Unity Bell has entered a garden- a garden at Hestia’s Hearth and it is there she now takes up residence…. well some aspects of her do anyway.
Heart Tree.
The Entrance to the next cave looked like this. Unity was astounded…. It would be here that she would meet Pele and Hestia, and become a guest of the earth.
If you should visit this site, please go to World Citizen Dreaming or Pythian Games where I am presently posting.
Unity Bell may one day have new adventures.
Cave 1#
‘catch a dream, and hear its tone- nightmare, enlightenment, peace or all three.’
So we entered the dream cave. To our surprise we passed through a curtain of pink blossoms and crossed a bridge. Everything we saw appeared as itself, then as Japanese writing. A tree turned from reality into the character denoting it. It turned from real to the bones of itself.
We even saw each other x rayed into letters for a brief moment before we turned back into our everyday selves.
It was then that we heard the recorders. They played ‘This old man, he played one….’ It was rather eerie the way the notes floated around in the cave. I wondered if we were about to be sacrificed as bones. Strange the way the notes twisted into something sinister.
An old man appeared before us as the notes drifted away, and shuffled towards Kiona. ‘Would you like my lunch, it’s all I have to offer.’
Kiona accepted meekly, ‘Yes. But what can we do for you?’
‘Just accept my gift and share it.’
It was simple black bread, and icy cave water. You have never ever tasted anything so sweet. I couldn’t believe the taste was so contrary to the texture of the bread. However, Shruti said it was ‘food given with love and sacrifice.’
We felt stronger, and so did our dear Donkey friends. Lillies, offered the old man a ride.
‘No, no, I have no need of your help guide these ones well.’
And so the old man departed, without us even knowing his name. His theme music played but the strange twist in the notes was gone. Lillies, followed the old man, and we followed her, but we never caught up with him, finding ourselves instead at the doorway of the second cave.
(c) all rights reserved June Perkins
So it was we came into the valley of bones. For us it was an odd space structured like a web. We had a series of complicated cross roads to consider, and choices of caves to travel to. I heard Armful of Tiger Lillies, Kiona’s donkey, singing inside my head.
The Valley of Bones
Can take many tones
It can be what it will
It can change at will
Puzzles you will find
Your heart map will unwind
Your mind may unravel
You will conquer nightmare travel
Shruti sighed “Oh no too many choices! Why does it have to include nightmares?”
Each cave had its own sign just like it was a supermarket aisle. “Let’s read the signs and all will be clear,” piped up Kiona.
We went forward on our donkeys to read the signs.
“catch a dream, and hear its tone- nightmare, enlightenment, peace or all three.”
“catch a serpent, or a box turtle, all you have to do is find your true inner spirit animal before you travel within”.
There was a cave shrouded in guitar tones where the sign said
“Do you love the Grace lands or the Shadow lands do you seek Inana than maybe you better enter within.”
Ariadne, paused at that cave and stomped the ground with her hoof.
Absolute bullet proof did not seem impressed and pulled back from that cave. Shruti looked doubtful “So who do we trust Ariadne, or Absolute Bullet Proof.”
“Well Lillies seems to think we will be in for nightmares, so maybe Ariadne has more courage.”
Shruti was in no mood for giggling, “Every quest has points in it where there are tests. I do want to help you find those hidden words. Let’s get Lillies to decide on the cave.”
“Did you all hear her song?” I asked.
“Yes” was the reply. So we pondered Lillie’s melody. It did not take long for us to sense we might have to go into all three of the caves that spoke to us the most loudly.
So we entered the dream cave. To our surprise we passed through a curtain of pink blossoms and crossed a bridge. Everything we saw appeared as itself, then as Japanese writing. A tree turned from reality into the character denoting it. It turned from real to the bones of itself.
(C) word and image June Perkins
“It has to chose us,” said Kiona.
The three of us were lined up in the stable whilst the donkeys surrounded us and sniffed us. They were pretty donkeys with garlands of hibiscus around their ears.
I felt like we were the three monkeys, hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil. Shruti giggled.
“I wish they’d hurry,” I whispered to Shruti.
“Seriously we just need to be off,” I continued.
“Shush…..” said Kiona, “The more you speak the longer they will take.”
