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Chapter 29: Dear Caesar & I's Big Big Sun-Greeting

8/2/2017

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Even in the comfort and security of our blessed Xanadu Forest, none but One (Edwin the Bee, of course!) have ever managed to achieve perfection. As it is upon Earth--and all other universes and dimensions--our lands are filled with creatures that are filled with flaws and quirks. Even the moons and the stars, and the trees and the flowers fall short of perfection, though, admittedly, the flaws are seldom observed or discussed in our lands.

Though I'm reluctant to make any comparison at all of our Xanadu Forest to your Earthly dimension, it feels proper to express that there is one very large difference between our existence and yours: namely that  in our lands we never lack love--of self, AND of neighbor. Even in our darkest and weakest moments, love remains, for us, the greatest power and the chief of all emotions. That's not to say we never get angry or make poor decisions, but that we never resort to violence nor wish ill toward others--even those we despise. For instance, I'm no fan at all of the greedy fat squirrels of Walnut St, and I truly despise the filthy seagulls of Bleakerton...but never would I intentionally cause or  wish harm upon even the very foulest of their respective species. I simply avoid them best as I can, which is much easier to do than one might imagine. Especially since it is my own imagination that gave birth to them. 

And poor decisions we make are rarely apologized for, for there is no need. In a word, the Xanaduvian way is to accept all things (including ourselves and our neighbors) for what they are rather than to attempt to control or correct them. For we believe that all things were made to be exactly as they were made, and that the One that made them understands all things much better than any of us. And since we are all flawed in some ways or others, we all know well that we are in no position to make judgments--of ourselves OR of others. We ARE. Everything else IS. It's that simple to we in the blessed Xanadu Forest and beyond. And besides, it's especially foolish to make judgments upon things we know nothing about, isn't it? I, for one, am very stubborn when it comes to this, and Edwin the Bee is always happy to remind me of that! He  seems to truly enjoy  every opportunity to inform me that I know nothing! But He truly loves me, and I truly love Him. And now this reminds me of the time Dear Caesar Emeritus, the Baloo-eyed Akita, and master of our Library Tree--and myself!--once made very poor decisions on the very same sun-greeting. So, if you like, dear reader, pull up a log, a rock, or a soft place in the grass and join us for a spell. 

Some of you will recall that Caw Caw Carl, the Stellers Jay, and my assistant to the assistant county clerk, had been doing the majority of my ancient Xanaduvian language homework of late. And though dear Caesar never got angry with me for passing along my homework, he had been reminding me more and more lately that I wasn't likely to learn much of my ancestral language without completing the work myself. Thick-headed as I am, it of course took extra prodding by my great instructor for this to really sink in [Truly, I am a slacker at heart--and anyone that truly knows me knows this well about me. But I don't apologize for it! It's just the way I was made, whether good or bad I don't know], but it really had begun to sink in, and I felt a great sense of accomplishment after completing a rather lengthy assignment all by myself. Indeed, I was anxious to turn in my work on this particular sun-greeting, and a vigorous pace carried my homework and I to the Library Tree with very little effort. 

To my surprise, I entered the Library Tree to find dear Caesar Emeritus on his back upon the floor, all four of his massive paws pointed straight up toward the heavens. Thinking myself clever, I laughed and quipped, "So you've taken up yoga now, dear Ceasar?! My beautiful gatekeeper Madeleine will be the end of us all for sure!" 

Dear Caesar seemed to be very distressed, though he didn't turn his head at all to look toward me when he replied, "Kev, is that you? Oh, Kev, I'm afraid I've made a terrible mistake. I'm so glad you're here...please help me!"

I dropped my completed homework to the floor and rushed to dear Caesar's side with a sense of urgency, scratching his ear tenderly. "What's the matter, dear Caesar?" I asked him.

"Oh, Kev. Kev, the vendlum leaf. I decided to test it, and now I can't see a thing! Only light. Surrounded by overwhelming light. Closing my eyes, or even opening them again, has no effect at all! I can only see the light."

I tried to calm and reassure dear Caesar, "Oh, dear Caesar, I'm sure it will be fine." I continued to scratch and pet the Baloo-eyed Akita tenderly, and added, "After all, it's called 'Seller of light' for good reason, I'm sure, so it sounds like it's doing exactly what it's supposed to. ["Vendlum" in the ancient Xanaduvian tongue translates into English as "seller of light"]

Dear Caesar continued, without moving, but enjoying my tender scratching and petting, "I'm sure you are right, Kev, and I've also supposed the effects are quite natural and temporary. What concerns me is that younglings from Lemmington are coming this sun-greeting for a special story group I started. I don't want to let them down, but there's no way I can manage them in my current state. We must find a way to reverse the effects of the vendlum leaf...and we must do so quickly!"

I helped dear Caesar to his feet, and was grateful he was able to move and to stand up, though he was quite disoriented, of course, and I had to hold him up. He wrapped his front leg around my shoulder for support, and I continued to reassure him, "Try not to worry, dear Caesar. We will fix this, I'm sure of it. You're not going to let the younglings down." In truth, I had no idea how I was going to fix this, but I knew well it would do no good at all to tell this to dear Caesar. I silently reminded myself to breathe gently and slowly, and began to search my mind for possible solutions. 

Just then, Madeleine's albino peacock (peahen) voice emanated from the intercom upon the wall above dear Caesar's desk, and asked, "Is there anything I can do to help, Kev? Sounds like quite a pickle." I noticed her voice was more tender than it normally was when she spoke to me, and I wondered briefly whether we were both beginning to understand one other better finally since she became my beautiful gatekeeper. [Yes, dear reader, my mind is easily distracted--even in times of distress!]

Then I realized my mind had become distracted again, and silently reminded myself to breathe slowly and softly once more, and I replied to Madeleine's intercom voice, "Thank you, beautiful gatekeeper, but no. This is an ancient Xanaduvian matter. I will find a way to fix this. I'll give you an update as soon as I'm able, and thank you again, Madeleine." And then it was my turn to make a very poor decision; for it occurred to me to guide dear Caesar toward the Sacred Pub, thinking that perhaps a pint or two of After Ale might be a perfect remedy.

[Now, dear reader, before you're tempted to believe that what's about to follow completely contradicts the Xanaduvian beliefs I laid out in the introduction to this story, I must make a few points:
1.The Sacred pub was not open for business when Caesar & I arrived
2.Olga the bartender fairy has a VERY strong personality
3.Olga is very well accustomed to dealing with critters in altered states of consciousness, and, as anyone who has ever been intoxicated well knows, they are often in need of "tough love"
4.Olga is always more than willing to apply this "tough love," and it sometimes comes off as an attempt to correct someone. And sometimes it is. But this should never be mistaken for judgment. She does so only out of genuine love and concern for her and all others that might be affected by any poor-decision-based incidents. Running a pub is no small task, you know!]

It took several knocks upon the Sacred Pub's door before a less-than-pleased-woken-from-slumber Olga the bartender fairy finally opened the door to dear Caesar and I. I knew Caesar and I were about to receive a great tongue-lashing from Olga as soon as I saw she was adorned in her terry cloth bathrobe and slippers. "Imbeciles! Ungrateful and thoughtless imbeciles!" were the only words Olga spoke to us before I began to explain what had occurred. My explanation of the events did little to soften Olga's breaths, and perhaps may have made them harsher. "Vendlum leaf?!!! What in Hades' name made you think vendlum leaf was a thing to try?!! That's sorcerer's weed, it is!" Despite Olga's fury, she led us inside the Sacred Pub and retrieved a pint of After Ale for dear Caesar as the emeritus and I sat down at the bar. The bartender fairy continued grumbling as dear Caesar chugged down his After Ale, "And I thought YOU the smart one, Caesar! Emeritus my ass! Imbeciles--the whole lot of you--I swear! Why do you let these fools corrupt you?" Then Olga turned to me and admonished, "And you, Mr. Kev, there's not a fluck's chance in Interterrestria that dog came upon vendlum leaf without your doing, laddie! What is wrong with you people?!!"

I lowered my head solemnly, and took my verbal beating from Olga silently. I knew well that any attempt at excuse or explanation would only anger her the more. After a respectful pause, I turned to dear Caesar and asked him, "Any difference, dear Caesar Emeritus? Any change in your vision?"

"None at all," dear Caesar replied almost hopelessly. "Just this overwhelming light. And disorientation. Perhaps I should have another?" I agreed, and Olga the bartender fairy barked at us more while she retrieved him another pint. Upon her return, she had seemed a bit calmer, and slid another fresh pint of After Ale in Caesar's direction. Then a strange and unexpected thing happened, and concerned us all greatly! I tried to put the pint into dear Caesar's paw, but his paw went straight through the glass--ale and ALL! And just as I was grasping his pint, intending to pour it down his throat, he began to hover above his bar stool. I jumped out of my own bar stool and rushed to hold him down. To no avail! I couldn't grasp him! My hands passed right through him as though he were a ghost, and he continued to drift and away and became increasingly more transparent. Then I saw an expression upon Olga's face that I had never seen before--and that I hope to never see again! It was the perfect blend of fury, panic, and helplessness.

I made no effort at all to remind myself to breathe gently and slowly, but almost instinctively reached into my pocket and removed the Dragon's Eye. I thought instantly of King Midas LeBottom, and instantly he appeared within my silvery orb. "Well, hello, Mr. Kev!" the orb spoke, and added, "So nice to see you! I see you're learning how to use the Dragon's Eye. Good. Very good. How goes it?"

Olga the bartender fairy began grumbling expletives and derogatory statements about sorcery that I won't repeat here, but I somehow managed to tune them out and reply to good King Midas, "Not so well, good King Midas. It seems dear Caesar Emeritus has experimented with the vendlum leaf you gave us, and now he can see nothing but overwhelming light. And younglings are arriving for a special story time with him."

King Midas LeBottom replied calmly, "Oh it will be quite fine, Mr. Kev. The overwhelming light he's seeing is quite the natural and proper effect of the vendlum leaf. The effect will pass soon enough. So long as he doesn't drink any ale, he will be quite himself before you know it." The good King Midas became slightly albeit lovingly agitated when I explained that we had just given dear Caesar some After Ale, but King Midas remained mostly calm. "I see," he continued. "Well, we have quite a situation now, Mr. Kev. You and dear Caesar Emeritus are going to have to learn some meditation techniques very quickly, lest we lose his spirit forever. You see, vendlum leaf only takes one's VISION into the light--not one's being. By giving him the After Ale, you've unwittingly allowed his entire BEING to latch on to the effects of the vendlum. Since Caesar has had no training in meditation as pertains to the light, his entire being is being carried away and he'll be trapped in a sort of limbo. The light that is overwhelming him now is sort of a universal narthex--a starting point of entry into any number of dimensions and universes. So what we'll need..."

I interrupted the good King Midas in a state of panic as I saw dear Caesar becoming ever more translucent, and still drifting--his being now only halfway visible beneath the ceiling of the Sacred Pub--"We're losing him! We're losing dear Caesar Emeritus! He's fading and passing through the ceiling!" 

The good King Midas LeBottom replied ever so calmly, "It's okay, Kev. Relax. Breathe. I am with you both now. Time is only an illusion, there is no rush. Even should he vanish completely, you and I can go to where he is, and we can bring him back. But you must stay calm, and must breathe...ever so slowly and gently." I closed my eyes and breathed. "Good, good," I could hear the good King say to me, but it was no longer coming from the Dragon's Eye. And he continued, "I feel you now, I can feel your calm spirit. Now keep breathing gently, slowly. And you'll be happy to know I have located dear Caesar Emeritus, and I am here with him now. It's time for you to come join us, Kev..."

I opened my eyes just long enough to see that dear Caesar was no longer visible at all--and the look of wonder upon Olga the bartender's face, though she had long fallen silent. Then I shut my eyes again, and continued breathing. I imagined being with King Midas and dear Caesar, and most magically, I could see them. They waved and made silly faces at me from within the overwhelming light! I felt my own being fade quickly, and suddenly there I was among them in the midst of the overwhelming light. Nothing else. Only the three of us, and the light. It felt strange, to be honest, but in a most beautiful and comforting way. All sense of time and of fear were completely absent. All sense of urgency completely gone. I felt love. I felt warmth. I felt unity--not just with King MIdas and dear Caesar--but with all the universes and dimensions. I had no idea if my physical body was still in the Sacred Pub, and I didn't care in the least either way. I was among the dearest of friends now, in the midst of the light of eternity, and feeling the love of all of existence in a most profound way I'll not soon forget.

Good King Midas LeBottom embraced dear Caesar Emeritus and I, and we all laughed and shared wonderful stories. Then King Midas taught us how to "paint" universes and dimensions using only a single finger--or claw--as the case may be. It's very hard to describe adequately with words, which I considered, is perhaps yet another lesson for me. It was truly a magical experience, and dear Caesar and I caught on, and finally understood that we could "paint" ourselves into any existence we might choose. Free from all time and fear. This moment, and forever more. In love. With love. Being love.

Beautiful of beautifuls! Lovely of lovelies!
Thank you, dear reader, for joining me on this crazy beautiful journey!
I love you.

