The Chosen of Earth Mother

Wandering.

That is all she did. She didn’t remember when she started. Or when she would stop. She walked. Sometimes she ran. The soil was warm under her feet. It was almost like she could feel the hum of Earth Mother through it. The pine needles picked and prodded at her. Leaving scratches on her deep brown skin. They reminded her that she was real. A breathing, walking human. Not a spirit or a phantom of the forest.

The forest stretched for miles- or it seemed, because no matter how far she walked, she never reached the other side. She was okay with that thought. The other side meant people. She was content with herself and earth mother. She was content with feeling the wind on her face and seeing the wild creatures. Most of them were quiet and curious, they made her smile. Sometimes, though, she did wonder why she was walking. What was she here for? The earth mother hummed under her feet, as if to keep her from worrying.

The trees towered above her head, ancient branches pushing out like hands reaching for the sky. Each and every one was handcrafted by the mother herself, mixed by her blood and tears, from the first time humans broke her heart. They had done it repeatedly since. So the mother grew silent, only talking to her chosen. Ones who open their senses and minds to her.

The air was warm and soft, it warmed her skin as she was usually cold in the woods. Walking and wandering as she moved her fingers against the bark and her toes in the soil, she smiled. The wind blew a nice breeze against her skin, as if saying hello, but it made the hairs on her neck stand, as if it was almost electric buzzing in the wind.

She liked whatever this was. She didn’t know what it was exactly, she couldn't remember much, only the warm humming of the earth mother. No name, no voices, no past. She didn’t have to deal with it all, only the chirping of the birds and the whispering of the wind. The constant, serene noise of nature made her feel calm and at home. That was because of Earth Mother. The mother opened her home to her. She became one of the chosen, or she hoped she did. The mother didn’t talk much, but she was always there. Always a warm present, humming under her feet, and pulsing through the trees, but was this always her home? Was this truly her home? That she couldn’t answer.

She felt like running, so she ran. Fast, fierce, and as far as her feet would take her. The earth seemed to boom every time her foot hit the ground, as if warning. Warning that something was wrong. What could be wrong? She didn’t know. The air started to shift, something was happening. Something big. Something important. Her stomach grew achy with anxiety, as the trees seemed to stop swaying. The trees always knew something she didn’t.

Suddenly, the wind that was once calm and comforting seemed to be lashing out at her. It whipped her hair and the leaves of the trees. The breezes melted away into something harsh and full of fury. Picking up dirt, leaves, and branches, it created a swirl around her. Moving her legs, she walks in a circle, trying to understand the message. Her eyes, rich like the dirt, which she loved almost as much as she loved Earth Mother because she blessed her with the eyes of earth. They tried to follow the wind's movement, but it moved at a rapid pace. She felt the rumble of the earth beneath her, calling her to action.

“I don’t understand,” she screams out into the air, pushing hair out of her face. She continues, “What are you saying to me?”

This angers the wind, it continues the assault. Sticks and pine needles scratched at her skin, and dirt pushed itself into her eyes. Which she would’ve found ironic if not for the situation. The dust burned her eyes, and the scratches bled. This was a challenge. One she had to win.

Fed up, she screams, and screams and screams some more. The loud voice radiates through the woods, scaring the animals she believed to be friends. She screamed to match the wind's howling voice, letting whatever emotions she felt out into the open.

Each scream brought something new out of her. It brought out part of her that lay dormant. Something that clawed its way to the surface. Her heart beat to match the pulsing of the voice of the mother, in the soil.

Her throat felt raw, it cracked as she screamed. She started to stomp on the ground, feeling the humming and vibrations of the earth. Beating the ground with fury that didn’t seem to be hers. It seemed to be coming out of the ground, pumping through her. As if the earth wanted her to beat the wind. The mother believed in her. She believed in a human. Her chosen. She would not disappoint.

She had never felt the pure power that emanated from her surroundings. It seemed overwhelming, between the electricity in the air and the surge coming from the ground. Through this power, she felt the adrenaline pumping through her, mixing with the strength given to her from the earth.

Her legs ached, but with each stomp, she battled the pure rage of the wind. The dirt and dust caked her feet. Each stomp releases more into the air, more ammo for the wind. Her lungs burned, screaming at her to stop, but she couldn’t. Not yet.

Standing there, she beat the ground till her feet bled, and her voice had about left her, but she pushed on. She could have been waiting in the wind for hours, minutes, or even seconds, she didn’t know. The wind pushed on, so she did, but as she grew weary, the wind seemed to grow stronger.

Falling to her knees, pain throbbed through her body. Her feet were bloody and cracked, ankles swollen from standing, and her voice weak. Throat dry, red, and throbbing with pain. Through the pain of the scream, she felt the pain of the mother, the hatred of the wind, and the raw energy surrounding her. Becoming a part of her.

She banged on the ground with her fist, until they were raw and red. She would not let the wind win. She would not let the mother down.

Her eyes drooped, and as a final use of her energy, she used her raw and torn throat to scream once more into the air. A scream then was louder than the ones before. A scream so loud that the birds left the trees, and her vocal cords seemed to rip in her very throat. Tears left her eyes, her beautiful, soft brown eyes. They poured down her face, mixing with the blood of her hands and feet.

As quickly as the wind came, it vanished. Scattering the debris as far as the eye could see. The trees didn’t move, as if holding their breath. The air, once warm, was now hot and heavy as the beads of sweat slid off her. Eyes, red and irritated, burned as hot, salty tears streamed down her face.

Breathing out a laugh, she closes her eyes as her body hits the ground. She did it. She couldn’t believe it. As she hears the nothingness of what used to be the wind, she feels the fury that built up slowly melt out of her body and back into the ground. Returning to the place it came from. Her heart, still the beating of the voice of mother, slows as she calms.

As darkness sparked in her eyes, it didn’t matter. Nothing did but the warmth of earth mother. It enveloped her, almost as a blanket. She was connected to the mother fully now. She lay, collapsing, breathing like she had been drowning. Her hands, bruised and achy, dug into the soil. Into her warm blood and cold tears, an offering to the mother.

“My child, rest now. You did well…” a motherly voice whispered, soft enough that she almost didn’t hear it, but she felt as the roots grew around her. The long and slightly scratchy roots of the trees. They grew over her hand, legs, and chest. A hug and praise from Earth and her beautiful trees.

“Yes, mother,” she mumbled back, through a broken voice. The ground was warm, her head was heavy and her thoughts grew silent, other than one. She was here for the mother. She fought for her day in and day out. And that met more than anything to her. She had a reason to believe, not to blindly follow anymore. The earth mother had pushed her to the limits and then some, but in her struggle, she found her purpose. To fight. To protect. Which, she realized, was enough for her.

And so between the warmth of the soil and the praise, she could not keep awake any longer, so she shut her eyes. The trees scratchy roots seemed to tighten in a protective manner as to say you will be safe with us.

She knew she was in good hands with Earth Mother. A smile gracing her features, she let her body rest to the humming of the mother against her body. For how long, she wouldn’t know. Only the mother will decide when to wake her.