Shruti was still muffling giggles. Although physically it had been a really long journey by foot to the Rose and Swan Theatre Shruti’s amusing stories had kept us going just when we thought we had enough of cutting the overgrown path.
She had told us a tale about a horse who had asked the Gods if it could be more beautiful, “If only I had a longer neck” it had moaned. A God of understanding heard and turned it into a camel. The horse had looked at its reflection in a puddle and cried out in agony, “but I am so ugly now!” And the God said “Yes, but I gave you your longer neck.”
Every now and then I would look at my heart map wondering if it held any clues to where we were going. I dreaded waking up a camel and tried to be content with our journey. The map was silent. Still every now and then I touched my precious walnut and my tiny wings and though about whether I should fly rather than walk. “Short cuts can get you into trouble,” my troublesome Aunt would say- she was always making me retrace my steps and take the path she wanted. “The road less traveled,” that was the one I wanted. I had to block my ears, Shruti’s laugh was becoming infectious. I shut my eyes too!
The donkey nudged me, I jumped. It brayed in a distinctly musical way, and sounded rather oddly like a tinkly flute. It had settled on me. I looked into its eyes. It seemed to bow and it seemed now I had to lead my new donkey out of the stable.
“Don’t worry, “ called out Kiona, “we will follow- I think you have to go with your donkey now.”
So I journeyed for a while on my own — my donkey, no my companion was quiet, and yet I was sure I could read her thoughts.
“I was once an Arabian Mare. Proud and magnificent. You would have been overjoyed to ride me then. Inana was my mistress once. Everyone would have looked at you. I have learnt the lesson of humility and I am inwardly the Arabian mare and outwardly the simple donkey. I am Ariadne. I am to take you to the Valley of Bones – there is a lake there- and it holds the way to Inana’s sister. ”
Kiona, and Shruti were now alongside me. I speculated that their donkeys were sharing some significant story with them. We were all a little quiet as the moon rose above the inn.
Kiona spoke, “We have to attach these dear ones together on a cart now and travel to that valley of bones. ”
Shruti, was far less cheerful, “I’m not sure I like the thought of being amongst bones…”
Kiona’s donkey, Armful of Tiger Lillies, began to sing inside our minds a song of the valley of bones.
The valley of bones
is where you’ll find your soul tones
Soul tones can be light
And sun bright
Soul tones can be dark
As the place where bones
disembark
Bones disembark from life
Into dust as they must
Some bones find a place
in the rocks
Some bones can give you shocks
Tick tock tick tock
Time she rocks
She suckles on your bones
Tick tock tick tock
Asks you to pull up your
life and bring yourself
to account
Find the girl with the snake
She will give you a shake…
“Has your donkey spoken to you,” I asked Shruti.
She looked slightly less apprehensive now,
“Ah yes, it tells me it’s name is Absolute Bullet Proof, might come in handy ? ”
© June Perkins April 2009
For more adventures by others in the Lemurian world searching for the Inner donkey
The Godess Inana
“Do you think they are hidden in nature, because they formed into dragon flies?” Kiona mused as she ate her fruit and home made toasted muesli.
“That would make sense but where do we start” I replied.
“Maybe they are hidden in a spider’s web like that in Charlotte’s web, where words woven made a pig famous so he was not eaten?” added another of the blanket making sisters, the nun who I had first met, Sister Abigal, who quietly joined us.
“Are they somewhere in the song of a nightengale?” asked the young girl from India, who I now knew as Shruti, as she skipped up to our table.
“Arata, arata” – I recalled outloud the ancient tongue of the Elder who had given us our visions.
“Maybe” said the Sister Abigal, “we need to unlock the meaning of arata, arata- does it really mean dig…”
Sister Abigal continued “Maybe it could be an acrostic for something else, dreams can be riddles.”
“We could consult a dream dictionary of some sort too” said Shruti.
“Yes but dreams have personal symbols too.
We need to know what these things mean to Unity,” added Kiona.
So Shruti, Kiona and I headed off to the library of the abbey to find a dream dictionary. Sister Abigal, excused herself, saying she had to attend to the garden, but she would keep a look out for things in the garden that might help in my quest. Sister Abigal said she’d keep thinking about that “arata” thing too.
As Kiona, Shruti and I made our way to the library I told them about my heart map.