Kev
​XX





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Chapter 28b: Grooshy McPaggleton & The Trouble With Bears Part II

7/13/2017

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After many pleasant steps, Yana and I made it into what I call the Heart of the Xanadu Forest--as my Sacred Garden, the County Clerk's office, the Record Emporium, and the Library Tree all fall within a generally small general radius near the center of our blessed forest. Yana and I stopped by my Sacred Garden gate just briefly to drop off the two bags of kettle-corn I had purchased while we were still permitted in the Lemmington Town Square. I introduced Yana--again, briefly--to Madeleine, Cousin Eddie, and Edwin the Bee. All greetings were most pleasant, of course, but none of us said more than a few words. I had already told Yana about my Sacred Garden family during our walk home from Lemmington. My beautiful gatekeeper Madeleine made sure I made time to sign off on the Garden Activity Logs before Yana and I could leave, of course. And I told Edwin that I loved Him, of course, as Yana and I exited. He only grumbled, but smiled and winked at Yana for some reason.

En route to the Record Emporium, we stumbled (almost literally) into dear Caesar Emeritus, who explained to me he was off to collect some more ancient Xanaduvian Dead Tree Scrolls. Dear Caesar seemed very excited about translation progress he'd been making since our return from Dew Mound near the center of Flatlandia. And he reminded me, of course, that I was not going to make much progress in learning our ancient language so long as Caw-Caw Carl was doing my homework assignments for me. "I know, I know, dear Caesar. Of course you are right," I replied, and I was about to finally introduce him and Yana, but then something I thought strange happened:

Yana seemed to be introducing herself to dear Caesar, but she spoke in words I didn't understand. Caesar smiled and embraced her and replied to her--also in words I didn't understand. Yana and dear Caesar continued conversing in this foreign language until I finally broke in to ask them if they already knew each other, and to explain that I couldn't understand this language they were speaking.

Yana smiled at me, wrapped her arm around mine once again, and pulled me closer to her as she chuckled, "Aww, silly Sweetcheeks Kev...of course we don't know each other! That's Latin, darlin'!"

I replied, "We don't want any trouble here--not in ANY language."

Both Yana and dear Caesar let out a hearty laugh after that, then Caesar explained to me, "No trouble at all, Mr. Kev. We were only discussing the beauty of our beloved Xanadu Forest, and how much both of us enjoy being here. She speaks very highly of you, by the way. As did I in return, of course." Then Yana winked at me, dear Caesar hugged us both, and the Baloo-eyed Akita was off into the thickness of our Xanadu Forest. Yana and I found ourselves at the Record Emporium not so many steps after that, though she had the chance to comment how much she enjoyed meeting dear Caesar Emeritus. And just how wise he was. I concurred, of course.

T-Yay the nice nice Black Labrador retriever and Ptolemy the gentle Boxer were quite busy cross-training one another inside the Record Emporium when Yana and I walked in on them. "It looks as though you're both doing a fine job being each other's assistants!" I said, a bit louder than I needed to. 

Before I could properly introduce Yana, T-Yay had already set down a stack of record albums he was filing, apporoached Yana, and told her, "Hey! Nice nice G n' R shirt! Illusion tour, no? Official merch? Nice nice!" Then he extended his paw to her, but Yana wrapped her arms around him and pulled him in for a warm embrace. 

"Yes, super Fab Lab, you!" Yana exclaimed. Then she turned to me and said, "I dig this dude! And he's a handsome one at that!"

I responded, "Yes, Yana, T-Yay here is the best record album hunter our lands have ever known. He can smell quality vinyl from many miles away." Then I pointed toward Ptolemy who was shuffling through the stack of record albums T-Yay had just set down, and I told Yana, "And this is Ptolemy the gentle Boxer...maker of the best ice cream in all of Interterrestria. Ptolemyce Cream we call it." Ptolemy finally set down the record albums and went to embrace Yana. He welcomed her most pleasantly, of course. I went on to explain to the two mutually assistant managers that Yana was Vanya's niece, and that she was very much enjoying her time visiting our beloved Xanadu Forest.

Just then, Ptolemy turned his head away and pointed over toward the corner and asked me, "Umm, Mr. Kev, what exactly is Yana doing?" All three of our heads swung in that direction at once, and I of course wondered the same.

I approached Yana, who had ripped the intercom off the wall and was now twisting together some wires. "Umm, what are you doing, Yana?" I asked, careful to not shout at her, remembering the agreement we had made with each other many steps earlier.

"Oh, I'm re-wiring this intercom, Sweetcheeks Kev," she replied, and continued, "I don't like people listening in on my conversations without my permission. Not even your beautiful gatekeeper. It runs in the family, you know." Seemingly satisfied with her work, Yana tucked the wires back into the back of the intercom box and snapped it back up onto the wall. "There. Now we can talk freely." And she slapped some drywall dust off her paws to properly signify a job that was well done. 

T-Yay and Ptolemy only shrugged their shoulders at me when I looked at them, none of us apparently knowing what I should say. I shut my eyes, inhaled deeply (but gently) then exhaled slowly, measuredly, and simply said, "Fair enough, Yana. Thank you."

"Don't worry, Sweetcheeks," Yana said playfully, and continued, "I can put it back the way it was once we're done here. In the meantime, I've fixed it so we can listen to Madeleine but she can't hear us!" And Yana giggled. Then she turned a knob on the front of the intercom and asked us all to listen. T-Yay and Ptolemy rushed over and gathered by our sides. We all heard an odd sort of crunching sound, and took turns speculating what the mysterious sound might be. Then we heard the sound of an Albino Peacock (Peahen) humming what seemed to be a U2 song...but the lyrics had been changed:

          "Through the lunch we reach the kale,
            You grew it all but I want more,
            And I'm crunching on you.

           With or without you,
           With or without you,
            I can't live,
           With or without you"


We all snickered mightily after that, and T-Yay and Yana were nearly doubled over with humor. Then T-Yay finally chimed in with, "That's so awesome and nice nice, Yana! You HAVE to teach me how to do this." 

Yana replied, "Sorry, Fab Lab, it's an anti-establishment secret. Comes in particularly handy at universities...at least when I'm the one teaching the class." T-Yay laughed again and tossed Yana another nonchalant "Nice nice." Ptolemy silently disappeared into the back room

It was clear that Yana and T-Yay were bonding quickly, and I wasn't sure this was a good thing just yet. Plus what Yana said truly surprised me. So I interrupted and asked her, "Wait! Yana, you're a teacher?!!"

"A professor, to be specific, Sweetcheeks Kev. A PhD in communication, to be more specific," she replied.

I re-replied, "Oh wow! And I was thinking you were a student! I really might be as stupid as you were thinking I was." Then the three of us chuckled.

"I never really thought you were stupid, Sweetcheeks, I'm just super careful about who I let my guard down with is all. I sort of test people before I open up to them, you know. I know that's not nice, and not always fair, but it's how I survive. For the record, you passed my tests with flying colors, Kev. You are nice. Too nice, even, sometimes." 

Just then, Ptolemy the gentle Boxer returned with four bowls of his now mostly famous Ptolemyce Cream and said to all of us, "This seems like such a happy occasion, and a happy occasion requires the very best Ptolemyce Cream, you know!" Then Ptolemy handed off the bowls to each of us and added, "Butter pecan, made from dandelion milk. Fresh from the churn!" Then he held his bowl high in the air as he could reach, and exclaimed, "Cheers!" We all tapped each other's wooden bowls and enjoyed.

Then T-Yay said, "You know what else a nice nice occasion like this needs?  A soundtrack!" He set down his bowl and played a record for us all at just the proper volume. It was The Clash's "London Calling." A happy occasion instantly became a magical occasion. T-Yay was so right!

"Oh yay, it's Joey!" Yana exclaimed, and added, "So very nice nice, T-Yay!" And she turned to Ptolemy and said, "And this Ptolemyce Cream is amazing! Truly the best trreat I've ever had." Ptolemy bowed and thanked her for the kind compliment. Then Yana said to all of us--and to no one at all--"Such a happy and magical occasion indeed! I'm so going to love it here in our blessed Xanadu Forest."

"Joey?" T-Yay and I asked Yana in unison. 

"Yes, little Joey Strummer, you sillies!" Yana replied. "He used to be one of my students, you know." Then she looked all of us in the eyes to make sure she had our undivided attention (save eating Ptolemyce Cream) and continued, "Axl Rose was once of my students too. And Eric Clapton. And many many more names you might know well. But it's a long, long story. Many stories, actually."

Ptolemy the gentle Boxer gestured for all of us to sit down on the floor, and so we all did. I didn't say it out loud, but our seated formation made me think of a Dogwood flower. I also wondered secretly if any of the others thought of this. I never found out. My thoughts were disrupted when Ptolemy spoke, "It's one of the beautiful ironies of our beautiful Xanadu Forest...that since we neither keep nor even believe in time, we actually have all the time there ever was--and even more still." 

We all smiled. And T-Yay the Fab Lab played us many more records. And Yana, the precious black bear Mafia niece, shared with us so many wondrous tales of her past students. Not all were musicians, though many of them were. And not all were famous, but most of them were, it seemed. It became clear through the course of the moon-greeting that Yana had a particular fondness for drummers. But none of us spoke aloud of that, of course. As Yana had wisely stated earlier, this was indeed a most happy and magical occasion. One that I will forever be grateful for.

And though we don't observe or even believe in time here in my imaginary world, it was a most precious moment we all shared that I hope never to forget. 

Life is beautiful beautiful.
Thank you. All of you.
Gratitude of gratitudes.
Lovely of lovelies.
I love you.
​XX
















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Chapter 28a: Grooshy McPaggleton & The Trouble With Bears Part I

7/4/2017

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"Attention, Kev, please report to the garden gate. Guest waiting. Kev, garden gate, please, guest waiting!" 

I really despise the overhead intercom Madeleine had installed in my Sacred Garden, and I don't believe I'll ever completely adapt to being woken up in such a harsh and boisterous way. But I don't expect it to end anytime soon, either. *sigh* So I rubbed my eyes, stretched and shrugged my shoulders, and made my way to the garden gate. I could see Mitzy the Arctic Fox waiting patiently by the gate, and it was always nice to see him, but I couldn't resist responding flippantly to my beautiful gatekeeper as I passed by, "Oh, nice, Madeleine--looks like those shock collars you ordered have finally arrived!...or were they remote vital statistics monitors this time?" 

"Very funny, Mr. Kev," Madeleine replied equally flippant, and she added, "No, I'm saving those for Christmas." And she handed me the clipboard of garden activity logs to sign off on. "Actually, Mitzy the Arctic Fox says the  boss wants to see you. You're supposed to go with him to the ITT--whatever that is." 

I greeted Mitzy warmly, but we made very little small talk...just enough to confirm Madeleine's report was accurate. It was, of course. So I returned to Madeleine's desk (Achilles' Last Stand) and told her, "Unfortunately I can't tell you what the ITT is, other than it's a secret place no one can know about. On a super important note, I need you to remove any type of bugs or homing devices you have planted on me before I go."

"Oh, your fancy new Dragon's Egg told you about those, did  it?" she quipped.

"I'm serious, Madeleine, the boss would be extremely offended if I entered his space with any sort of tracking devices. And he would know they were there the moment I entered. And it's a Dragon's Eye, not an egg! And no, it didn't tell me anything, I just know you well enough by now. So if you don't mind, beautiful gatekeeper..."

Madeleine sighed and pulled me closer, "Fine. Whatever." And she removed one of the buttons from my jacket. "You and your silly little games. Turn around." And she spun me around and removed something from the back of my waist, though I have no idea what it was. 

I told Edwin the Bee that I loved him as I exited the garden gate and wandered off with Mitzy the Arctic Fox. Edwin just grumbled something unintelligible and went back to His meditation upon His lotus flower. On our way to the ITT (which stands for Interterrestrial Terrestria) Mitzy explained to me that Vanya's niece was there visiting, but that Vanya had to leave on important business and needed me to look after her while he was away. [Vanya, of course is the aforementioned "boss" and head of the Forest Mafia as we call it. Vanya is also the largest, and kindest bear you can imagine. The ITT is where he dwells, and he never shows himself in public, though he is known and feared throughout our dimension...and beyond. But he has always been a dear friend of my Sacred Garden and its inhabitants though I am the only one in the Xanadu Forest (except maybe Edwin) that has ever met with him in person. Mitzy is his right hand man.]

I knew of course it was a great honor for Vanya to request me for such a task, and despite any hesitancy at all I might have toward looking after his niece, I also knew well that one does not say "No" to Vanya under any circumstances. I expressed as much to Mitzy. Mitzy understood, and assured me I would do a most perfect job...that I was the perfect man for the job. As we entered the hallways of the ITT, I could hear a female voice (which I assumed was Vanya's niece) shouting at what I assumed was Vanya, "It's just stupid, uncle! I told you I don't need a babysitter!" 

What I had believed was confirmed when I heard Vanya's low voice reply most calmly, "My dear Yana, I know well you don't need a babysitter. But the rest of Interterrestria needs one so that it is protected from YOU while I am away. No one in the land is safe if you become bored." The dear niece seemed to agree with Vanya, since I heard no more argument from her. A few steps more and a quick left turn, and Mitzy and I were suddenly in the room with Vanya and his neice Yana. It would have been an awkward moment had not Vanya grabbed and squeezed 30 pounds off of me and lifted me off the ground. "Mr. Kev...it is so very great to see you!" (did I mention Vanya gives the greatest bear hugs ever?) The massive bear set me back down on the ground and told me kindly, "You should visit more often. You know you are welcome here anytime. No invitation needed." 

Yana was a most beautiful black bear, a bit shorter even than me, with a Guns N' Roses T-shirt and what I thought was a rather short plaid skirt. And she wore a studded collar around her throat. I was about to approach her and introduce myself, but she interrupted, "Well, well, dear Uncle Vanya, you didn't tell me the babysitter was so cute! This we can do!" And just like that the lovely black bear wrapped her arm around mine and said, "Come, cute babysitter, we've got lots of hell to raise!"

