opened as they lifted and carried him beyond my sight.

�����As he left me, I heard the voice for the last time. �Please, always do your best, in all things. Do not judge yourself or any creature. Leave all to the One who will bring everything to perfection.�

������Memmy, Memmy, can you hear me? Wake up!� I heard my youngest daughter�s voice.

�����Opening my eyes, I saw my family watching over my bed, like a host(14) of smiling angels.

������Oh, Memmy! Those nasty hornets stung you so bad we had to call the ambulance.� She was crying.

������Don�t cry. I�ll be fine.� I tried to reassure her.

�����My head ached and I felt very dizzy but I managed a soft whisper.

������Please don�t blame the hornets. It was entirely my fault. I didn�t know that their nest was in the rose thicket. I bothered them and they were only doing what hornets know to do. They defended their home and defended it well. When I get home I must thank them for the great lesson they taught me.

�����She looked very puzzled.

������By the way, how is my little sparrow?� I asked her.

������Oh, Memmy, I�m so sorry. He died last night. Daddy and I buried him beneath the Wysteria because we knew that�s what you would have done. I said a little prayer, too�

�����Smiling at her, I squeezed her hand. I closed my tearing eyes and drifted off to sleep.

�����A bright light appeared and revealed the great stallion all a-glow, wings fullspread. He bowed to me, turned, and took flight through a rainbowed trail of falling stars.

for July

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WORD LIST FOR THIS STORY

(1) PASSAGE - a hallway

(2) APOTHECARY SHOP - a pharmacy; drug store

(3) VESPERS - the Ancient call to Evening Prayer - the first bell of the evening, usually at eighteen-hundred hour or 6 PM

(4) MEAD MOON - July Moon

(5) MATIN - the Ancient call to Morning Prayer - the first bell of the morning, usually at six-hundred hour or 6 AM

(6) WINDOWBED - flowerbox on the outside of a window

(7) LAVABO - bathroom sink, usually a small, portable basin

(8) DOCTOR SNAKES - dragonflies

(9) DADDYLONGLEGS - sometimes referred to as the 'Harvestman' - a spiderlike creature of the family, Phalangia...a Daddylongleg in NOT a spider!

(10) PUDDLE WATER - water that splashes out from a larger water source and forms clear puddles on bare ground; a bog

(11) SPECTRAL - ghostlike; a vision usually graced by faeries or angels

(12) MAGICK - the use of the end 'k' as used in the Old Religion

(13) BANE - bad

(14) HOST - a group

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SableHawk
� 2001. All rights reserved.
The Library of Congress
Washington, D.C. 20559
USA

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