“Oh let me see” begged Shruti.
She didn’t see what I did, but instead said “I see a Japanese actor, and an ancient city. ”
“Oh the ancient city is from Sumeria, there’s a Godess there.”
Shruti peered deeply into my heart map. She seemed lost in a some epic story. From time to time she would add more to it for us. We had stopped in awe at her tale and were seated at the feet of Shruti who had turned into a masterful storyteller.
“There was an epic battle and a godess was lost to Aratta. Aratta
was supposed to send treasures to Enmerker, but he did not. He also suspected that Enmerker was after the godess Inana.
He tried to win a battle of champions by the trickery of a sorcerer, but he was not successful. The Godess was lost, his treasures were lost too.
There is another hero, his name is Lugalbanda, a holy man, who prays in a cave and he wins the battle against the angry Aratta. He bring peace to the land, and I think he helps Enmerker and Inana… Although Inana also helps too, she is one intelligent lady.”
Shruti started, “Oh she wants to speak to you..”
“Who? ” as she handed me my heart map. I saw the traces of a Inana. Her eyes looked deep into mine, as if trying to dig a meaning out. “Do not be Aratta…” she said softly.”Then you will find the Hidden Words meaning and keep it in your heart forever.” I had to look away the light from Inana was so bright and was flooding all the space around us.
Kiona did not seem at all perturbed by the events unfolding before us. She was calm.
“Look once more”
I did, and this time I saw a young girl with what appeared to be a giant serpent or an eel.
“Look again” she said
This time I saw the bread, the nail, the rocks and the candle..
I relayed this to Kiona- who became rather thoughtful.
“We’re going to have to swim for it…there’s a well where a young girl who disappeared many years ago on the other side of the island. I read a story about her in the library. They say she swam away with an eel.. I think she knows where your Hidden Words are. I think perhaps we must free her.”
Shruti, had something to add,
“As for the other three images I think that maybe they are in one of the Hidden Words,and you need to find that Hidden Word and place it into your walnut.”
“How did you two become so wise,”
They laughed and I had that strange sensation of seeing the light of the two angel sisters reflected in them, yet they were not those sisters, and yet they were.
So it was off to the other side of the Island for us, first we collected our provisions from Sister Abigal, who was pleased we had unlocked the meaning of the words. “Ah Sumerian, I should have guessed.”
to be continued.
(C) June Perkins, all rights reserved.
The Girl and the Serpent
Something of Interest
Hidden Words Map
#
Speck went looking for friends to go Ghostbusting with and he knocked on the doors of …..
the Meadow were Descartes and the Stowaways spent most of their time. The door opened and Descartes hopped out.
“Bah, those others are fraidy-cat stowaways…come on, let’s go ghost hunting!! I heard there maybe be ghosts on the E deck…wanna check it out?”
Alexis – March 13, 2009 at 8:16 am e
#
While the cat’s away…
celticsea – March 13, 2009 at 10:26 am e
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but first, let’s go to the kitchen! I talked Cordelia into whipping up a special treat for us – Tim Tams split down the middle with crickets inside! Ummm, crunchy! A gecko’s dream! Here, Descartes, try one!
But Descartes said…
Kezza – March 13, 2009 at 12:56 pm e
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“Crickets?? EEWWW. Sorry, Speck, don’t eat crickets. Hey, Cordy…do you have any Green Tea ice cream? I wouldn’t mind some of that.”
“Sorry, Des, Mr. P ate all my ice cream yesterday.”
“Drat. I really must remind that man to share with me next time!! So, guys…where to next?”
Alexis – March 13, 2009 at 1:15 pm e
#
“Eating crickets in any form; hidden in Tim Tams or dipped in chocolate is not my idea of a treat. ” said —-one of the ghost busting party.
Vi woodnymph – March 13, 2009 at 3:00 pm e
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“Good! More cricket cookies for me,” said Speck.