Vanya stopped us just before we were about to exit the room and said, "Just a moment, you two! Now, Kev, I know Mitzy has warned you what a handful she can be (unfortunately, Mitzy hadn't!) so I'm extra grateful you've agreed to keep an eye on her for me. I cannot stress enough, for the sake of all of Interterrestria, please do not take your eyes off her for even one second. And my dear Yana, remember, you promised...NO explosions or violence of any kind." 

Yana protested, "Uncle Vanya, I told you Grooshy McPaggleton makes stuff up. I wasn't the one that blew up the school! Why won't you just believe me?!" It was that moment that I became very aware of what I had just gotten myself into and was more nervous than I had been for many a sun-greeting.

​Uncle Vanya hugged us both at once and gave us each a kiss upon the cheek. "You kids have fun. And please, please stay out of trouble." And Yana the beautiful black bear and I left the ITT and began our adventures together. 

"So where are we off to, Sweetcheeks?" Yana asked me as we stepped out into the Xanadu Forest.

"Well," I replied, "I thought maybe we could stop by the Library Tree and you could meet dear Caesar Emeritus, the Baloo-eyed Akita. And maybe you should just call me Kev?"

"Absolutely not, Sweetcheeks Kev! I need a very long break from books. Try again," Yana re-replied.

And I re-re-replied with, "I've got it! Let's go to Prince Rodrick's Fun Fun Zone!"

Yana said simply, "That doesn't sound like fun at all. Sounds like one of those places where you take kids, and you play stupid games and win tickets, and cash the tickets in for stupid prizes that are worth less than the paper the tickets are printed on."

"Well, yeah," I admitted. "It is that, to be honest. But they have go-karts too!"

"Just how old do you think I am, Kev? You can't be THAT stupid, right?" Yana asked. Then she continued, "Don't answer. Please. And fine, we can go there. I will humor you...but only because you're cute.......Sweetcheeks." 

And there at Prince Rodrick's Fun Fun Zone was where I made my first critical mistake. You see, Prince Rodrick was quite happy to see me, and I was happy to see him. I hadn't been to the Fun Fun Zone since Twillerbee and I took our children there during the glory days of my Sacred Garden. So, as you might imagine, Prince Rodrick and I (he's an Arctic Roadrunner by the way) had much to catch up on. But by the time we had updated one another and I got around to purchasing some game tokens, Yana had already hot-wired one of the go-karts, ran two Lemmings, three Otters, and a Bird of Paradise off of the course and into the bails of hay. And as a bonus, she took out two vending machines and a storage shed too! Prince Rodrick was not happy! I made good with him, though, by handing him handfuls of pumpernickel (a small fortune in the Xanadu Forest) and finally coaxing Yana out of the go-kart. I passed out the game tokens I had just purchased to all the victims of Yana's go-kart disaster that I could find (some were already inside yelling at poor Prince Rodrick). Entertaining Yana was going to be quite a challenge indeed! 

I asked Yana without any intention of joking at all if she planned to cause so much trouble at every  place I took her. She told me she only ever had good intentions, though she admitted that her anti-establishment streak sometimes gets the best of her.

Since Prince Rodrick's Fun Fun Zone wasn't too far from the Lemmington border, I decided to take her to the Lemmington Town Square for some fabulous shopping. And I managed to convince her...but "only because I was cute" she made sure I knew. 

Our time at the Lemmington Town Square was mostly pleasant, and we both picked out some wonderful accessories--both for ourselves and for each other. For me, she picked out a pair of lovely glittery lightning bolt earrings; and for her, I picked out a lovely plaid bow, and she let me clip it above her ear for her. It matched her skirt perfectly, we both agreed. And I purchased two large bags of kettle corn to bring to my Sacred Garden when we returned. But then I made another critical mistake!--I spoke too long with the Lemming I was purchasing the kettle corn from (I have often purchased kettle corn from him), and Yana the beautiful black bear found an opportunity to blow up a fireworks stand. I'm still not really sure how we escaped in all the commotion or how she even did this, but I can tell you a mob of angry Lemmings chasing you isn't nearly as humorous as you might be inclined to imagine. They can be very nasty when properly triggered! But escape we did, and disappeared into the trees of the Xanadu Forest. I was not letting go of her cursed paw until we were safely over the border, our of their jurisdiction.

I don't normally speak like this--especially when I'm babysitting--but out of sheer frustration I let go of her paw finally and pushed it away from me, shouting, "What the hell is wrong with you?! Don't you know these people know me?! And they used to like me and trust me not to destroy their Town Square!"

I was truly shocked to see a genuine look of remorse upon her face. I could feel that she was about to cry, and that she was sincere. She fell down on to the ground and put her paws over her face, choking up a bit as she said, "Look, I'm sorry. I really am. I don't know what happened. I really was just trying to have fun. I wanted to test things before I bought them. I'm sorry my uncle put you in this place...you're too nice for this."

I knew there was a great risk that I was being played, but I also knew my heart was too tender to take the chance. So I sat down next to her and put my arm lovingly (but innocently) over her shoulder, and said softly, "Look, Yana, there's a lot I don't know about you. But I know what a wonderful spirit your uncle is, and I can only imagine that, since you are part of his family, that you also have a huge and beautiful heart as well. I don't even know why you came here to Interterrestria...Mitzy only told me you had come to spend time with your uncle. But there's more to it than that, isn't it? My heart feels that. You were sent here, weren't you?"

Yana sniffled a bit and wiped a tear from her cheek. "Thank you, Kev. You're very nice. Too nice. But thank you." I adjusted the plaid bow above her ear in a nurturing sort of way as she continued, "And you are right...they sent me here--the administration, I mean. They think I blew up the school. But I didn't, I swear I didn't. It wasn't me. I'm anit-establishment, not evil and heartless! Grooshy McPaggleton, the dean of the university believed I did it, and she convinced everyone else that I did it too. But no one listens to me or believes me, so what's the point? They sent me to my uncle thinking he could 'rehabilitate' me. How great is that?! I'm so bad that only the Mafia can fix me? I mean what the hell, right?! That's how well they all think of me."
 
I grabbed Yana's paw tenderly, and pulled us both up to our feet as I told her, "I believe you, Yana. I really do. And I believe IN you. And I'd like you to know that I've spent lots of my own life dealing with people that don't believe in me. It sucks, but it is what it is. They're not worth the time and energy. I feel maybe Fate had a hand in this, that maybe you were meant to be here with us. We're nothing like them here in Interterrestria. We're far from perfect here, and some of us are more than a little off our rockers, but we never lack love. And we never judge." 

Yana wiped one final tear off her cheek, and said softy, "That sounds so nice. Thank you, Kev. You really are too nice. I'm so sorry I cause so much trouble. I swear, it just follows me around like a plague. And if you'll still hang out with me, I promise I'll try to be better, I really really promise. That I'll try, I mean. I can't promise bad things won't happen when I'm around. It's just always been that way, you know."

I smiled softly at her and replied, "I would  be honored to keep hanging out with you. And thank you for opening up to me so. And I promise to try and not yell at you anymore when bad things happen around you. But, like you, I can only promise to TRY. I'm not perfect either, you know." Yana seemed to appreciate that a lot. Then I added, "But I need to ask you about that poor Lemming that was tied to a tree and had a golf ball shoved into his mouth: that was you, wasn't it?"

"Yes, that was me," Yana admitted boldly, "I caught him trying to look up my skirt. Stupid little perv! But at least I didn't kill him, right? You shouldn't let those Lemmings fool you so easily, Kev...they may look cute and innocent, but they can be some shady critters!"

We both had a good laugh after that, and Yana wrapped her arm around mine once again, and we made our way slowly toward the heart of our beloved Xanadu Forest. And I eventually told her, "I know a perfect place for us to go next: the Record Emporium which is very close to my Sacred Garden. And there is also an ice cream parlor there...the finest ice cream in all of Interterrestria they say."

"That sounds perfect, Sweetcheeks Kev," Yana smiled, and added, "Ice cream and record albums. Yes, now this we can do!"

And so we journeyed pleasantly, and talked all along the way about life, love, and great music.

Life is beautiful.Thank you all that have stuck with me for so long. 
Lovely of lovelies.
I love you.
​XX







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Chapter 27: Magical Shenanigans & A Sacred Garden Garden Simulation

7/2/2017

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Dear Caesar Emeritus and I took deliberately slow and pleasurable strides during our journey back to our beloved Xanadu Forest from Dew Mound in Flatlandia. We both instinctively knew that our sun and moon greetings with the good King Midas LeBottom were meant to be especially cherished and treasured. And so we merrily treasured them most perfectly, taking no thought at all for anything that fell outside the wonderful experiences with good King Midas. We laughed a lot, and expressed a lot of gratitude, and dear Caesar was more playful and talkative during our journey home than I had ever noticed him being. And though the vast majority of our conversations were light and often silly, they weren't without merit and purpose.

​If you read the previous chapter, you will remember that the good King Midas LeBottom gave me a most wonderful and magical gift: a Dragon's Eye. Dear Caesar Emeritus and I experimented lots with this wonderful silvery orb along the way. The good King Midas shared only enough of the Dragon's Eye's secrets to get us started...the rest was left up to us to discover--by our own request. Remote viewing, invisibility, voice-changing and language translation were but a few of the fabulous silvery orb's powers we learned to implement during our peaceful and pleasant journey. For safety and security reasons, I'm not going to detail here how to use the Dragon's Eye, nor disclose all of its powers (though it's quite possible some of its other powers will be revealed in future chapters). 

After dear Caesar and I hugged and he returned to the Library Tree, we parted ways. He was quite anxious, of course,  to begin examining (and experimenting with?) the herbs in his satchel that we had collected while in Flatlandia. For my part, I was very much looking forward to pranking my beautiful gatekeeper, Madeleine the Albino Peacock (Peahen) by way of my oh so magical Dragon's Eye. I was very smug as I reminded myself that all the technology and surveillance equipment Madeleine had brought our Xanadu Forest was no match for ancient magic. 

Unfortunately, I had neglected to consider that Edwin the Bee might blow my cover. And He did, of course! Though I had used the Dragon's Eye to make myself invisible long before I approached my garden gate, He greeted me as I entered (which He almost never does!) my Sacred Garden gate, and He reminded me that being smug doesn't suit His children. He reminded me out loud, of course, so that Madeleine's attention and suspicion were sufficiently drawn...much to my chagrin.

I quickly decided to use the Dragon's Eye to change my voice while still remaining invisible to my beautiful gatekeeper, determined to execute my plan, despite knowing well she was likely too clever to fall for my intended ruse. Undeterred, I approached Madeleine's desk (Achilles' Last Stand) and stood before her unseen, as I stated in a low and dark sounding voice, "I am the father of all the kale that you have ever consumed, and I have come to exact revenge for the destruction of my children."  

I could feel immediately that she wasn't falling for my prank, though I was surprised that she played along with me for a bit. "I see," Madeleine said calmly, and continued, "I offer no excuse, and am at your mercy, Mr. Father of all kale. I can only assure you that it was never my intention to cause harm to your lovely children. I only was ever hungry, and in need of their nourishment. Do with me what you will." 

Why I stood taller, puffed out my chest, and squared my shoulders I'm not sure, since it was clear that Madeleine couldn't see me. But I did so, and I tried to sound extra extra ominous when I replied, "You chose your comfort above the life of my children. That I can never forgive. But I am not so cruel as you are. I shall spare your life for now." 

I was about to command Madeleine that kale must never again be eaten in the Xanadu Forest--and especially shouldn't be fed to KeV (in the most evil Dragon's Eye voice I could muster) when Cousin Eddie zipped by in the remote control patrol jeep and shouted, "Hey, KeV! Nice to see you!" As I watched Cousin Eddie's little jeep disappear into the bushes, I uttered out loud (in my own voice) something I'll not repeat here. It was one of the rare occasions that I've used vulgar phrases in my Sacred Garden. Apparently, the invisibility of the Dragon's Eye doesn't work on Ravens. I made a mental note that Cousin Eddie and I would have to discuss this soon. 

Truth be told, all of us in my Sacred Garden (even Edwin the Bee) had a great laugh after that, though I was disappointed that my prank was much less than successful. I consoled myself by considering that Madeleine was still unaware of the other powers my Dragon's Eye held. It was certainly better than her technology. "Fake magic," I called it to myself silently. And fake magic would always pale in comparison to the real magic I held within my Dragon's Eye. I felt sure of that. And I made myself visible to her again as she handed me the Garden Gate Activity Logs clipboard and asked me to sign off on the several pages worth I had missed while dear Caesar and I were in Flatlandia. After our good laughs, and my genuine acceptance of the situation, I was calm enough to exchange pleasantries with my beautiful gatekeeper and tell her just how wonderful it was for dear Caesar and I to share so many magical experiences with King Midas LeBottom while at his cottage upon Dew Mound near the center of Flatlandia. And I told Edwin the Bee that I loved Him. And I thanked Him.

After that I decided to visit the county clerk's office and see how Caw Caw Carl was doing as my assistant to the assistant county clerk. Caw Caw Carl was doing quite well, as it turned out, and I was more than happy to see him perched upon the perfectly replicated garden gate Cousin Eddie had made for him out of beer cans. He led me inside the county clerk's office, and he was genuinely pleased to hear what wonderful experiences dear Caesar and I had with good King Midas at Dew Mound. I had no particular reason, but I decided not to tell him about the Dragon's Eye. 

