he couldn't believe his eyes..after the concrete and pollution of babel land this was a paradise, a natural paradise, an untouched wildness. there were all manner of happy wildlife... there were seals floating in kelp beds with just their heads above water..some seals were body surfing just inside the waves . something gnat would like to try .someday . .pelicans flying just off shore in single file then all of them diving to catch fish.. .dolphins and whales were spouting . All creatures Eating and being eaten quite happily. There was no fear anywhere..
so he wandered .. he came to a rolling praire. there were no roads or paths here, just a sea of grass. A huge herd of buffalo were contentedly grazing in the distance. One or two raised their heads to looke at gnat .. then continued eating .. young calfs frolicked about .. .so he wandered
. after awhile ,he came upon a group of leather tipis . . rather than be shy he walked straight into their camp..the dogs started barking...and soon he was in a small crowd of indians... they spoke a very simple and pleasant language that gnat didnt understand so they tried sign language to no avail... he told them his name and they told theirs and it was all very relaxed..they offered him some soup that was in a pot on the fire..he sat down and ate it up . not realizing how hungry he was..he petted the dogs and the kids were trying to to find a game that they could play with him...starting with wrestling and then they pulled on his hand and led him into the woods .. .where they looked for animals with all seriousness...and those kids were great at it.. finding a large owl roosting in a tree and a skink with beautiful colors..down by the river there was a large snapping turtle on the bank.. they kids all jumped into the water and beckoned him to join..which he did after stripping down to his shorts ...there was a leather rope hanging from a tree that they used to swing over the water...they kept it up till it started to get dark..they ran back to the camp and tucked into some good food .. once it was dark they all hit the sack..they showed gnat which tipi he was to sleep in and he thanked them, but..he stayed outside to watch the stars with some of the other adults .. the fires were low and going out..they passed around a sack of grin seeds..each taking only one at a time . the moon was not as he remembered it..it was large and green . .a giant meteor went by and there arose among the adults a gentle ooo and aaaw ...soon gnat fell asleep
he awoke that morning feeling good ..a bit of dew on him.. . and he sang
he stayed awhile and loved every moment of it . he came to appreciate the tipi as a home and spiritual space..a great shelter from the heat and cold. the circle of the tipi is the circle of the earth...
they taught gnat how to find plants to eat and which nuts to eat..how to fish with a spear ,and wherer to find grin seeds. . . ... .,. and how to give thanks to GAIA GAIA, for the bounty and thanks to the creatures for their lives . .to take only what is needed and no more.. . what plants to put on a cut to help it heal. . and what root to take for a headache .. .it seemed that for every problem there was a natural cure .
the urge to travel was great and this wasn't yet Greem so he loaded up his pack and replenished his seeds and said goodbye to all.. there were some hugs..then he walked away. The shaman of the tribe walked a ways with gnat and after awhile spoke to him in his own language:
Shaman: I have not spoken while you were here because the lesson you need to learn cannot be transmitted by words.. you must live it .. its a life lesson , and you have learned it well....
#2 Love Depend upon nature .. .like a child .. suckle at the breast of Tao .
gnat gave thanks for the love lesson
Shaman: Also I am giving you a little pouch to wear around your neck. we call it a medicine bag, cause it contains strong medicine... here is some sage and a stone turtle fetish to put in it...
Gnat smelled the sage, it was sweet... he looked at the turtle fetish . and asked what kind of stone it was made out of.
Shaman>> it is "shiny stone"
.. . ..years later gnat would remember that answer as the best answer he'd ever heard..wow
gnat put the stone turtle and the sage into the pouch.. then put the pouch around his neck.. The shaman turned , waved goodbye and went back to the tribe .gnat was on his own and on his way. ..everywhere he went it was like he was the first person to ever stand there.. .he traveled very far through a most wonderous land . . and saw many buffaloes and animals .and birds and turtles and ran into some more tribes living off the land. ..and though they couldn't speak together, they always shared their laughter, food and seeds with him .
.. .then one day he came to the beginning of a dirt trail .the first one he'd seen in nootopia... he thought about it a bit .. that first step on a journey of a thousand miles .. and so he took the first step then the second and on and on
the trail wound on and on .. sometimes in the mountains.. and sometimes in the valleys..nothing but trees and plants and birds,bugs, lizards..bursting with life.. .. the path led near to the ocean . .
On the ocean trail.. he came across a colony of surfers and they took him in....but they didnt talk much at all,,, although they were always laughing .. in those days he spent alot of time learning to surf . . and eating albalone. One day he built a sand castle within the tide line just to see it swamped. Some days he took a an inflatable kayak out into the ocean..but first you had to clear the big waves that occurred 30 feet from the beach.. . getting the kayak past the surf was quite tricky so he had to time it just right.. one time as he was trying to paddle out to the ocean, the wave caught him and spun him around to face the shore.. He looked down at the base of the wave and could see the sandy bottom, just before he plunged down and hit it. And the wave came crashing down . It put a great strain on his back and didnt help the kayak much either..
here he learned a lesson in love with surfing and fishing and all that
#3 Love interacting with nature .playing with nature, .love nature and she will love you back ..