“Uh-oh! What was that sound? I feel a chill. What is it?”
kvwordsmith – March 13, 2009 at 3:08 pm e
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Yeah!!! Giggles from our cabin and the intermittant “That’s my foot Cecil” and our crane, Selene shrieking with excitement as we get shoes and coats and bags of goodies ready for a late night round of adventure. Count us in.
gemma – March 13, 2009 at 5:23 pm e
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I had to use my walnut to teleport home for a family emergency and have been trying to keep up as much as possible. Ms. Gigi was so happy to see me, but has been mum about what she’s been up to. I am busy catching up on all I missed while away, but will let you know what I find out. Ms. Gigi is a ghosthunting guru (or she thinks she is) ever since our walnut malfunction and adventure on the Ghost Coast. It will be interesting to see if she assumes her wolf shape again. Do you hear that howling? Ms. Gigi is here next to me!
Sally – March 13, 2009 at 9:24 pm e
#
Speck and crew, stowaways, Descartes, Cecil, Selene, were a rather strange sight, all perched on top of Ms Gigi who had taken on the shape of a wolf, assuring them she wouldn’t eat any of them – they were a bit dubious at first but Speck took the initiative and on he hopped and the others followed,
They headed down past the angel panels, and followed the clinking, clunking sound…..
pearlz – March 14, 2009 at 1:18 pm e
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**wufflesniff** WOOF!
A sudden furry shape jumped out from around one of the panels. It jumped in surprise at seeing us. And Ms Gigi jumped at the sound, assorted piggyback riders tumbling off.
“Oh…Wee Angus!! it’s only you!”
“Sorry, I thought you were that missing muse I’ve been looking for. What’s with the fellowship and what far off adventures are you off to?
Speck was so scared of canetoads. They often smelt terrible from hiding under tarpaulins. The thought of a ghost of a cane toad that someone had killed going after him was unbearable. Ms Gigi was fearless though and said ” We really need to rid some parts of the world of cane toads because they were running rampant and killing other wildlife.”
“Yeah” all the gang felt they should really go after canetoad ghosts and send them into a land of happiness and joy where they were welcome and could do good. Everything must be capable of doing good even cane toads!
Angus, had decided to join them as he felt they all needed some protecting, even with Ms Gigi being a wolf, after all you just never knew with Canetoad ghosts- they could become giant!!
The Stowaways and Descartes were sure that all they needed to do was to find some way of trapping the Canetoad ghosts, “Maybe they we need to go and find E- and ask her if there are any gifts for the additional cabin members who have been left on board.”
“The paint brushes!” Exclaimed Speck
“Of course maybe they could paint a trap door for the Canetoads, a trap door to canetoad heaven.” exlaimed the Stowaways.
Descartes felt slightly nervous, because in some places he was considered a pest, and yet he was such a delightful creature. He wondered if maybe they could be especially kind to the canetoad before they lured it into the trap door, but the stowaways were having none of that.
So off they went to find a canetoad ghost….whilst looking out for the butterfly ghosts!
To Unity
“The Abbey”
Isle of Lenore
Speck
SS Vulcania
c/-Raven
Dear Unity,
Ms Gigi, the shapeshifter helped me write this.
That Raven, Nimi, was spooky! She swiped a couple of tim tams too. Lucky for me. I’m not sure about meeting your owl friends, unless they also come in human or gecko form.
When are you getting back from that Abbey? There is lots to do on the ship. I can’t understand why you have to leave it, although if you see any good looking Geckos I’ll be there. I do miss the gang from back home.
We (I have several friends Descartes, Ms Gigi and a few other stowaways) have just about had enough of setting practical jokes on Angus. He always has a way of making them backfire on us. I’ve already had to shed my tail twice. I might just have to make friends with him and he can join us in terrorising someone else. We were all thinking of doing a spot of DRAGON hunting. Well that’s if I can talk everyone else into it. Someone said there’s a chance there’s a few ghosts and monsters on board. Pah… humans honestly they take themselves far too seriously.
You seem to be meeting some interesting people. Spiral staircase into nowhere, sounds a “bit up in the air” …. But don’t forget about me remember the seeds too, I think you need to plant those when you come back.
Is there even the remotest chance that I used to be something other than a gecko and was just maybe magically changed into a gecko. It’s just Ms Gigi seems to be able to shape shift and I wondered if maybe I could do that do. I’ve heard there’s another shape shifter on board.
I love surprises, if they’re good ones!
Gotta go, the gang is waiting- yeah yeah we’ll behave ourselves, that is we won’t destroy the SS Vulcania just protect it!