What I saw upon Caw Caw Carl's desk, as I entered the office (which was formerly Madeleine's desk before she became my beautiful gatekeeper) truly surprised me: it appeared to be an elaborate and highly detailed diorama of my Sacred Garden--complete with properly scaled-down action figures of Edwin the Bee, Madeleine, Cousin Eddie, and myself. And yes, there was even a tiny Freddie the Frog upon a tiny dock looking over a scaled-down version of the Pond of Fanciness, complete with an accurately-scaled-down Island of Summer, which itself was complete with tiny tiny bushes and a chaise lounge that disguised what I HOPED was a non-functioning portal to a scaled-down Olympus. 

Caw Caw Carl must have felt my sense of wonder, for he hopped onto his desk and spoke proudly with enthusiasm, "It was all Gemini Cricket cricket's idea! We found found the blueprints of your Sacred sacred garden in one of the file cabinet cabinets, and the rest as they say say, is history...sort sort of. Gemini Cricket cricket suggested this would be a great great way of learning to perfect my abilities as a gatekeeper gatekeeper. Isn't it grand grand?!"

I agreed that it was indeed a grand, grand, idea, and confirmed with Caw Caw Carl that the hidden tiny tiny portal on the Island of Summer wasn't actually functional. He believe believed it wasn't. That was good good enough for me just then. And I told him twice just how fabulous the diorama was. And I was doubly impressed with the detail of the super super tiny lily pads in the scaled-down Pond of Fanciness. I wondered to myself silently if the super super tiny lily pads made Nintendo sounds as the real ones do. And then suddenly I became completely calm. Completely at peace. Completely ONE with our beloved and strangely beautiful beautiful Xanadu Forest. I stayed there in the county clerk's office with Caw Caw Carl until we finally greeted my cousin the moon that smiled directly above us.

Life is beautiful beautiful. Always.
I'm a lucky and grateful dude.
Thank you for always sticking with me.
I love you!
Lovely of lovelies.

​XX




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Chapter 26: The Dragon's Eye, Mercy Wound, Secret Door & Stained Glass Stairs

6/8/2017

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Having such an amazing and educational experience at King Midas LeBottom's cottage atop Dew Mound made it clear to us all that a single moon greeting in his magical lands wouldn't be adequate. Thankfully, the good King told dear Caesar Emeritus and I that we were welcome to stay there with him for as many moon greetings as we liked. Ultimately, we spent three sun greetings, and two moon greetings more with King Midas before heading back to our blessed Xanadu Forest. 

We spent the sun greetings exploring mysterious places in Flatlandia...a guided tour, of sorts, I believe the good King intended it as. And we spent the moon greetings near the cottage hearth downing Minute Meads, playing silly word games, and sharing stories with one another. Much as I adore them both, indeed it was so good that Ptolemy the gentle Boxer and T-Yay the nice nice Retriever stayed behind in the Xanadu Forest to resume their training. As I stated in the previous chapter, we would have had much more merriment were there five of us indulging in Minute Meads, but that would have been at the expense of some poignant stories that really needed to be shared. That's not to say we weren't silly and absurd with just the three of us, you know...but sometimes more is more. And less is less. In a most beautiful way. 

During the sun greeting tours, dear Caesar and I were educated by the good King in the recognition and application of many herbs that grow only in Flatlandia. With King Midas' permission, we gathered some of these herbs, and Caesar Emeritus tucked them gently into the satchel we had brought with us. Of the herbs we collected, dear Caesar seemed most intrigued by one that King Midas LeBottom had called "Vendlum." Caesar inspected it closely and sniffed it multiple times before placing it in the satchel. Caesar, nearly fluent in the ancient Xanaduvian tongue, knew of course that "Vendlum" translated literally into "seller of light." King Midas explained the magical herb as one that, if properly consumed, allowed one's spirit to travel to other dimensions while the physical body remained completely unaffected by it. 

Also during the sun greeting tours, we journeyed even into the far northwest of the dark and misty valleys that cut through desolate lands between ancient mountains. I recognized many of these places, of course, having traveled this land at length during my journey when I left my Sacred Garden for what I thought might well be forever. I saw a particular grouping of shrubs that I remembered vividly: they were where the mysterious Layla and Kehl revealed themselves to me. I knew they were dimension hoppers when I met them, for they told me as much. What I didn't know at that time was that they were Seeders (see Chapter 25 in regards to Seeders)...but I knew that now thankfully. When I told King Midas why I remembered that grouping of shrubs, he exclaimed that I was truly blessed! For, as he explained to me, Seeders are never seen unless they choose to be. And even if they are seen, they do not interact with creatures. But they did with me, and even taught me many things. King Midas was thoroughly impressed and intrigued when I told him this, and dear Caesar seemed thoroughly confused when the good King said to me, "There is more to you than any of us realize, Mr. Kev. Including yourself. And things you'd not tell us." But King Midas LeBottom left it at that and said no more about it then. I shrugged my shoulders at dear Caesar who was looking to me for answers. 

Eventually, during the sun greeting tours, we made our way eastward through the mountains, and finally to the bases of Mt Nol and Mt. Sol. It was then my heart began to race, and I trembled. For I had dark memories of that place. I saw the secret door that led to the stained glass stairs beneath the mountains. I could feel that King Midas was intentionally leading us past the secret door with no tarry, so that we would not discover it and ask forbidden questions. See, the good King didn't know I had entered that secret door once, nor the evil I had confronted while inside the mountain. My experiences there were not the sort of thing I would speak of to anyone. It was my own secret, and I intended to keep it that way for eternity. Dear Caesar Emeritus kept mostly silent from that point on, until after we finally returned to King Midas' cottage atop Dew Mound and settled in. 

When we did finally return to the cottage, satchel filled with wondrous herbs, the good King Midas made us a fabulous batch of Dragon Stew (no, it's not made of any parts of dragons at all, but it is a recipe handed down from them), and we toasted some slices of pumpernickel to go with it. Only in Interterrestria would currency also be part of a fabulous dinner! But so it was. And so was it enjoyed and cherished, and so did we all three give thanks and express graciousness openly and solemnly. 

After our deliciously divine meal, King Midas LeBottom instructed Caesar Emeritus to get the fire going in the the hearth, while the good King himself began filling flagons of Minute Mead for all of us. Many toasts and silly word games followed, and we all greeted my cousin the moon warmly once it rose directly above us. 

And then our merriment became solemn when King Midas suddenly asked me to roll up my sleeve and remove my ornate glove that reached almost to my my left elbow. I did so, of course, since we were in the home of a good King--and I felt exactly why he was asking me to do so. But I didn't want to. Because I knew exactly why he was asking me to do so. 

To my surprise, however, King Midas made no comment about the mark on my arm that he knew he would see. Dear Caesar was of course taken aback and thoroughly confused. The good King jumped up (we were all seated comfortably before the hearth) and ran off to his ancient trunk. I finished my Minute Mead, and found another flagon full of Minute Mead to quickly drink from.

When King Midas LeBottom returned, he was hiding something behind his back. Then he sat down comfortably across from me as I sipped another flagon of Minute Mead. "Mr. Kev," he began (and dear Caesar looked on intensely with wonder) "I wish not to make you uncomfortable. You need not share the stories you have locked deep inside your heart, and I won't press you for them. But my own heart feels the need to remind you that there is far more magic in these lands--especially in your Sacred Garden--than you realize. And within yourself. Your time has come." With that, the good King held up a silvery orb the size of my palm and tossed it to me. As I rotated and examined it, King Midas continued, "Edwin wanted you to have this when you were ready. It is a Dragon's Eye. Not the whole eyeball, of course, just the lens. It's from the wicked and nameless dragon that lie slain beneath the mountains. No fear, Mr. Kev, it is no object of evil, but of powerful love...in the proper hands. And your blessed and grateful hands are certainly a proper place for it." 

Small tears formed in the corner of my eyes...due not only to the King's great kindness to me, but also to the memories of the dark days I once endured. "Thank you, good and kind King Midas," managed to escape my overwhelming and solemn silence. Dear Caesar Emeritus, seated now closer to me, was also overwhelmed with curiosity and wonder, and so I handed him the Dragon's Eye so that he could examine it for himself. Caesar downed another half flagon of Minute Mead while examining the precious and mysterious object. I watched the tongues of the flames within the hearth reflect off of the silvery orb. It was a stunning and mesmerizing sight to behold. 

King Midas added, "I can tell you how to use it if you'd like, or you can experiment and learn with it on your own if you prefer. There is no danger so long as it is with you, Mr. Kev, my heart knows that well. Which goes without saying, of course, or I wouldn't have given it to you. But then I just said it, so I guess it goes with saying!" And the good kind King laughed heartily, and so did all three of us. And we tossed the Dragon's Eye around like a game of Hot Potato for a while and laughed and drank Minute Mead until we all fell into a sweet and comfortable slumber upon the floor before the warmth of the hearth. 

Life is beautiful. Beautiful. 
And Magical. Always.
Thank you for joining me on this strange journey. I love you.
Lovely of lovelies.
​XX



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Chapter 25: Journey To Dew Mound: The Legend of Cristobal the Animal King

6/3/2017

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Some of you will recall that I've lately been spending a lot of time exploring the Xanadu Forest (and other nearby lands) in search of Dead Tree Scrolls, and have gathered many. I've also discovered and taken pictures of strange trees, and a number of what I believe are portals--portals and trees with strange markings upon them that are undoubtedly not from the Xanaduvian language. Highly intrigued, of course, I took these scrolls and photographs to dear Caesar Emeritus, the Baloo-eyed Akita, wise in many things, and master of our Library Tree near the center of our beloved Xanadu Forest. 

In a way, it was dear Caesar that sparked my passion for searching out these Dead Tree Scrolls, since he had become very close to fluent in the ancient Xanaduvian language...and had been giving me assignments in the hopes that I too would learn this magical language. Once my eyes had been opened to just a bit of the ancient Xanaduvian vocabulary, my heart hungered and thirsted even more to understand the history of my strange and mysterious homeland. My passion was successfully awakened, and this seemed to make dear Caesar Emeritus very happy and perhaps even a bit proud of me.

Nevertheless, even dear Caesar was unable to translate many of the Dead Tree Scrolls I showed him, and that stoked an even greater fire in his own heart that never ceases to burn. We agreed it was time for us to make the trip to Dew Mound in Flatlandia and visit King Midas LeBottom, who lived in a cottage upon the hill's top. We invited Ptolemy the gentle Boxer and T-Yay the nice nice Labrador to join us on our journey, but they were both quite busy cross-training one another to be each other's assistant manager, and they apologized that they would have to be content with a report from us after our return from Dew Mound. T-Yay insisted we stay for one playing of Gerry Rafferty's City To City album before we set off on our journey, and Ptolemy insisted we all enjoy a dish of his latest batch of Ptolemy-ce Cream. Dear Caesar and I couldn't refuse such a kind and warm gesture, and so we all enjoyed a lovely slice of the sun greeting together. Life is beautiful.

Once dear Caesar and I had set off on our journey, it took us just over 3 moon greetings to reach Dew Mound...but we took our time and enjoyed each step, sound, and fragrance along the way. With no disrespect to Ptolemy and T-Yay, it turned out I was glad it was just dear Caesar Emeritus and I. The journey might well have been more eventful and silly had all four of us went (eventful and silly are both highly esteemed in our Xanadu Forest), it would not have been as soothing and transcendental as it was with just the two of us. 

Upon our arrival at the door of the cottage upon Dew Mound, King Midas LeBottom greeted us warmly and enthusiastically, giving Caesar and I perhaps the tightest hugs either one of us had ever had. And he slapped us lovingly upon our shoulders, and I had to rub a bit of pain out of my own shoulder after that. You see, King Midas is deceptively mighty, and he often underestimates the strength of his halfling muscles. King Midas LeBottom is the only other humanoid I know of in all of Interterrestria, though he is much shorter than the average human. And as much as he is shorter than the average human, so is he that much more fashionable, kind, and mighty. Indeed he's an eccentric and beautiful being of light. And a great warrior. And a great keeper of ancient knowledge.

Dear Caesar particularly enjoyed updating King Midas on his research of Dead Tree Scrolls and the ancient Xanaduvian language as a whole. King Midas LeBottom, likewise, particularly enjoyed telling dear Caesar Emeritus what a wonderful asset he was to our blessed lands, and how happy we all are to have him as our librarian. Then the good King seated us at a lovely wooden table and served us honeysuckle tea and pecan tarts that he had just prepared the sun greeting before. We enjoyed both graciously, and King Midas LeBottom particularly enjoyed examining dear Caesar's golden robe. The King believed he recognized the fabric and fine stitching of the golden robe, though he explained that statement no further. 

After a few more pleasant pleasantries, King Midas LeBottom finally asked us, "So what is it that brings you to my good kingdom?"

I answered, "Well, first off, I believe we all owe you a tremendous gratitude...for I suspect you intentionally misdirected Donovan so that he could not find the diamond. Dear Caesar and I recently discovered in one of the Library Tree's books that Donovan had in fact visited you on a quest and attempted to construct a melodic treasure map."

Dear Caesar nodded in agreement with my statement, and added, "In fact, Donovan, in his melodic treasure map, had mistranslated even your own Dew Mound as "Honeycomb Hill." 

King Midas LeBottom laughed heartily at that and told us we were most welcome. "We couldn't have a bard from Earth finding the special diamond, now, could we?" Then the good King refilled our teacups, removed his bedazzled apron, and sat down to join us. Then he continued, "But I see you've brought some other things with you. Surely you didn't come all this way just to thank me?"

