by Fiona Mather

Created on: November 29, 2008

Tentatively I walked down the path approaching the tree that stood guard on the way to the village that was my home. Soaking up the suns rays and feeling them penetrating my ageing bones, making me feel more alive than I had a right to. I was nearing my eighty-sixth birthday. I had witnessed numerous summers and winters as had the sturdy oak that was now within touching distance. It had stood alone for hundreds of years soaking up rain, sun and every other form of weather known to man. How I wished it could tell me what it had seen as it stood firm and unyielding.

These musings suddenly brought to mind my past with vivid flashes of memory almost in front of my eyes. I remember being a little girl skipping down this same path feeling the heat so intense invading my whole body making me feel not just alive, I now realise but vibrant.

I now stood at the foot of this grand loyal and dependable tree and strained my neck with less ease than I had as a girl, to trace the many branches that reached forever upward to, as I had once thought, the sun. I so still wanted to climb to the top and reach out and touch the sun! Smiling to myself at the thought of such innocence I found myself putting my outstretched arms with old gnarled hands around a fraction of the gigantic trunk. My hands resembled the rough bark, weathered and tough.

Suddenly feeling beaten by the searing heat I cautiously sat down as I had many times at the foot of this giant protector, not knowing how I would get up again. Closing my eyes I felt myself slowly yielding to the suns soothing rays. After a while I became aware of a child's voice in the distance. The sound stirred me and I fought to stand, eventually getting there. As I stood a small fresh faced child was staring intently in my direction for what seemed like an age. " I suppose you're going to ask why an old woman is standing alone by this tree" The girl seemed mesmerised. Breaking the silence she said " Where are you going ?" " I'm going home now, I always rest here after my walk" I replied. My voice sounded slightly different and a little distant. " I'm going home too, we could walk together " she replied.

Setting off at a somewhat faster speed than was usual for a woman my age, I felt compelled to look back at that majestic tree. To my surprise there was an ambulance by it and two paramedics were respectfully guiding a stretcher into it. A sheet was covering the entire body of whoever was laid there.

I turned back to the girl but she was no longer there. I quickly skipped on feeling as free as a bird.

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