Keep Chirpy,
Speck
PS I enclosed some supplies from the ship –it’s as much as Nimi could manage to carry. I hope she gives you it all. There should be 3 items.
(C) June Perkins, all rights reserved, image courtesy Paulien Bats
Authors Notes:
Ms Gigi can be found at Mystical Music Cabin
Descartes is over at Rillas
Angus mills around deck but can also be found at Angus’s Home
Other shapeshifters on board Thalia’s Blog
For more on dragon hunting Veiled Lady’s Cabin
For inspiration on Revelry
Hands Nurturing
To Speck
SS Vulcania
c/-Raven
Unity
“The Abbey”
Isle of Lenore
Dear Speck,
I am sure you would love the abbey garden and find cousins of yours hiding under the rocks and the leaves. I can just see you darting everywhere and scampering around the nuns and creating your lovable havoc. I think you would delight the ladies I have met here. They have come from all over the world. They like to come to the abbey, sometimes to fast and pray and contemplate, and this place is so welcoming it doesn’t mind what their story is as long as they assist in the abbey in some way and respect everyone’s space. There are some spooky happenings but I’ve managed to steer clear of most of that, although I did come across a monster in a vision.
Yes Speck, there are plenty of crickets and other munchies for you in the garden. I think you’d be welcome to eat some of the pests, as long as you didn’t become one!
There has been chatter about collaboration, and the lady from the Americas, Kiona, has invited me to a group who are making a blanket of stories from her peoples. She is encouraging all the other ladies to join the blanket making project. She was keenly interested to hear of a passenger from the SS Vulcania’s story making cloth and says she’d really like to meet her.
I was explaining to her that I really needed to find The Hidden Words. She has told me she would help me look for them and then asked me what vision I had on the spiral staircase. I told her about climbing the Spiral Staircase. She was so still, as if all of her being was listening and even her body movements did not interrupt my speaking in anyway. I don’t think I’ve ever been listened to like that before.
I asked what her learning had been and she told me about her dream. This is Kiona’s Dream
I saw animals like you but mine were ravens with balls of light, they dropped the threads of light, and I was hanging on for dear life as the light unraveled. I had to keep hanging onto the light and then spreading that light. I seeped down into the ground and I found myself back in the beginning, digging through several worlds to come to this one.
I tried to listen as she had– it was not difficult, as her words had such majesty to them. Some are born storytellers yeah and some are born geckos. Ha ha ha! We spoke some more but more of that when I catch up with you onboard. So after blanket making this morning Kiona and I will be searching for The Hidden Words. We know part of the clues might lie in the dragonfly swarming part of my dream. Kiona says I have to work out what dragonflies mean to me and that may be an important hint.
Now please do behave yourself, word gets around, and I hear you’ve been handing around tim tams, which you know send you and small creatures like you haywire. I hear you’ve been making some new friends, now that’s great but just remember why you came on board and keep our cabin in good order. Do keep a look out for those panels near our cabin? I am sure there is something in those panels to be unraveled, maybe The Hidden Words can give us a hand. Here’s hoping we find them. I do hope they are not still in the form of dragonflies, or any other such thing that you may be in the slightest bit tempted to EAT! We can’t have you eating holy words !! Mind you I suspect the man in the green turban and his brother would both see the humour in it and forgive you, and even have a way of retrieving them but we don’t want to go there OKAY!
I do hope this finds you, Kiona, says her raven is very reliable and will be sure to drop it off to you at our cabin. Take the time to read it you cheeky little thing. I will be back soon as I can. I have a few surprises for you and I met the coolest owls! Virginia, Oodgeroo, and Emily. I suspect you would have liked Oodgeroo the most. She loves the land that one.
Lots of love and crickets,
Unity.
Hands Nurturing
(C) June Perkins all rights reserved
Some of the inspiration for this post came from
The Dig Tree- Overcoming the Starving Artist Syndrome.
And also Jill’s Story Cloth Blog
Morgaine’s (Jill’s) Cabin
from the real life Hidden Words
Dancing Culture- By Gumbootspearlz
My hair and clothes had been smoked, smoked by the lady with the smoking leaves. She called on her Elders in the story place to the listening time in the story circle under the trees. Under the trees was the moonlight. In that moonlight were the guardians, the guardians of the stories of the messengers, of the stories of the breakers of the new dawn.