With that, dear Caesar Emeritus laid a satchel upon the table and began removing Dead Tree Scrolls from it, and also photographs of what we believed were portals, and also some sketches we had made of  writings we were unable to translate. King Midas LeBottom smiled knowingly as he sifted through the satchel's contents, and he and dear Caesar began discussing aspects of language that seemed far enough over my head to keep me silent. Then King Midas led Caesar over to an ancient-looking trunk near the hearth, removed an even more ancient-looking book, and blew the dust off of its cover. "There are a few writings that cannot be kept in the Library Tree; for there are evils that should never again be awakened, and events that are meant to never again be remembered. These books I keep here with me, and they shall never leave here." Dear Caesar nodded solemnly, indicating that he understood, and he and the King returned to the table with the ancient volume. 

Careful to not let me continue to feel left out of the conversation, King Midas smiled into my eyes and gestured for me to come closer and sit down by his side. Then he lit a lantern, and spoke, "There are things in these books I would not dare tell either of you, much as I know I can trust you. Please understand it's for the safety of all of Interterrestria...and even all of existence in all dimensions." Dear Caesar and I nodded, serious, and knowingly. Then King Midas continued, "But there are things that I CAN tell you, and I'm happy and honored to share some of these things with you now."

Dear Caesar scooted his chair closer to the King and I, so that now I was sandwiched between the lovely sages, and the lantern flickered just a bit. We paused our discussion briefly to bid sweet dreams to my cousin the Sun, and to greet the moon that was now shining upon the cottage atop Dew Mound.

Then King Midas LeBottom opened the ancient book and began, "In the beginning there was the One. The One created the Createds, and also the Seeders. To the Createds and the Seeders were given the power to bring life and existence into all the universes and dimensions as they saw fit. The Createds' creations were called the Children of the One. They were not all creatures as you might be inclined to think, though some of them were. Some were planets, some were stars, some were oceans and rivers, and some were great mountains and valleys. And some were dragons, and lions, and wolves and so on." King Midas grabbed one of the Dead Tree Scrolls Caesar and I had brought him, and he held it before us, and compared it with a page in the ancient book to illustrate...and our eyes were opened.

"Of course!" I blurted out, and dear Caesar jumped a bit in his chair. I apologized for startling him, and all three of us chuckled a bit. 

King Midas turned some pages in the ancient book, and went on, "The Seeders were--and ARE--dimension hoppers. They were responsible for the trees, grass, flowers...and the portals you have recently discovered." And the good King held up pictures of the portals dear Caesar and I had brought with us in order to illustrate. We saw. And smiled gently. "The Seeders created no children of their own...for that was left to the Createds. Instead, the Seeders built portals to travel through all dimensions and to plant their seeds. The Children of the One eventually learned to use the portals as well, and their offspring began to populate all of existence. In all forms you could imagine, and even much beyond." Then King Midas LeBottom excused himself and asked that we not touch or examine the ancient book until he returned. Dear Caesar and I agreed, of course.

The King returned with flagons of Minute Mead and led us in a toast, "To the heart of the heart, of the heart of Hearts!" Caesar and I didn't understand the depth of that toast initially, but that didn't keep us from enjoying it. It sounded and felt lovely. And tasted lovely too, I must add! Sensing our ignorance, King Midas explained that my sacred garden is the heart of the Xanadu Forest, which is the heart of Interterrestria, which is the heart of all existence. Wow! That simple statement opened up a world of possibilities, theories, and questions for me. The epiphany of epiphanies! When I began hypothesizing aloud to King Midas and dear Caesar, the good King was quick to remind me not to focus on that just now. It would not be good to digress just now, he politely explained. 

We finished our Minute Meads and I watched the lantern flicker a bit more. Before my mind could wander further, King Midas flipped some more pages in the ancient book, held up a few more pictures we had brought him, and said, "Which leads us to tonight's story. You will both enjoy it very much, I'm sure." Then the good King built a fire in the hearth and seated us comfortably upon a large couch. Dear Caesar and I were unable to keep our enthusiasm for the tale silent, and this made King Midas smile tremendously.

King Midas put the finishing touches on the fire. I lie back, and rest my head upon a plush and ornate pillow, and stared deeply into the lovely fire. I'm doubt that dear Caesar was consciously trying to imitate me, but he did so. "Copy dog" I almost said aloud, but held it in. And chuckled softly. 

The good King then sat down on the wooden floor before us, the ancient book upon his lap, and began again, "And now for the Legend of Cristobal the Animal King." I adjusted the pillow beneath my head, and Dear Caesar turned round and nuzzled next to me. "I know that both of you have read about the Dragon War before, as there are many volumes of those stories in the Library Tree...but tonight you shall learn how the Dragon War began. Are you ready?" Dear Caesar and I acknowledged that we were more than ready, and King Midas LeBottom continued with the legend as thus:

"As I told you earlier, the Children of the One learned to use the portals that were made by the Seeders. This is how dragons came to dwell upon Interterrestria, though our beloved mountain peaks, Nol and Sol were native to our lands from the beginning. There were no men in Interterrestria in that age, though the lemmings of Lemmington, the geese of Droppingham, the Seagulls of Bleakerton, a particular bear, and a particular Bee upon a lotus flower were here. The Seeders had been most gracious to our lands, so that every living thing flourished. Our rivers sang the sweetest of melodies and there was peace in every corner of Interterrestria. 

The Dragons, being the mightiest of beasts in our lands, became the lords of Interterrestria. They dwelt among Mt. Sol and Nol, as you would expect, and were the loveliest of stewards. It went on this way for many ages. Light shone brightly, and life became eternal. The Lord of the dragons was called Dayne, which meant of course that he was basically Lord of everything here. He was a wise and just lord, and adored by every living thing. But ages passed, and Lord Dayne came to desire a child of his own to raise in wisdom and in love. There were no dragon wives in Interterrestria, so Lord Dayne summoned the Seeders and asked that they build a special portal for the purposes of bringing him a wife. The Seeders happily did so, but then something very unexpected happened. 

A wife for Lord Dayne did indeed come through the portal and met him, and indeed she was majestic, beautiful, and filled with light and love. But she was no dragon. No, she was a lovely lioness...a mighty one--and a Child of the One herself (as was Lord Dayne, though I forgot to mention that before). This was no problem at all for Lord Dayne. He cherished her beauty the moment he set his wise dragon eyes upon her, and likewise, she did so for him. They loved one another truly, and the Dragon Lord's wife Cornelia the Lioness gave birth to their gifted child, who would be called Cristobal. Cristobal, being the natural offspring of two Children of the One, was fair to look upon, and blessed in all the arts of love, light, and creation. His mother Cornelia taught him all manner of communication with all living things, and it is said that a more lovely voice has never been heard in Interterrestria. Cristobal learned to speak not only with the animals and trees, but also the rivers and mountains. From his father, Lord Dayne the Dragon Lord, Cristobal learned wisdom and justice...to rule mightily through gentleness and light. From the birds did Cristobal learn to sing louder than love, and from the rivers he learned melody. As the child grew in wisdom and stature, he learned to create. And he created the Garden of Sound...a magical place not far from the portal his mother entered Interterrestria through. All seemed well. And all WAS well for many more ages. 

But then Lord Dayne's trusted Dragon Captain, Jasper, became envious of the child, and that's when the trouble began. You see, Jasper had always secretly desired Lord Dayne's throne, and he believed an age would come when Dayne would grow weary of being the Dragon Lord; and that the trusted captain that had served him so well would be the natural heir to the throne. As Captain Jasper watched Cristobal grow in wisdom and light, it became clear to all that Lord Dayne's beloved son would be the natural heir when that age came. Jasper's jealousy grew, and he began learning the dark arts, and summoned dark spirits. Further, Jasper began whispering to other dragons that Lord Dayne's child was an abomination since he was half dragon and half lion. Jasper managed to convince many of the other dragons of this, and a great division among the dragons began. That led to a terrible age of war upon Interterrestria--the Dragon War. 

And that is how I came to dwell in Interterrestria myself. You see, the Dragons of Mt. Nol were overpowering the Dragons of Mt. Sol, and new portals were made, and reinforcements were brought in from other dimensions to assist the good Dragons of Sol. Many of my people and I came into this land and fought mightily. Many of my brothers and sisters died. The now wicked Dragons of Mt. Nol also brought in reinforcements through other portals, and war found every corner of our beloved land. 

How the war finally ended is both tragic and beautiful...for just as it was an ending, it was also a new beginning. Cristobal's father, Lord Dayne, and his mother, the great Lioness Cornelia, were both slain. It was then that Cristobal ended the war with a single cry. Stricken by overwhelming grief, the broken child cried out louder than love, and his cry shattered the sun. The sun exploded from the inside out, and all of what we now call Flatlandia was laid to waste. None in Flatlandia survived but two single dragons who happened to be clashing deep beneath the mountains. And myself, by crooked steps. Gratefully. Not a single bird, tree, or flower. Not even gifted Cristobal himself. The two clashing dragons far beneath the ground saw what had happened high above them, and they cried, and they hugged one another, and they made a vow to never again allow war upon Interterrestria. You know these two dragons now as the very kind and loving dragons, Douglas and Justin--dragon life partners. The One gave us a new sun to the replace the one Cristobal's cry had shattered. And you know me as King Midas LeBottom because of their kindness. Neither of them wished to be Lords, so they graciously asked me to be King of Flatlandia. And I graciously accepted. And they helped me build this very cottage upon the top of Dew Mound. The Seeders returned, and brought back our trees, grass, and flowers. And they sealed the portals so that evil could never again enter our beloved lands. Then began the age of rebirth. And light. And love and eternity."

With that, King Midas LeBottom sighed, closed the ancient book, and returned it to the ancient trunk near the hearth. I wiped a tear from my cheek, and scratched dear Caesar gently behind his ear, who had been snoring soundly for quite a while. Dear Caesar Emeritus let out a sigh, and re-nuzzled with me, but he didn't open his eyes. King Midas retrieved a picture from the table we had brought with us, and handed it to me. I smiled graciously, and thanked him. The picture he handed me was one that I took..a picture of part of a petrified tree--or so I thought. As it turned out, it was Cristobal himself, frozen peacefully in our existence for eternity...near the center of the Garden of Sound. We all slept peacefully that moon greeting in the humble cottage upon Dew Mound. 

Life is beautiful.
There are no endings; only new beginnings. 
Thank you for being there.
Lovely of lovelies.
​XX



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Chapter 24: Caw-Caw Carl & Gemini Cricket: Assistant to the Assistant

5/9/2017

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A relationship with one's gatekeeper is often a strange one, and always a difficult one to describe to those that have never had a gatekeeper. Many celebrities have  gatekeepers in their lives, since, in many cases, it's necessary. A gatekeeper's primary purpose, of course, is to determine who is to be let into one's personal life as the sea of fame (or infamy) becomes ever more difficult to navigate when celebrity swells. We see right away, of course, how a celebrity can easily be overwhelmed by crazed fans or even opportunists looking to easily cash in on the hard work of others. What we often overlook, however, is how the nature of every personal relationship a celebrity has becomes changed in one way or another--this includes family, longtime friends, band mates, and lovers. In this respect, a gatekeeper is sort of a military strategist, gathering information and poring through maps to anticipate where potential conflicts might arise in or near the celebrity's inner circle--and determining the best course of action if and when it should become necessary. As an example, a gatekeeper might sense the celebrity's spouse is growing resentful for any number of reasons, and would encourage said celebrity to take necessary steps to prevent it from becoming an actual conflict. Or it could be as simple as reminding the celebrity that his/her's wedding anniversary is rapidly approaching, and might even make some suggestions to make the anniversary extra special.

This leads us to the two most often forgotten roles of a gatekeeper, and perhaps the most important ones: that of a compass, and of an editor/proofreader. See, as the sea of fame swells, so does the celebrity's ego swell along with it..and without proper guidance the celebrity can easily find themselves lost at sea. Couple the loss of a moral compass with a demanding and hectic work schedule, and you have the makings of a perfect storm that can sink the celebrity's ship in the blink of an eye. As an editor/proofreader, the gatekeeper is also there for the celebrity to bounce thoughts, feelings, and ideas off of. The proper gatekeeper will know the celebrity's heart, mind, and spirit intimately, and would ideally be the first to inform the celebrity when they are acting out of character, and to remind them who they are as a person. A gatekeeper is there to kick the celebrity's ego down a few notches when needed, but also to lift it a few notches when needed. As you can see, the ideal relationship between a gatekeeper and its celebrity would be the most intimate relationship they will ever have. The gatekeeper will know secrets no one in the world will ever know...not even friends and family. A good gatekeeper must be highly empathic and very strong and willing to speak openly and bluntly--especially during the times when the celebrity is most resistant to advice and opinions from others. 

But you see, not all people that have a gatekeeper are celebrities, and not all people even realize they have a gatekeeper. So why do we common folk have and need a gatekeeper? Perhaps because we have been inordinately blessed and have a most precious sacred garden inside us that must always be protected from those who would do us harm--whether intentional or no. And because we're only human...and life happens. 

And at the gate of my precious sacred garden, of course, is precisely where my beautiful gatekeeper Madeleine first met Caw-Caw Carl, the Stellers Jay, and his silent and invisible friend Gemini Cricket. It began something like this:

"Good day, beautiful, gatekeeper gatekeeper," the Stellers Jay uttered.

