The Sleep

I was going to die. That's what she told me, anyway. She said she knew this the moment I was born. Today was my last day. As I sat there eating, I contemplated my short life. Could it really be possible that my life could be over so soon? It really wasn’t fair. I thought about how beautiful the world was. The green grass, for example. I love to watch the dew drops sparkling on it in the mornings, and see it part as critters move through it, going about their lives. I wish I could just go about my life. I gazed up at the sky. The soft, fluffy clouds crossed the stunning blue. The world was just so...vast. It was a shame I would never explore it. How marvelous must it be to travel the earth, seeing all the beautiful sights it has to offer.

To be honest, in all my life, I had one true wish; to be an adventurer. It was the most enticing idea that had ever crossed my young mind. I had heard stories of the great wonders of the world; giant waterfalls, with more dew drops than you could ever imagine! Enormous forests, full of more flora and fauna than you could ever see in a whole lifetime! Well...certainly more than you could see in my lifetime. The thought soured my fantasies yet again. The world was so beautiful. I would miss it so much. Even in my unadventurous life, I had grown to love so many things in this world. I had climbed trees with friends, feasted under the starlight, and listened to leaves blowing in the soft breeze.

Finishing my snack, I decided to do one of my favorite activities. I found a nearby tree and began to climb. The bark was rough, but I didn’t mind. Climbing trees made me feel alive. It was exhilarating to be so high above the ground. As I climbed, I thought about my childhood. I had come into the world, blinded by the bright light of the sun that I have come to love. My mother wasn’t there. My father wasn’t either. I never knew them. But my childhood was far from lonely. I had plenty of brothers and sisters, and we spent day after day laughing together, and discovering the world. We played under the open sky every day. Whenever we weren’t eating or sleeping, we played. I don’t see my siblings everyday now, but I do run into them on occasion. Except...I wouldn’t see them anymore, I reflected. The thought made me stop climbing, and I stayed where I was on a branch for a long while. I would miss my siblings...I wondered where they were.

As I sat, I heard a twig snap behind me. I glanced up, and my spirits brightened immediately. My sister! I hurried over to her. What a wonderful way to spend my last day.

“Maple!” I called.

“Aspen?” Came the reply. “Aspen! I’m so glad I’ve found you!”

I sat by Maple, confused. “You’ve been looking for me?” It wasn’t unusual to bump into my siblings, but we never sought each other out.

“Well, not you in particular--but I was hoping to see at least one of my siblings before…” she trailed off, looking troubled.

“Before what? What’s wrong?” My own worries suddenly felt unimportant. I wanted to help my sister with whatever time I had left.

“Aspen, this may come as a shock, but today is my last day on this beautiful earth.”

I stared at her. It had come as a shock! But perhaps not for the reason she thought.

“Maple, it’s my last day, too!”

Now it was Maple’s turn to gape at me. It was a while before either of us spoke. It was Maple who finally broke the silence. “The Old One told me. Did she tell you as well?”

“Yes. I saw her a week ago. She told me that when the sun is the highest in the sky, the day before the full moon, I would fall into The Sleep.”

“She told me the same! I saw her only yesterday. At least you have had more of a warning. Do you really think we’ll die today?” Maple looked up at the sky. The sun was almost at its highest.

“I don’t know...if she told you the same thing, maybe she just tells everyone that.” I responded. I felt a small flicker of hope. Perhaps the Old One liked to scare young ones?

“Maybe today isn’t our last after all!” Maple cried joyously. “It can’t be true, can it? I feel fine!”

I had to agree; I felt completely fine as well. And it did seem weird that both of us had been given the same message. I began to relax. I would not die today. My sister would not die either. We would spend the afternoon watching the birds, and clouds, and all things that we could see from high up in the tree. And when the sun was at its highest, we would still watch the sky. We would live on! We had to; There was so much to live for!

So there we sat, listening to birdsong, smelling the sweet breeze, watching the swirls of white fluff in the sky, and thinking about how much we loved life. As the day warmed up, I found myself feeling very sleepy. Glancing at Maple, I could tell she was drowsy too. It was a fine day for a nap. Certain now of our lives, the thought of napping no longer frightened me.

At the same time, Maple and I got up and crawled to the underside of our branch. As if we had rehearsed it, we both slowly began to hang from the tree. This was not how we normally slept, but it seemed so natural.

“Sleep well, Maple,” I murmured.

“Sleep well, Aspen,” she replied.

As I watched the dazzling sun rise in the sky, I remembered the words of the Old One, and then gave in to The Sleep.

Something felt strange. I couldn’t tell if I had been asleep for eternity or only a minute. The world around me was dark. For a heartbeat, I thought it must be night, but there were no stars. There was no moon. If there were sounds, I could not hear them. All at once, I remembered the Old One’s prophecy. It had been sun high when Maple and I went to sleep. Could the prophecy have been true? Was I in The Sleep, never to wake again? I lay there in the dark for a long time. I didn’t know how long. All I knew was that I was beginning to feel cramped. I pushed out in front of me. Something was there. Stretching, I realized that something was all around me! Was this death? How terrible! I pushed and pushed, willing it to give way and set me free.

Then I heard a crack. A sliver of light shone through my encasement. I continued pushing. Another crack. Before long, I was blinded by light, just as I had been at my birth. I gave one last stretch, and suddenly my wrappings fell away and I was free. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust to the light, and my body felt strange. I felt a great weight on my back, and I could do nothing but rest. I was soaked, as if I had been out in the rain all night. Whatever had trapped me had not been able to keep moisture out, it seemed. I closed my eyes and realized I could feel warmth, warm like sunbeams. How I missed the sunbeams of my world. If I was dead, I would feel them no longer.

When I finally felt dry, and the weight had seemingly vanished from my back, I opened my eyes. A flash of orange startled me, and I looked up to see the most beautiful creature I have ever seen. She danced through the air with vivid wings, bright orange, marked with black. I watched in awe, envying her ability to soar through the sky. She could go on those adventures I had always dreamed about. She could fly off and see those waterfalls with more water than you could ever drink. She could see those forests with more flora and fauna than you could ever hope to see. It was hard to feel bitter though, as I watched her grace and beauty. Perhaps The Sleep was not so unwelcome, if it had led me to behold this vision. I was shaken from my thoughts by a familiar voice.

“Aspen!”

I looked around. That was Maple’s voice! Was she here too? That would mean she had succumbed to The Sleep as well…

“Aspen! Look!”

The voice was coming from...could it be? I gazed up at the Orange Vision above me. “Maple…?”

“Aspen look at us! We’re alive! The prophecy didn’t come true!” She flitted around me. “And not only are we alive, but we can fly! We can go on all those journeys and adventures we talked about as kids!”

I was only half listening. My mind was focused on the fact that she had said “we can fly.” For the first time, I looked at myself. I was just like her. I was an Orange Vision. My mind was suddenly flooded with my past dreams, and fantasies, and ambitions, and hopes, and wishes. And for the first time, they all seemed possible! I could go on adventures and explore the world, and see all of the amazing and beautiful things I had always wanted to see! Hope and joy soared in my heart, and I could see the same happiness reflected in my sister, as she glided in circles around me.

I realized that, in a way, the Old One had been right. We had gone to Sleep, and our lives as we knew them were over. Adventures that I had only dared to dream about were now going to be a reality. I felt as though my new body could barely contain my happiness. And for the very first time, I spread my wings.