Woods #3
Woods #3 belongs to the following groups:
! Creative Writing & Poetry !, All Things Poetic, Artistic, Philosophical, Art Inspired by Dreams, Core [C.O.R.E], Creative, Talented, and Unknown, Freedom to Shine, Graphic Scratch, Live, Love, Dream: , Masterpieces: Literary Workshop, Self as Other, Up & Coming Writers, WMG and Writing: Persuing HappinessThe woods were blacker than the space behind his eyes. The boy could not see his shadow, there was no light to cast it.
“Are you there?” he asked.
“Yes,” said several voices from several angles.
The boy stopped. He became aware of the darkness, not a single mass, but the collected shadows of the world around him. He could feel them pressing, pulling bumps from his skin and lifting the hairs on his arms. The boy dug his heels into the earth. Pine needles cracked between his feet and his shadow’s. Perfume filled the air.
“I’m afraid,” he whispered.
“There is nothing to fear,” said the voices. He strained his ears, listened for the voice of his own shadow beneath the weight of the world’s.
“Why have you come?” they asked as one.
“To find my heart,” said the boy.
“It beats within your chest,” they said.
“But it is also lost in the world,” said the boy.
“The world is big, and you are small.”
“The world is big, and I am small,” repeated the boy. “But the world can expand and contract in proportion to my own fear or my love. I may always be small, but the world need not always be big.” The words were foreign to him, but they came from his mouth and fit the silence they fell into.
“The world is finite,” the voices said. “It cannot be more or less than what it is.”
“Shadows can stretch to fill space, bend to stand upon walls and ceilings, why is the same not true of the caster?”
“The world is finite,” they said, “As are all who occupy it. Shadow is infinite.”
“Shadow is an illusion of light,” said the boy.
“There is no light here,” they said.
“Then there can be no shadow.”
“You cannot deny us. You cannot deny yourself,” they said.
The boy stood, alone save the darkness. He turned his head. Black painted over his eyes. There was no direction here. No up or down, no compass by which to navigate.
“I understand,” he said.
The boy closed his eyes, wrapped himself in personal darkness to shut out that of the world. His shadow had held him upon the earth, met his footfalls at every turn, supported him and guided him. Now it was he who was beneath. He put his strength into meeting the foot from above. He was the shadow now. He had to trust his lighter self to find the path.
He expected to fall into oblivion, to miss his opposite and blindly plummet.
Needles cracked. Perfume filled the darkness. The boy walked.
Holly Ringland
whatever it is that is feeding your muse with tales of shadows and light and pine-scented perfumed darkness and sunrises and finding one’s self… please, do us all a favour and indulge absolute gluttony.
this is so sublime and quiet brad. your words make me feel brave.
Brad MacDuff replied
Thank you so much Holly. You always seem to say the right things to make me blush like a ten-year-old. I wrote the words to make myself feel brave, I am glad they could do the same for you.
butchart
this brought me visions of stepping into a puddle… in which the world around is reflected.. hoping not to drown…..... hope that makes some sense,,,,,,,,,,,,, your gift for meaningful conversation shines…......b
Brad MacDuff replied
Makes perfect sense my friend… though I tend to jump into puddles in hopes of crashing through to the other side… all I ever end with is a pair of wet shoes… as far as conversation goes? I’m more a reflective conversationalist… I tend to find the perfect thing to say long after everyone else has left the table.
butchart
you find the perfect thing to say to yourself all the time.. thanks for letting us listen…....b
Suzanne German
wow…...!!! a redemption of the soul…so powerful and beautiful!!
Brad MacDuff replied
Hi Suzanne. Sorry for taking so long to get back to you, but thank you for taking the time to read, and thank you for your wonderful comment!
artyfifi
Wow indeed. This quite stopped me in my tracks & made me think. Deep, beautiful writing. Thank you for sharing.
Brad MacDuff replied
Thank you so much Arty, for taking the time to read and the extra effort to offer feedback.
Naomi Duff
This is so thought provoking ,what an amazing talent you have . beautiful
Brad MacDuff replied
Thanks Naomi! Still beaming, and perhaps blushing a little at the same time!
ShadowDancer
I found myself walking further and further into the darkness of this piece… in the end I was left in a place in my own mind where voices echo and shadows disappear. Brilliant writing.
Brad MacDuff replied
Thank you ShadowDancer. It keeps going, and I hope you like the rest of the story as well.
lianne
I love this boy, who though so afraid, plucks up his courage and gathers his strength to meet the foot from above, but who trusts his lighter self to find the path. I totally love him – for this is the quiet truth for all of us. Courage is not the absence of fear, is it? It’s the will to act even in the face of fear, perhaps sobbing and puking all the way, but act with some sense of meaning and purpose and the integrity of obeying the voice of that lighter self. I’m so moved by this story Brad -deeply and immeasurably moved. Thank you.
Brad MacDuff replied
And thank you Lianne, always. You seem to find the right things to say to make me blush like a schoolboy. I said it before, but I will say it again, I am so happy to see you here. I have missed you!
lianne
Would it sound horribly silly of me to say I’ve missed me too – lol! I’m not sure where exactly I’ve gone but I have been MIA all winter! I drop in once in a blue moon and feed my soul with your writing, with Holly’s and Butch’s and then I disappear again for a couple of weeks. I think I told you once that you were the very first person I ever put on my watchlist when I joined this community and there’s a reason for that that goes far beyond my admiration, respect and appreciation of your talent. Someday perhaps I’ll be able to put that into words for you that don’t sound sappy and corny or overly sentimental. But for me it’s a very real connection and an essential nourishment for my spirit. Thank you for how often you’ve done that!
LadyOtilia
So… I really like it but I’m not sure I understood what happened to the boy… nor who he was.
Brad MacDuff replied
Thanks Lady O. This is the third part of a 7 part story. The first two are here and here . I hope that’ll clear things up for you ;)