"Good sun greeting, we say here in our Xanadu Forest," Madeleine replied, and asked, "How may I help you?"

"I am Caw Caw Carl Carl, and I'm here here to begin my gatekeeper internship-ship. And this little little fellow you likely can't see see is my dear dear friend and guide, Gemini Cricket." Then Caw Caw Carl removed a wrinkled napkin from under his wing and handed it to Madeleine, adding, "You'll see everything is in order order. This letter letter from Headmaster Stevens at Atherton should explain it better better than I have."

Madeleine took the wrinkled napkin and adjusted her glasses, "Well, Mr. Carl Carl"--

But  Caw Caw Carl interrupted her immediately saying, "Not Carl Carl, thank you you. Just Carl Carl."

Madeleine sighed, but remained patient, suspecting the Stellers Jay may have suffered from some sort of mental illness, "I see, Mr. Carl. Caw Caw, Carl, if I'm saying it properly?" Then she paused and Carl nodded his confirmation happily. Then my beautiful gatekeeper went on, "I used to attend Atherton myself you know, and actually was an assistant to Headmaster Stevens for a while during my own legitimate internship. I've never known him to use wrinkled napkins in lieu of official letterhead--or to write in Stellers Jay scratch. I'm going to tell you only once that you stand in the midst of the very heart of Interterrestria, and that lies and deceit are bound to get you permanently banned from the Xanadu Forest...if you get my drift?" And Madeleine handed the forged letter back to Caw Caw Carl.

To Madeleine's surprise the Stellers Jay got the drift perfectly. He sighed and said, "Fine fine. The truth is is that I was never a student at at Atherton. I was only  the night night janitor there. But I have always always had a dream of becoming a gatekeeper like like yourself. The sacred sacred garden you watch over is renown throughout all lands. Please please don't turn me me away. And Gemini Cricket just just told me to tell you that you are very very beautiful." 

Then, in a surprising move, Madeleine jumped up onto her desk, Achilles' Last Stand, and gestured for Caw Caw Carl to join her. Then she said to the grateful Stellers Jay, "The first job of a good gatekeeper is to notify the garden's master immediately when an unusual situation arises at the gate. Then she pressed a button on her GARCOM console and shouted through the loudspeaker, "Kev, please report to garden gate. Guest waiting. Kev, report to garden gate. Guest waiting!" 

I was peacefully asleep upon the Persian rug when the loudspeaker shrieked, of course, and was annoyed that Madeleine had managed to interrupt yet another sweet dream I was enjoying. I jumped up and muttered something I won't repeat here, and stomped my way toward the garden gate. "That wasn't very nice, Kev!" the loudspeaker shrieked as I marched on, grumbling. While I was making my way to Madeleine's desk, she returned to her gatekeeping lesson, and said to Caw Caw Carl, "See, we always tell the garden master that we're notifying them immediately so that they are aware of everything that is going on. But the real reason we do this is because the sooner you get the garden master to the gate, the sooner you can pass the work onto them...and the less work you have to do. If you get my drift?" 

Caw Caw Carl got the drift very well once again, hopped off of Achilles' Last Stand and rushed to greet me. Knowing that my annoyance was no fault of his, I greeted the Stellers Jay warmly and shook his extended wing. Then I turned to Madeleine and raised my voice, "So we're just letting anyone into my sacred garden now?!" Then I clarified with Carl that I meant no offense toward him.

Madeleine wasted no time stating, "He's not just anyone, he's Caw Caw Carl, a lovely Stellers Jay from my Alma Mater, Atherton, who has come to here to begin his gatekeeper internship by request of Headmaster Stevens. But he's not doing it here in the sacred garden, I can assure you of that! Which is where you come in, Mr. Kev...I need you to take Mr. Carl into the forest and find him a job as an assistant. And before you leave, I need you to sign off on the garden gate activity logs." 

It seemed a lot of information for me to process while a portion of me was still slumbering, but Madeleine's assertiveness and commanding tone somehow made it all make sense. It was also effective in me forgetting that I still wanted to shout at her. She is such a clever beautiful gatekeeper! I signed off on the activity logs and asked her if she might have Cousin Eddie bake up another batch of pumpernickel while I was away. She thanked me for signing off on the logs as I handed her the clipboard, and assured me she'd pass the message along to Cousin Eddie. With that, Caw Caw Carl and I were off. I wondered briefly, as we exited the garden gate, why Madeleine wasn't shrieking at Cousin Eddie through the loudspeaker as she did with me, but the thought quickly fluttered away. I was sure I heard Edwin the Bee chuckling behind me when I told Him I loved Him. 

Carl and I had spent hardly any steps at all before I became aware of his odd and seemingly random double-speak. He said he was quite quite unaware of what I was talking about about and reminded me that it's not "Carl Carl. Just Carl Carl." Okay then. Then Carl introduced me to his invisible and silent friend friend and guide, Gemini Cricket, and I pretended to shake hands with the unseen cricket upon Carl's back. 

Though we walked past the Record Emporium, I decided we would begin our job-hunting at the Library Tree, so we kept walking past it. We saw a few fat squirrels from Walnut St along the way, and I took the opportunity to warn Caw Caw Carl about the squirrels. He seemed to appreciate the warning. Then he told me how he attempted to deceive Madeleine--that he was just just a janitor with big big dreams--and how he was so so grateful that we were helping helping him despite his dishonesty. I reminded Carl that Madeleine was right--that deceit is very much looked down upon in the Xanadu Forest. And I added that we are friendly folk on the whole, and assured him that I trusted his heart. And that he would fit in well in our magical forest. By then, we had found ourselves at the Library Tree.

The main reason I decided we should begin job-hunting at the Library Tree was because the three dogs had grown quite fond of one another's company, and were often found conversing there together. My instinct was correct...for as we entered, dear Caesar Emeritus, Ptolemy the gentle Boxer, and T-Yay the record-retrieving Labrador were gathered around Caesar's desk, chatting and sipping tea. They greeted Caw Caw Carl and I warmly. And I warned the three dogs immediately that it's not Carl Carl, just Carl. Though the Caw Caw part was properly meant to be doubled. Dear Caesar seemed most fascinated with Carl's seemingly random form of double-speak, but I could see that Ptolemy was appreciating the oddity of it as well. T-Yay simply replied, "Nice nice." So clever, T-Yay can be when he wants to be! Caw Caw Carl graciously accepted a warm cup of tea that dear Caesar had offered him, and I filled the three dogs in on the sun greeting's events that led us to the Library Tree.

After I suggested to Caesar Emeritus that Caw Caw Carl would make a fine assistant manager in the Library Tree, he heartily agreed, "It's a kind and excellent thought on your part, Kev. And indeed, I would be honored to have such a fine and lovely Steller's Jay as my assistant manager. Unfortunately, I have already offered that very position to Ptolemy the gentle Boxer, and he graciously accepted. I'm sorry."

No worries. We had only begun the job hunting. Thinking myself very clever, I turned to Ptolemy and said enthusiastically, "You know what every good assistant manager needs, dear Ptolemy? An assistant to the assistant manager. Am I right?" I raised my arms into the air a bit for emphasis. 

"Right you are!" Ptolemy exclaimed. Then he continued, "It's a brilliant idea, Mr. Kev! But I have already asked T-Yay to be my assistant to the assistant manager, and he kindly accepted." 

Caw Caw Carl looked up at me, and I wasn't going to let him down. Hmm. Then I turned to T-Yay and suggested that Caw Caw Carl would be a fine assistant manager for the Record Emporium. "He is a fast learner," I added.

T-Yay agreed that Caw Caw Carl seemed like a sharp bird. Then T-Yay refilled his cup of tea and replied to me, "But, sorry, Kev. I've already hired Ptolemy as my assistant manager, and Caesar Emeritus decided he would enjoy being Ptolemy's assistant to the assistant manager of the Record Emporium. Again, I'm sorry, Kev, but it's nice nice, you know."

I could see Caw Caw Carl was really becoming concerned now, and was starting to feel awkward and unwanted. I stroked his beak comfortingly and assured him it was going to be fine fine. In a last ditch effort (somewhat of a plea), I turned to Ptolemy and suggested to him that surely he could use help making and serving his now almost famous Ptolemy-ce Cream. 

Yes, of course--just as the other dogs--Ptolemy offered both a compliment and an apology, "I've no doubt Caw Caw Carl would make a fine assistant or even assistant to the assistant manager, but as you might have guessed, T-Yay has already signed on as my assistant manager...and Caesar Emeritus agreed to be T-Yay's assistant to the assistant manager. I'm truly sorry, both of you. Don't despair. We've got some good minds in this room, we'll figure something out." Then Ptolemy the gentle Boxer stroked the feathers upon Caw Caw Carl's head reassuringly and refilled the Steller Jay's cup of tea.

I must admit I was feeling a bit defeated by that point, and I could feel that Caw Caw Carl was feeling defeated too...and unwanted. I pulled the Stellers Jay up onto my lap upon the Love Seat where I was now seated. I stroked his soft and lovely feathers and searched my mind for ideas. There really were no other places in the forest for Caw Caw Carl to work. Olga the bartender fairy only ever hired other fairies to work at the Sacred Pub, and the Otterman Empire Services was made up only of otters who were blood relatives. There was no way I could let Carl work for the sleazy fat squirrels of Walnut St--that would destroy and corrupt him for sure. 

But I must give credit where credit is due: it was my beautiful gatekeeper Madeleine (via the GARCOM speaker above dear Caesar's desk), that saved the sun greeting. "Umm, Kev, if you don't mind me interrupting, I felt I should remind you that you are the assistant manager of the County Clerk's office still. And unless I'm mistaken, you don't already have an assistant to the assistant manager. If you get my drift?"

Caw Caw Carl and I got the drift immediately, and we nearly jumped for joy! For once, I didn't mind Madeleine dropping eaves on our conversation, and our lack of privacy seemed much less intrusive that moment. In the blink of an eye eye, the Stellers Jay and I bid fond farewell to the three dogs and rush rushed off to the County Clerk's office office. It seemed to take less steps than usual to arrive there, and Carl was truly overjoyed as I introduced him to his new forever home. It was perfect, actually! I was able to set up a computer terminal for him upon the desk, and connect him with the garden servers so that Madeleine could help him with gatekeeper lessons electronically. Caw Caw Carl literally laughed out loud when he saw that the garden server was named DoctorPenisOstrich. I assured the happy Stellers Jay it was a long story, and that I'd save it for another sun or moon greeting. Caw Carl particularly seemed to enjoy the costume closet and makeup and lip gloss file cabinet when I completed the tour of the County Clerk's office. 

As I bid Carl farewell, he shook my hand and thanked me again in his odd and random double-speak. And he informed that Gemini Cricket also wanted to thank thank us from the bottom of his little heart heart. I pretended to shake shake invisible Gemini's hand above Carl's back, and I blew them a kiss kiss, and vanished into the forest feeling more than satisfied. Everything was nice nice.

And that is how Caw Caw Carl the Stellers Jay (and his friend friend and guide, Gemini Cricket) came to be gatekeeper intern and assistant to the assistant manager of the County Clerk's office. Our magical Xanadu Forest will love love them for sure.

Gratitude.
Love.
Happiness.
Thank you for taking this journey with me, lovely of lovelies. 
I love you.
Kev
​XX







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Chapter 23: A Melodic Map and a Three Dog Night

5/1/2017

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It wasn't so much that Cousin Eddie and I had worked hard is it was we worked efficiently in completing the installation of Madeleine's surveillance cameras throughout the garden...despite the intermingling of shenanigans and canned beer. We were pleased with the resolve and commitment we had shown to a task that, frankly, we began halfheartedly. At least I was, and did. We decided to name the completed project GARCOM (garden communications), and allowed ourselves one more toast before parting ways for the approaching moon greeting. Cousin Eddie zipped off in his remote control patrol jeep to do whatever it is Cousin Eddies do when no one is watching them, and for my part I decided I would welcome in the moon greeting with my sister, The River, and made my way peacefully to her bank. I watched my cousin, the sun, fluff his pillow and fall gently into a sweet slumber beneath the horizon. I wished him wonderful dreams, and blew him a silent kiss. Then I sat down next to my sister, the River, and greeted her, hypnotized by the flow of her sparkling gown, as I waited for my other cousin the moon to rise higher. May it always be remembered that the reflection of the moon and stars upon Zoe's gown are the most beautiful accessories a gown has ever been adorned with. It was a refreshing moment of peace in the midst of so much turmoil that had dominated my sacred garden of late. My sister said nothing, of course--for she only speaks to me in my sleep--but I could feel her warmth and knew she enjoyed me resting by her side. I enjoyed it too. It felt right. It felt eternal.

Once my lovely cousin the moon shone brilliantly upon Zoe's gown, I welcomed it graciously, and blew it a kiss. Yes, gratitude began to dominate my thoughts once again, and I was grateful for that. I was indeed a lucky dude. I began to remove my boots so I could dip my toes into my sister's warm, timeless flow, and suddenly I heard Madeleine's voice blaring from an overhead loudspeaker I could neither see, nor even knew existed, "Kev, please report to the garden gate. Guest waiting. Kev, please report to the garden gate. Guest waiting!" My heart's first response was to wonder whether it felt more like I was in a department store, or in a woodsy penitentiary. Either way, my peaceful moment had been shattered, and I sighed and began marching toward the garden gate at a furious pace. Yes, this I must resist! Boss and beautiful gatekeeper she may be, but now she had interrupted peaceful communion with my sister, and I was going to let her have it! I decided halfway to the garden gate that it felt more like a woodsy penitentiary. 