Guardians of different forms of knowledge gathered in the story circle. They were summoned by the smoke which wove itself into intricate circles and spirals in the air. The Spirals formed into the shape of shells, and the shells sang memories and prophecies.
The lady with the smoking leaves had long white hair and wore a finely carved bone necklace. The necklace was so intricate and showed the craft of her son who had made it for her. Her son was a master carver of some repute. His story was already well known to the guardians. He was destined to be one of the heroes, a hero who would die by the sword of the ancients. I knew this because I had met one of the ancients as a small child as she bathed by a river pool on my island. She had summoned me from sleep to the river pool with a song of the shell.
She had said “Look for the Spiral staircase, dream of the spiral stair case and when it’s time it will appear.”
But here I was with the lady with the smoking leaves, wondering how she had made her way into the abbey. She came from the place of the first stories, the place of the first moonlight, and she was far more ancient than all the women I had met at that first meeting.
We were all to meet with her – not just me. We were all to be smoked, to find our own inner flame and wisdom.
As she smoked me the spiral staircase appeared and she said in an ancient tongue
“shival”… climb. So I climbed not knowing to where I climbed. As I left the story circle I wondered if I would reach the moon- and fearing heights I looked down to see the bottom of the staircase had disappeared.
I was somewhere between earth and heaven, somewhere between smoke and pool of water. I called out “where is there to climb to… I can’t see the end…” “Shival, shival” I heard coming from somewhere above. A large dragon flew by and on it was Angel of Water, “Here jump on” she called… “But I am supposed to climb,” I replied.
“Yes, that’s true but wouldn’t it be easier to fly,”
“No I must climb, I must,”
“Wise Girl we are a temptation, so goodbye,” and that which I thought was Angel of Water turned into a monster and vanished.
So I climbed even though I could not see steps and I felt fine threads under my feet and in my fingers. This stair case was an invisible one. “shival, shival…” It was almost too much to step on such light steps that might shatter at any time in the thin air.
Then I saw white elephant he was so enormous. I was sure it was an auspicious sign. I wondered if I should leap from the ladder and go off on that elephant, surely that would be an adventure. But now I had to continue with my mountaineering into the sky.
The elephant turned into the Buddhist Nun, she bowed and she too vanished.
“Well done child, keep climbing, sorry to test you.”
I kept climbing not worrying about what was behind me instead moving ever closer towards the beckoning moon. She seemed to have a face, a lady in the moon, that would be sight-a lady dancing on the moon, an ancient figure with a barking owl for a friend. I was becoming light headed the further and further I climbed into the sky – and then I saw a book, perched in the sky, being brought to me in the beak of the barking owl. It dropped it onto me so suddenly I thought I would fall from the staircase- and then as I touched the book the staircase became solid again. This was such a relief, I sighed. My sighs turned into ruby red dragon flies. A swarm of them settled around the book and grasped the book. I heard little voices, “It’s the Hidden Words come down from heaven…”
I wanted to open the book but I was so frightened I would fall. “Please help me dragonflies.” I whispered in a tiny voice.
The dragonflies replied, “Of course child- we will take it to the abbey for you, but you must climb a little farther on the stairs.”
So I climbed, I was so tired, it felt truly like days I had been climbing into thin air, through mists, up to the moon. And now the mist cleared, and in front of me was the tree, the tree from Owl Island, but no it was not, it was actually his brother. He had dark eyes deep in his trunk. He had a nightingale perched on his branches. “Here child, you can fly back to the abbey on the song of this nightingale, this is true not false, do you trust?”
I was not sure whether to trust having seen a monster disguise itself as the Angel of Water. Could I trust? The dragonflies might have taken the book and given it to some wizard for all I knew. Yet, as the nightingale sang I knew to trust. It’s melody was just so sweet and the high pitched tones wove around me like a guardian of my soul, like a song both ancient and modern. I knew I could trust, and as if bursting asunder from some prison I soared and soared, until I was back in the circle, covered in the smoke of the lady with the leaves, her eyes bright and her song woven with the spirit of the nightingale. She sang..”arata, arata” motioning with her hands – dig dig…
© June Perkins all rights reserved
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Unity's Cabin 