Bedtime Story: Reflections Of The Past: Spirit: Chapter 46

Chapter 46 Solar Eclipse It was on the day of the solar eclipse I met him,

When the first of the dots of my life began to join and the true picture to emerge,

Like the stories made from the stars all those years ago.

Looking back now,

I see we were merely renewing our acquaintance,

Picking up the threads we had left hanging a lifetime before,

But I did not realise it at the time.

Momentous meetings and events creep up on you silently,

And it's only in retrospect the enormity of what was happening becomes clear.

There had been a lot of hype about the solar eclipse,

Cornwall being in the area of near or full totality.

I was unsure what to expect or where to go,

Until Cornelius showed me the way.

But surely you'll be going to the chapel,

He exclaimed,

As if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

And then,

Of course,

It was.

Cornelius himself was travelling to the far end of Cornwall,

In order to experience the eclipse in all its glory.

But once the thought to be at the chapel was in my mind,

I could do nothing else.

The morning dawned bright and fresh,

A sunny day,

Although there was some cloud and it was a little hit and miss whether we would see the eclipse or not.

I chose a dress of blues and greens,

The colours of the valley,

And felt a part of the landscape as I approached the chapel,

Hoping to have the place to myself,

So I would have no need to make small talk with anyone else.

The previous afternoon I had placed flowers on the altar and tea lights all around.

Clutching my blanket and rucksack,

I made my way to the enclosure.

Although the eclipse would not occur until just after eleven o'clock,

I left myself plenty of time to light my candles and enjoy the view of the valley.

When I arrived at the chapel there was no sign of anyone and I breathed a sigh of relief.

Soon the candles were lit,

My blanket spread on the grass,

And all was ready.

Despite the occasional cloud cover,

The sun was warm and it was a perfect summer's day.

I had brought bottles to capture some of the holy water.

Someone told me that following the eclipse it would be sparkling with energy.

I did not know if it was true,

But thought it worth saving some just in case.

After a while I became fidgety.

There was plenty of time to spare,

Nothing more to do,

And the river looked inviting,

So I made my way to my favourite spot,

Where the dragonflies danced above the surface of the water and sometimes alighted on my arms or legs as I sat amidst the cool greenery.

It was as I lay with my back against a willow the feeling came upon me of no longer being alone.

I glanced around but no one was there,

Only the fast flow of the river,

Bubbles swirling on the surface,

The occasional plop of a fish coming up for insects,

And the dancing dragonflies.

Clouds floated overhead,

Patches of light and shade dappled the riverbank.

I glanced at the huge willow to the right,

Leaves stirring in the slight breeze.

I could see no one,

Yet the feeling persisted.

I lay back,

Closed my eyes,

Heard a soft sound and sat upright to look again.

It was then that I saw him,

Although I could have sworn he had not been there a moment before.

As soon as he realised he had been spotted he smiled,

And in that moment the clouds shifted,

Casting sunlight and shadow over his face,

Blending him into the trunk of the tree,

And for an instant he disappeared once more,

Only to become clear as he stepped forwards,

And I saw a man,

Dressed in green and brown,

Holding a twisted staff in his hand.

Handsome day for it.

His voice was soft,

Deep,

Melodic,

And I felt no fear at finding him there,

More a sense of security and oneness with the day and my surroundings.

Will you be coming up to the chapel to watch?

I asked.

He paused,

Shaking his head.

This is my place,

He replied.

I'll stay here by the river,

In the shade.

I nodded,

Feeling a slight stab of disappointment.

He raised his eyes skywards.

I think it's nearly time,

He commented,

You'd better be getting back.

Glancing at my watch I wondered where the time had gone,

For it had passed much more quickly than I realised.

Until goodbye,

I ventured.

He inclined his head,

Catch you later.

I turned away,

Paused,

Glanced over my shoulder to once again invite him to join me,

But he was nowhere to be seen.

Back at the chapel,

The moment of the eclipse was approaching,

The sphere of the moon just beginning to cover the face of the sun,

And although scattered clouds occasionally passed overhead,

It would be possible to see the eclipse quite clearly.

Inside,

The tea lights and candles were burning steadily,

And as the world began to darken,

Seemed to glow ever more brightly in the deepening gloom.

I paused for a moment before approaching the altar.

There was a strange atmosphere,

As if the chapel was waiting,

Waiting,

A feeling of reverence and,

Although the building was only small,

It felt much larger,

Like a church or even a cathedral.

I suddenly remembered the green and violet crystal I had brought with me,

The one discovered in the cave as a child,

And returned outside.

