Tracks of Friendship

A story from a while back about the reconnection of spirits.

Thick fluffy snow flakes fill the skies over the mountains; the darkness of night slowly turns into a dull gray gloomy morning. No breeze deters the snow as it settles down to coat everything with a thick blanket of white. No birds flitted thru the laden trees. No creatures stir. Nothing disturbs the eerie silence that lies as heavily as the snow over the mountains.

Steaming cup of coffee in hand, the man surveys to scene before him. First day of a long over due vacation one would expect that he would have still been fast asleep particularly on a cold morning such as this. His thoughts turn from admiring the winter scene before him to what had caused him to wake.

�Dad!�

The call had pierced the depths of the best sleep he had managed in months. Instantly awake he had lain quietly in the darkness waiting and listening.

�Dad!�

Closing his eyes once more now he sees the golden figure, the spiked hair and the mischievous grin, all those so familiar and so dearly missed things, bathed in silvery light.

�Come on, Dad.�

Without hesitation, his spirit of shimmering blues moves along side the golden one and the journey begins across the endless space of the Otherside. On and on they move, passing the innumerable streaks of every conceivable color darting here and there seemingly without direction or purpose. How long they traveled did not matter for Time is nothing. Time here doesn�t exist, has no meaning. The spiritual companionship with the one so missed has no words, only the intense warmth of love. At last, the golden one stops his silent message is clearly understood. There is something here to �see.�

Out of the distance a bright red speck appears heading straight toward them. Closer and closer it speeds becoming brighter with flaming oranges and reds. A sense of recognition, of some distant memory, sparks his interest.

***

Long minutes pass as he stands sipping the hot coffee and contemplating the white landscape. Even in the dim, gray light the scene was one of unblemished perfection. A childish sense of adventure overcomes common sense. Setting the now empty cup on the porch rail he steps from the porch.

Visually measuring the depth of the snow he judges there is easily three to four inches. �Not much for up here� he thinks �but the winter is still young.�

Slowly crossing the open area in front of the cabin he stops at the tree-line looking back at his solitary set of footprints. A bemused grin appears his face. Solitary? No! He knows deep within his heart that there is a set of unseen footprints right beside his own, the invisible footprints that will forever be alongside his own. With no destination in mind, he wanders off thru the cold, silent forest observing the perfection of Mother Nature at her best.

The newly fallen snow created a world of fantastically smooth, soft shapes. Everywhere he looked there was something new and interesting. Pausing he notices a set of tracks that intersect his path. Careful not to disturb them he leans down for a better view. Immediately he recognizes the tracks are that of a wolf. Wolves, at one time, were common to this area of the mountains but none had been seen here for years.

The falling snow had not yet begun to cover them which meant the wolf had passed only moments before. Thinking perhaps he could get a look at this creature he began to follow the trail. Cautiously he set a brisk pace always keeping to the right of them.

Half an hour later he still had not been able to get close enough for a look. Pausing to look around he began to wonder why he had been unable to overtake it. Judging from the distance between the footprints, the wolf seemed to be moving at a walk as if it was just out for a leisurely stroll.

Then as he inspected the trail once more he noticed a curious thing. There beside the wolf�s tracks was another set of tracks, much smaller and oddly shaped. Whatever it was, it had to be very light to leave such shallow prints in the snow. Peering closer he saw they were the tracks of a bird, a bird that walked not hopped. A bird that walked in a straight line and there was only one bird that he knew of that did that. This was a raven!

How odd! A raven walking along side a wolf!

Driven by curiosity he moves off once more. Oblivious to the falling snow and the cold he continued to follow. Eyes roving from the track in the snow to the surrounding forest he wondered this strange pairing. There was something almost mystical here. As he walked he began to wonder if perhaps there was something he was missing.

The trail led him to the crest of a low hill where he paused to peer toward a small clearing below. On a low mound of snow perched the raven facing the sitting wolf. Carefully he crept forward to stand against a tree to watch.

From all appearances wolf and raven seemed to be in the midst of a conversation without words. Seconds would pass with neither moving then one or the other seemed to nod in agreement or disagreement, then both would settle back into an attitude of patiently listening or speaking.

***

As the fiery reds and oranges came to hang motionless beside the one of blues a surge of friendship washed over him. Deep within his memories there was the recognition of a previous connection yet at this point what and when that was he was unsure.

From the silver and gold one came a sense of satisfaction, a sense of happiness, at this rediscovery of an old friendship and a new beginning.

Author's Note

Any and all comments are welcomed.

Reviews

[Lady Raven Spirit]

I came back here to C & P this as I miss your warm fur.

[Wildfleour]

It is hard to be objective, knowing the two of you and caring about both of you as I do. What I can say is that I have thought long about how the Raven and Wolf are spiritual mates and how two such opposite creatures can be thus. It reminds me of my story the Hitchhiker and Painted Pony. Part of what life seems to want us to learn is balance and how it creates order and harmony in the world. Your friendship does this and this story is a reflection of that.

The part about your son literally brought tears to my eyes......

[[untitled]]

Ah ... but Ravens and Wolves have walked together since the beginning of time, for the Raven can smell the wolf's food long before the wolf is able to do so. Thus the Wolf will follow the Raven as it flies to a kill. There has been a level of comfort between these two forever.