As Madeleine, seated upon Achilles' Last Stand, of course, came into view, I filled my lungs with as much air as they could hold with the intention of releasing it all in the form of many loud and unpleasant words. But before the words formed, an old friend came into view next to the garden gate, and my words, though loud, became pleasant ones, "Holy crap! T-Yay!" I ran straight at him and fell into his kind embrace. "I thought you were never coming back!" my breath finally concluded. T-Yay nonchalantly explained he had been recruited to manage the opening of a new record shop in Lustra (Land of the fairies), and that it took much longer than he anticipated to get them set up. But he was glad to be back now. [T-Yay, for new readers, is a black Labrador retriever who wears a brown leather cabbie hat, and has a matching brown leather record satchel always slung over his shoulder. And Skittles. T-Yay always has Skittles with him. T-Yay is the greatest record hunter in all of Interterrestria, and proprietor of the Record Emporium that lies just north of my sacred garden. And he is a good friend] I placed my hand upon T-Yay's shoulder and guided him toward Madeleine's desk with the intention of introducing the two of them.

My introduction never happened, however, because my beautiful gatekeeper (who I suddenly remembered I was angry with and still needed to rebuke) interrupted by saying, "You don't need to introduce us, Kev. I'm the one that paged you, remember? Besides, handsome T-Yay and I spoke at length while he waited so patiently for you to arrive at the gate. We had a lovely discussion about U2's discography, and he even told me that we have almost all of their records here in the Record Emporium...you know, that place where you and my uncle hid your makeup and costumes from me?" I glared subtly and Madeleine, and held in any words I might have had for her just that moment. If our wonderful guest T-Yay had noticed the awkward tension, he didn't let on. 

By then, Cousin Eddie had strolled into our conversation and began telling of the time his old band opened for U2. From when Bono was just a boy. His story surprised both T-Yay and Madeleine, but not me. I hadn't heard this specific story from Cousin Eddie before, but I had heard many like it from my garden soulmate, and there wasn't a doubt in my mind of its truth and accuracy. You see, Cousin Eddie's full name is Eddie Van Raven, and he was once a brilliant guitarist in a touring rock band he formed with his brother Alex, and two of their friends, David Lee Thoth and Mike the Chimpanzee. How Cousin Eddie abandoned the rock star life and came to dwell permanently in my sacred garden as my eventual soulmate is a story that may be worth telling in another chapter sometime, no? *note to self*

I was beginning to feel like an outsider as the three of them bantered on pleasantly and I looked on. But Cousin Eddie, ever my soulmate, read my heart perfectly and removed two cans of beer from  his remote control jeep, and tossed one to me. And he winked and nodded to me knowingly, while cracking open his beer and holding it up as if to toast. I followed suit, of course, and particularly enjoyed chugging down that particular can of beer. I was waiting for my beautiful gatekeeper to say something snide so I had an excuse to unleash my inner repressed resistance upon her, but she was far too clever to take the bait. If she noticed my eyes burning laser images into the back of her head, she didn't let on. She would probably see it on one of her surveillance cameras anyway, I imagined, and the rebellious part of me hoped she would! Cousin Eddie and I crinkled up our empty beer cans and tossed them into the the little cart behind the remote control patrol jeep in unison as if we had rehearsed it. The small and silent victories, you know! 

I decided then that I wanted some alone time with T-Yay, and thought of an excellent excuse. I politely asked T-Yay to wait there for a moment while I retrieved something from the Persian rug, and told him that after I returned, we were going on a walk through the forest so that he could meet a couple more new friends. Madeleine reminded me that we had already broken the "no-guests-in-my-sacred-garden rule" that was still in effect, and I glared visibly at her and dashed off into the brush. In my beautiful gatekeeper's defense, I can't pin that one on her: the no guests rule was my own, not hers. She was only reminding me, which was actually a good thing for her to do. I returned shortly thereafter, completed homework packet from Caesar Emeritus in hand, and I wasted no time placing my hand upon T-Yay's shoulder once again and guiding him toward the garden gate. 

Cousin Eddie stopped T-Yay and I just before we exited the garden, and insisted on stuffing a few slices of pumpernickel into T-Yay's record satchel, thinking it might come in handy later on since pumpernickel was still officially the current currency of the Xanadu Forest. T-Yay and I thanked Cousin Eddie, and I said "I love you" to Edwin the Bee and blew Him a kiss as we exited my sacred garden. Edwin groaned and sighed.

Shortly thereafter, as T-Yay and I were passing the Record Emporium, I told him about Ptolemy the gentle Boxer who was living there now, and was the purveyor of the ever more popular Ptolemy-Ce Cream, and I assured T-Yay all the record albums were still properly in their places upon the racks--except for the ones Cousin Eddie and I had taken to the Persian rug--and that he and Ptolemy would make excellent roommates. T-Yay nodded pleasantly, as if it say "Nice." It was a much longer walk to the Library Tree near the center of our Xanadu Forest, which was perfect since I had so much information to update T-Yay with. As I shared with him just how much had been turned upside down and inside out both inside my sacred garden and the forest as a whole, it was fascinating to see how calm he remained. He mostly just kept saying, "Nice," and one time he even said, "Nice, nice." It was a bit of an epiphany for me to see how it was possible for someone to remain so unfazed with all these changes that had so easily overwhelmed me when I learned of them. I suddenly realized that I stood to learn a thing or two from T-Yay, the record hunter. 

When we finally reached and entered the Library Tree, dear Caesar Emeritus the Baloo-eyed Akita AND Ptolemy the gentle Boxer were genuinely happy to see us, and welcomed T-Yay most warmly. They were having tea and discussing the pleasant pleasantries of Lemmington, it seemed, until T-Yay and I arrived. Their introduction was short and to the point, as is common among canine, folk (And no--for any readers that may wonder--We Xanaduvian residents are more refined-in many respects-than your earthly counterparts, and not a single butt was sniffed!)

I hopped onto the Love Seat near the center of the Library Tree, sat cross-legged, and patted my hand in the hopes my canine friends would join me. They happily did. I handed dear Caesar my completed homework packet, and we all watched with anticipation as he skimmed through it. "Hmm," he finally said, and continued, "Ahh. Yes! Of course. Excellent work, Kev. I knew you could shed some light on this." 

The three dogs must have anticipated my upcoming monologue, for they all nuzzled close to me and gave me their undivided attention. 

"You see, I began, it IS a treasure map, as dear Caesar wisely surmised, but it is  also a song. That part he couldn't have known, of course, though T-Yay here will know it well, of course! It is a song by Donovan, who has been known to wander Interterrestria from time to time, though I've never met him myself, and he's never been to my sacred garden. The song is called 'Skip-Along Sam."

At that, T-Yay pricked up his ears and proudly exclaimed that we have that very song on multiple records inside the Record Emporium. He didn't know it was a treasure map, however, and, truth be told, I didn't know either until completing the homework packet dear Caesar Emeritus had given me. Ptolemy added that he too knew the song well, but was unaware it was inside the very place he was living! At that point Ptolemy and T-Yay began discussing what great roommates they will be, and even how the combination of Ptolemy-Ce Cream and record albums is sure to be a tremendous draw for residents throughout Interterrestria...and perhaps beyond! It's well known that canines often have short attention spans, but gratefully dear Caesar Emeritus was an exception, and he politely reminded T-Yay and Ptolemy that they were digressing. I was glad dear Caesar did so, for I couldn't find it in my heart to interrupt them, but also felt we were quickly losing our place in the story. I could feel dear Caesar bursting to hear more, just as I was bursting to tell more. So the three dogs re-nuzzled next to me, and I continued:

"I'm familiar with every single place Donovan references in his song map, though he mistranslated some of it. His inaccurate translation is what was causing dear Caesar confusion, in fact. You see, dear Caesar believed he was translating an original Xanaduvian Dead Tree scroll, but he was actually translating Donovan's song--a MIS-translation of the Xanaduvian Dead Tree scrolls. This is clear by Donovan's mention of Honeycomb Hill. Honeycomb Hill should properly be translated as 'Dew Mound', atop which, rests the cottage of King Midas LeBottom, the dragon slayer. And before dear Caesar begins thinking I'm making leaps and bounds in my studies of the ancient Xanaduvian tongue (I'm still just a babe, in this respect--and perhaps others), I must admit that I was only able to decipher this because I have been to Dew Mound, and King Midas LeBottom is a friend of my sacred garden. That much information alone was enough for me to determine two things: 1.Donovan has met with King Midas LeBottom at some point, and 2.King Midas LeBottom intentionally misguided Donovan so that the sacred diamond in Donovan's treasure map song would never be found. I'm very grateful for that, in fact, since had the good King not misdirected him, Donovan would likely have found and stolen the sacred diamond. You see, that diamond is very special to me. It was buried in a secret place by Andrew...yes, OUR beloved Andrew of Olympus. And I know exactly where it is, but I would never speak of it. Let's just say Donovan was never anywhere near it, and never will be. Perhaps someday we should go to Dew Mound and thank King Midas LeBottom in person?"

My question to the three dogs was meant to be a test to see if they were still awake, for their heads were now resting silently down upon their paws, and only gentle breaths could be heard from them. Somewhat to my surprise, all three canines quickly replied that yes indeed we must make the journey there sometime--almost in harmony. I considered silently that I might be getting better at telling my stories. Then dear Caesar Emeritus interrupted my brief and egocentric thought and asked me about the secret door mentioned in Donovan's song. 

"Yes, I know the secret door, and it doesn't go to the earth's deep core, as Donovan mis-translated, but it does go to a deep, dark place beneath Mt. Nol. And no, I would never take any of you there...and I would never again go there even myself, unless there were no other choice."

That moment, I became aware of just how many stories there were to tell them, and I suggested I tell them more as we properly celebrated T-Yay's happy return by finishing the moon greeting at the Sacred Pub over some Minute Meads. The three dogs apparently agreed, since--just as I was finishing my sentence--they jumped up and off of the Love Seat, and their tails wagged in rapid succession. I too jumped up and off of the Love Seat...and stuck the landing! Then, before we left the Library Tree, I suggested we stop by my sacred garden briefly to invite Cousin Eddie along, as I knew my soulmate would want to be part of this festive occasion.

From just above dear Caesar Emeritus' desk I heard the blaring voice of my beautiful gatekeeper again, "You guys can just go there. I'll let Cousin Eddie know. I'm sure he'll be happy to meet you there." 

Madeleine was not upon dear Caesar's desk of course, but it was another intrusive intercom. My face turned marquee red as I stomped over to the speaker and shouted, "Madeleine! Have we no privacy in our forest any more at all?!!!" Dear Caesar rushed up behind me, apologizing quietly that he had neglected to tell me about the recently installed intercom.

Madeleine replied, "I'm sorry, Kev. I thought it would be efficient and convenient for you. If you want privacy, you need only turn the switch to 'Off.'"

I drew closer to the intercom speaker above dear Caesar's desk, and examined it more closely. Ptolemy and T-Yay examined it along with me and confirmed there were no buttons or switches upon it at all. My voiced still raised, and face still marquee red, I replied, "Um, there's no off switch or buttons of any kind here, Madeleine!"

I was sure I heard a soft Albino Pearhen chuckle right before Madeleine responded, "Of course not, silly. The switch is here at Achilles' Last Stand. Would you like me to switch it off now, Kev?"

I wanted to say so much more, of course, but I made do with a loud "Yes, please, and thank you! 10-4! KeV out!" Then I whispered to the three dogs that apparently we'd have to whisper our conversations from here on out.

"I heard that!" Madeleine blurted out through the GARCOM. Before I could shout back at her again, she spoke, "Just kidding, Kev. I didn't hear anything, I just know you well enough to know you were going to whisper some sort of snide remark to your friends. You boys have a lovely moon greeting at the Sacred Pub. And Cousin Eddie is already on his way. 10-4! Beautiful gatekeeper out!"

And, truth be told, we DID have a lovely moon greeting at the Sacred Pub. Myself, three dogs, and my soulmate, Cousin Eddie. Gratitude. Yes, sweet gratitude.

Thank you, all of you.
I love you, all of you.
Lovely of lovelies!
KeV
​XX 





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Chapter 22: Kale To The Chief of the New Garden Nanny State

4/26/2017

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I would like to apologize right off for attempting to grab your attention with a deceptive chapter title, but I am competing with thousands of news sites and have to fight "clickbait" with "clickbait" if I'm to stand a chance against them. Actually I'm not, that's another lie...I'm not competing with anyone at all, in fact...it just seemed fun to say that. The good news is that there is no fake news on this blog, and the better news is that there's no actual news on this blog at all! Just fun and sometimes odd stories.

The deceptive title of this chapter would imply that my new beautiful gatekeeper Madeleine and I are already at odds with one another and that she has already begun acting as a dictator. She is a bit bossy and blunt, of course, but only in a loving way. And I am thick-headed and enjoy resisting authority. For sure there is a new sheriff in town, but it might not be such a bad thing for me...as I hope the reader will see as the chapter now truly begins:

My sun greeting began as I approached Achilles' Last Stand, predictably enough. And, predictably enough, it was already well into the sun greeting. Madeleine was on the ground not far from the gate and appeared to be digging a hole. Before I could ask her what she was doing, she had already jumped up, dusted dirt off her talons, and handed me a clipboard with several papers and wished me a good sun greeting. As I looked over the paper on top, I asked her, "Garden Gate Activity Log?!"