One day, it just felt right . he said goodbye to all, then. he loaded up his pack, replenished his seed sack , and struck out on the trail again .. .he'd explored a little before but soon he was in unchartered territory.. .everywhere was the same pristene land in total harmony and he fit right in as a natural part of it .. loving it all .
he came to a sign which read "Avenue of the Giants." Here the path became quite pleasant ..totally in the shade. A narrow file cut thru slight vegetation but lots of big trees...he came upon a special redwood tree ... it was huge,but with small evergreen needles... the trunk dwarfed little gnat .. . and he felt the spirit there all of a sudden.. his soul burst out and connected with the universe . . all the love was his and he was one with this magnificent tree . .it spoke to him the word love and he answered back the same . he shed tears of joy.
His body had a strange tingling.. .it was wonderful ,,,,like little arrows in his upper torso . . ..he hugged the trunk and strained to look directly upwards . something so old and yet so now. Its beauty was intact and safe here . for ever . and forever.never to feel the axe..its life respected and undisturbed. . suddenly a rope came dangeling down from up above.. it had a knot at the end.. a voice yelled "cmon up" so he grabbed the rope with his feet on the knot.."Ready?" and gnat yelled "YES" . . .and boom, he shot up in the air.. he saw a counter weight go by him on his way up and soon he was at the crown of the tree .. .and stepped off onto a platform constructed among the various limbs . .a young girl with brown hair and eyes welcomed him to her abode.
BFLY>>>>"Hi remember me,,,I am Butterfly..and I hope you brought me some grin seeds and some chocolate . . .."
Gnat hugged her , then he opened up his pack and brought out the requested sack of seeds..and ,,,8 packages of 85%cocao bar..
they each munched one and got the giggles..gnat loved the view. It was definately a little cooler up here.
After awhile, gnat rememebered just how brave and special Butterfly was.. like noone he'd ever met..
gnat>>: Butterfly tell me again why you live up here all alone?
Bfly>> First of all I am not alone, there are flying squirrels, and birds and all these gorgeous plants. The sun and moon . and ahhh the fog. . .and when she said this a patchy fog enveloped them ..and if i get lonely there are other people in other trees I can tallk to , , ,
Second....in the old days all these trees lived both in nootopia and Babel Land.. they had a dual existence here and there, the source of tremendous blessings. But the cons and the corpses started from the first to cut down all the big trees in Babel Land for money and power and maybe to erase all traces of highly sacred nature from the earth ...until now only a few of the big old trees are left in both worlds and this is one of them,,,, called LUNA, thats her name..this one is for me cause I can hear her . .one of the last dual trees and so I stay up here to live or die with it. to protect it .. love it ..love nature..love Luna..love
Gnat felt the tingle, , , , ,in his upper torso . . . very pleasant . . ..delightful , , , , a good omen , , , ,something that will now start coming to him at special moments for the rest of his life,,,,
Gnat fell in love with her all over again and stayed with her many days...very happy days
But all good things come to an end. and butterflies are free , remember .....they hugged and she said that she would always love him but that he must get back to Greem...he nodded
Bfly>>: Someday I'll go back to Greem and then I'll hope to see you there... as it is though ,,I must stay on my path with heart here with with Luna .. You'll always be with me as I will always be with you .. and this is the lesson:
they kissed..
he wiped away a tear, squeezed her hand and then grabbed the rope which took him back down to the ground . .
there were more huge trees as he continued on the avenue . and there was buzzy,s cottage where you could sit outside at a table and he would bring refreshment..herbal tea or lemonade and all kinds of different seed cakes which he had never had the likes of before. or since .. . he was served a special fog which was heavenly and there were ample figs.. . ..,, , , ,the cottage had its own little garden in the sunlight .. .buzzy was glad to see gnat and gnat was glad to see buzzy.....buzzy went into the cabin and came out with a book for gnat to read . . . "improbable planet . ..how Earth became humanitys home " hugh ross . . . .gnat knew he didnt have enough time to read it cover to cover so he skipped around . . .got the gist of it....which was how Gaia (earth mother) and Sol( the sun spirit )worked together to life and create a habitable world, tailor made for civilization to arise , , , ,soon it was time to sleep and it was very pleasant .....in the morning he set off , , , ,
.. .
.. he emerged from the Avenue of the Giants onto
to a slight hill.. when he got to the top he was surrounded by windmills..spinning fast.. he had a view beyond of a low village by the sea.. quite beautiful..
onto the town of GREEM