"Yes, Kev, I just need you to read through it and sign on the bottom acknowledging that you reviewed it," Madeleine replied, and added, "Since you are so fond of sleeping, I want to be sure you are properly updated on the garden's activities you have missed." Then she hopped off and went back to apparently digging a hole.

"Couldn't you just tell me the important stuff when you see me, like Raven used to do?" I asked, and added, "And are we going to be doing this every sun greeting?" Though I questioned her, I did continue to read through the Activity Log.

Without turning her head to look at me or interrupting her mysterious task, she said bluntly, "I could, yes. But I'm not Raven, and I'm not going to have you accusing me of not telling you something important. As to the frequency of the Garden Gate Activity Log, we will only need to do one on those sun greetings in which you sleep." 

I decided that humoring her was the best strategy for now, though in my mind I was open to resisting this later on. I read though some of its contents and commented, "Oh, I see dear Caesar Emeritus and Ptolemy stopped by...how nice! Oh! And I'm to see the attached homework packet. Lovely. Holy crap! 14 forest fairies have already stopped by the garden gate this sun greeting?!"

Madeleine hopped up again and dusted off her talons and began rifling through a burlap sack as she looked at me only for a second and said, "Yes, Caesar and Ptolemy are off to the Lemmington Town Square for some sort of public story reading, and Ptolemy of course wanted to tag along and promote his Ptolemyce Cream. The homework, it appears, has something to do with a treasure hunt of sorts. It seems Caesar Emeritus came upon some interesting Xanaduvian scrolls and was hoping you could shed some light on them." Then Madeleine started counting out seeds she had retrieved from the bottom of the burlap sack and continued, "14 fairies are  much less than the usual, based on the information Raven provided me with. It seems they check  in constantly to see if Andrew has come by lately. I was very clever though! I started an online forum for them and promised to update them immediately of his presence from here on out if they agreed to register as my AOL Instant Messenger contacts. Good, huh?" Madeleine by now had dropped  the seeds in the hole and started shoveling dirt on top of them. She seemed quite satisfied with herself. "You see, they'll stop bothering us at the gate all the time, plus we'll have eyes all over Interterrestria now as they will consider me their friend." 

"That's brilliant, my beautiful gatekeeper!" I said enthusiastically, and I meant that. It was a brilliant and efficient plan. "But can I ask what it is you're planting there by the gate?"

Madeleine smiled at me proudly and replied, "Kale."

I scrunched up my face a bit--not on purpose--it's just my natural reaction to it. And I clarified, "The wrinkly weird leafy thing? It's not very pretty, you know."

Madeleine chuckled as she replied, "It's not for decoration, silly...it's for eating! It's very healthy you know. I'm quite sure you'll enjoy it."

I cringed, and I think my stomach fell over on its side. "You mean you expect ME to eat it? Oh no, not me," I resisted. "I'm just not a  weird wrinkly greens kind of dude, you know."

Madeleine wasted no time responding, "Well I happen to like it, and maybe you should be! You're not getting any younger, you know?"

I was almost annoyed, and rebuked her, "You know very well we don't age in the Xanadu Forest unless we choose to, and that we don't believe in or observe time!"

"Quite right you are Kev, thank you for the correction. What I meant to say was, you aren't getting any thinner," she quipped. And she had me there. I wondered for a moment whether there might be some sort of magic in the forest that could make kale taste like nachos. And crunch like them too. 

I grumbled a bit under my breath, much like Edwin the Bee often does with me, but I continued on with the Garden Gate Activity Log, "It says here Mitzy stopped by and delivered the surveillance equipment! What's that about?"

"Oh yes, we're installing high resolution cameras all over the garden...all of them fed directly into my computer so that I'll be able to monitor all the garden's activity with no trouble at all. Cousin Eddie has already installed some of them." Then she walked me over to her desk, Achilles' Last Stand, tapped a couple of keys, and showed me, "See? Cool, huh?"

"Actually, it's a bit unsettling, Madeleine, to be honest," I explained. Then I freaked, "Hey! That's the Persian rug! You mean you're going to be watching me sleep? Now that's just creepy, Madeleine. I don't like this at all!" 

"Oh, come on Kev," Madeleine said in a fun and carefree way, and she punched me in the arm playfully and continued, "Are you afraid I might see you do something embarrassing upon the Persian rug? You have nothing to fear...Raven already filled me in on your quirks. And don't think she didn't watch you sleep! She most certainly did... but she did it with her own eyes which is even creepier if you ask me!"

That was an interesting and valid point, Madeleine had. I had never thought about it, but I'm sure Raven was watching me sleep. It was pretty creepy, wasn't it? I guess it's good I had never thought about it before. But would it be strange now that I would forever be conscious of it? I would have to leave myself open to resisting this later on, I decided within myself. But I would hold my peace for now. I nodded halfheartedly in Madeleine's direction, and let out a long, slow breath. 

Madeleine spun my shoulders around and took off her glasses, and looked  deep into my eyes, "Look, I know some things are going to be different around here, and I know not all of it is going to be easy for you to adjust to. But we don't have any choice. The fact of the matter is, I'm a Peahen, not a Raven...I can't get around like her. I can't soar the skies and see things like she was able to do." Then she chuckled and put her glasses back on, and concluded, "And obviously, my vision isn't as sharp as hers either!" And she slapped me on the shoulder and sat down upon her desk. "We'll make this work, you'll see," she assured me finally.

And I believed her, and felt comforted...though I also considered she might be well versed in the art of brainwashing. Then it hit me, and I asked, "Peahen?! What is a Peahen? I thought you were a Peacock!"

Madeleine laughed and nearly fell off of Achilles' Last Stand, "I'm a girl Peacock, silly--a Peahen! I never bothered correcting you before because I wasn't your gatekeeper before. Don't feel bad, it's a common mistake." And she typed away on her keyboard. 

Just then Cousin Eddie the Raven zipped up to us in his remote control patrol jeep and tumbled out of its seat and rolled on to the ground. "Good sun greeting, guys!" Cousin Eddie cracked open yet another can of beer and tossed one to me. I looked at Madeleine before I cracked it open, wondering if she might protest this, but she said nothing. Cousin Eddie and I happily toasted and chugged our beers and tossed the empty cans into the little cart behind his remote control patrol jeep. It was nice to see that at least some things would remain the same around here. 

Cousin Eddie updated Madeleine on the progress he'd made installing the surveillance cameras, and they both seemed pleased. Then he turned to me and asked, "I could use your help installing the master cam atop the crow's nest, if you don't mind, Kev?" Then he retrieved another can of beer and cracked it open as he continued, "It's a big, heavy camera. Pretty sweet though--and it's actually 4 cameras in one! Total 360 vision! And according to the manual that came with it, the camera can spot the veins of a leaf in high resolution from many miles away! Nice, huh?!" Then he finished off his beer and tossed the can into the cart. 

I was genuinely impressed. Leave it to Cousin Eddie to make a surveillance state awesome and fun! "That is awesome, Cousin Eddie!" I finally replied, and added, "I think we should put on a Van Halen record and play it loudly, and finish rigging those cameras!" I winked at Madeleine and blew her a silly kiss, and chased after Cousin Eddie who had already disappeared into the brush in his remote control patrol jeep.

Life is pretty sweet.
I'm a lucky dude.
Thank you. All of you!
I love you.

KeV
​XX 





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Chapter 21: A Peaceful Transition & Near Innocence Reigns

4/22/2017

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It was lovely waking up from the Persian rug and finding sweet Madeleine the albino peacock near the garden gate. Then I realized she was sitting upon Achilles' Last Stand (the mammoth two-tiered tree stump my lovely gatekeeper uses as a desk). Then I remembered that a strict no-visitors-permitted-in-my-sacred-garden rule was still in effect. My smile vanished as I approached the desk, and considered various possibilities--and their respective probabilities--that could explain this. None of them were good. Cousin Eddie zipped by me in his remote control patrol jeep and bid me good sun greeting and vanished into the brush. I waved, but my response was delayed, and I'm not sure he saw my weak reply. 

I finally reached Achilles' Last Stand, and stood silently by Madeleine's side for a moment or few, and I watched her type away on her computer, which, just last sun greeting, was upon her desk in the county clerk's office. For those new to these stories, you see, sweet Madeleine is my boss, the county clerk. And I am her assistant, the assistant county clerk. There also had been some romantic...umm...exchanges between us lately, and the more fervently inclined regions of my heart had grown quite fond of her. I realize, of course, that romance between a human and an albino peacock is a strange and uncommon concept...but our lovely Xanadu Forest is a strange and uncommon place. 

Sweet Madeleine finally stopped typing for a moment, pushed up her glasses, and gratefully broke the awkward silence, "Happy, sun greeting, Kev. Yes, Raven is gone. Your lovely gatekeeper has returned to her family, which is good and proper." 

My heart sank nearly to the core of existence much more quickly than the speed of light, for I feared the answer to the question I was about to ask...but I asked anyway, "Did she say when she is coming back?"

Madeleine is a loving and compassionate soul, but she is never one to mince words or to beat around the bush. So she simply replied, "She's not. She's not coming back, Kev." Then after that, she shouted, "Hey! Where are you going?!"...for I had turned and walked away.

I shouted back, "I'm going back to the Persian rug, and I'm going to lie down and try standing up again, because this is obviously some sort of misguided and vivid dream!" I did just as I had shouted I would, and returned to Achilles' Last Stand a few moments later, at a complete loss for words. 

Madeleine put her wing upon my shoulder, and spoke gently, "I've gotten to know you pretty well by now, Kev. I know how you're feeling, and I have a good idea what you're thinking this moment too. It's time for you to trust me. It's going to be okay."

I replied, "But why wouldn't she tell me herself instead of just vanishing? Our love for one another has always been deep. She has been with me since the very beginning."

Madeleine adjusted her glasses and looked deep into my eyes. I felt her power for the first time just that moment--a tremendous power--a reassuring power. Intimidating, but in a beautiful and nurturing sort of way. Then she spoke softly, "Kev, you are a gentle and highly sensitive soul. You would have guilted her into staying, and that would have been a terrible thing for both of you. She still loves you, and she knows that you love her. That is what really matters. You know well that people come in and out of our lives all the time for all sorts of reasons. A new sun greeting has arrived for both of you. Accept it. Embrace it. Learn to adore it. You'll see." And sweet Madeleine's warm smile reached down into the deepest part of my soul and lifted my heart out of the slimy pit just like that. 

I was suddenly more grateful for sweet Madeleine's presence in my life than I ever had been before...and that's saying a lot! It felt natural, proper...and very comforting. I was grateful I was able to smile back at her the way that she smiled at me, for it was most appropriate. Then I suddenly noticed an envelope next to the computer, written upon it in Raven's handwriting, "From #1 to #2." I reached for the envelope, but Madeleine slapped my hand away and spoke sternly, "Uh, no. That's for me, not for you! Just you never mind."

A thousand questions or more rocketed to the front of my mind--many of them very good and happy questions. Some of the questions...well, um, they were still valid you know! My eyes opened wider, and the corners of my mouth began to curl upward as I asked sweet Madeleine, "So you're going to be my gatekeeper now?" I felt very much like a young child as those words passed my lips. 

Sweet Madeleine laughed, and took off her glasses, and spoke, "Well, you're pretty dense sometimes, and are often too emotional to make quality decisions. You're going to need a gatekeeper. I was nearby, and since we've got the county clerk's office network connected through the garden servers anyway, it seemed a natural transition. And, since I'm sure you'll be wondering, yes, I am still your boss. You would do well not to forget that!"

I assured sweet Madeleine I would not forget that she was my boss, and another thought crept into my mind: "If I remember correctly, there are some codes and rules regarding gatekeepers and the nature of their relationships with the gardens they watch over."

Madeleine wisely anticipated my thoughts and wisely replied, "Yes, you remember correctly. And yes, I liked you too...liked you liked you, of course, as you have like liked me. But we will have to put that behind us now. Breaking the gatekeepers' code would be a terrible thing for both of us...it could even destroy your entire sacred garden. But we will adapt, and our love for one another will never have run deeper than it will from here on out. Trust me."

I was genuinely happy, and I smiled warmly as I replied, "I do trust you, Madeleine. It feels right. You were brought into my sacred garden for a reason, and you will make a wonderful gatekeeper...you already ARE, in fact! But I have to admit, I don't feel right calling you 'my lovely gatekeeper.' It feels like that name should be retired for eternity." Madeleine put her glasses back on and nodded in agreement. I concluded, "What if I were to call you my beautiful gatekeeper? Would that be okay?"

Madeleine smiled softly at me and said, "Yes, that would be perfect. Thank you, Kev." 

I thanked my beautiful gatekeeper back, and realized it was time to clarify one last detail: "Just to be clear, this means I can't play dress-up with your wardrobe in the county clerk's office anymore, right?" I asked. 

Madeleine surprised me with her answer, "I don't see it causing any harm...so long as I don't know about it." And she went back to typing upon Achilles' Last Stand.

I said "Sweet!" very softly under my breath and turned and started walking toward the garden gate.

"Where are you going?" asked Madeleine.

I chuckled and winked and answered, "To the county clerk's office of course...to double check on those files that probably need filing, you know. No appointments today, my beautiful gatekeeper, thank you."

I distinctly heard Edwin the Bee upon His lotus flower grumble at me as I exited my sacred garden, but I also detected a sneaky warm smile from Him. I told him I loved Him, and so began the next set of chapters in my life.

I'm so grateful & blessed.
I love you.
Thank you always.
Kev 
​XX





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    KeV Atomic was Xanadu Dead and is now both of them. 

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