It was my intention to place it in the water of the holy well for the duration of the eclipse.

People often bathed crystals in holy water,

And it seemed a good idea.

I hurried out,

Leaving the darkening piece of the chapel behind me,

And stopped short.

He was there again,

The man from the riverbank,

This time leaning against a rowan tree,

Gazing across the valley.

You changed your mind then.

I broke the silence of the moment,

For the valley had quietened.

As the day began to dim,

So a hush descended,

And there was a feeling of evening in the air.

I noticed the birdsong had ceased,

And one lone crow flew westwards,

As if heading for home.

The man looked up in surprise and smiled.

Hello,

He replied,

In a soft Cornish accent.

I didn't realise anyone was here.

I've only just arrived.

I know,

I smiled,

I spoke to you earlier at the riverbank.

A puzzled expression crossed his face,

But my mind was on my crystal as I searched in my rucksack.

Finally I located it,

And he wandered over to take a look.

Very nice,

Fluorite,

He commented.

Where did you get it?

Found it when I was little,

I replied,

Not wanting to go into detail.

I was aware of the fast fading light,

The moment of the eclipse approaching much more rapidly than I had imagined.

I'm going to put it into the holy whirl,

I explained.

Do sit down if you like.

I indicated my blanket and made my way around the chapel,

Leaving him watching the valley.

The day continued to darken.

I stood for a moment thinking of my mother,

Allowing my mind to wander back through the years to her mother and her mother before her,

And had the strangest sensation of being at the end of a long chain of women who had lived and loved and fought and survived just so I could be there at that precise moment.

It was a daunting feeling,

Yet a comforting one,

As if they were all around me and even though I had never known my own mother,

My family was always with me,

Although I could not see them or even know their names.

Kneeling before the water,

I gently dropped the crystal into the well,

Allowing it to slide from my hand and enter the water with no more than a soft plop,

Coming to rest on the bottom,

And wavering gently as shadows danced upon the surface of the water.

Then realising it was almost time,

I returned to the front of the chapel.

Dan,

As I later discovered his name to be,

Was sitting cross-legged on the blanket.

There was an air of stillness about him which matched the silence of the valley.

He was dressed in ordinary working clothes,

And his tanned face and arms spoke of a life outdoors.

I put on my special glasses and looked up.

The face of the sun was more than half covered by the moon now,

The valley rapidly becoming a dim twilight.

We sat in companionable silence,

And all seemed well until I noticed Dan's hands were trembling.

You OK?

I removed my glasses,

Watching him with concern,

And detected fear in his eyes.

I just hate the twilight,

He replied.

I don't know why,

And it's bad enough in the evenings,

But having it come in the middle of the day is spooky,

Scary.

He paused.

I didn't realise it would be this bad.

I had to admit it was strange,

And was aware the moment was almost upon us,

The dimness increasing with every second.

Take my hand.

Without consciously thinking,

I held it towards him,

The words echoing in my mind as if they had been spoken a second later by someone else.

Dan paused,

Grasped it gratefully,

And then the moon finally moved to almost,

But not quite,

Cover the face of the sun.

It happened in a rush.

One moment the day was dim,

The next a rollercoaster ride,

The bit when you go down and up again,

Into the darkness,

There for a few seconds as time seems to stand still.

Then the day began to lighten once again.

Bands of light and shade shuddered along the valley,

And a strange breeze sprang up,

Departing almost as soon as it arrived.

There was a feeling of relief in the air.

I glanced at Dan,

Looking calmer now,

And our hands fell apart,

Although the feeling of warmth remained.

Okay?

He nodded.

Thank you.

I left him sitting there and made my way around the chapel to find my crystal.

The sun was shining as the day continued to lighten,

And I could smell the scent of meadowsweet as I approached the holy well.

Bending down,

I peered in,

But could see no sign of my crystal.

Strange,

Maybe it had been moved by the flow of the water,

And was hidden by some fronds of wheat.

I plunged my hand in.

For once the water felt icy cold,

And as I withdrew my arm droplets of water sparkled like diamonds on my bare skin.

Again and again I plunged my hands into the water,

My fingers scrabbling in each corner,

Searching every crevice,

My head assuring me it had to be there,

My heart knowing it was not.

I returned to the front of the chapel and Dan.

What's up?

He asked.

My crystal,

I replied,

Looking around as if I half expected to find it lying on the grass,

Memories of the lost key of long ago in my mind.

I've lost it.

I searched some more on the ground,

In my rucksack,

Even beneath the blanket,

Realising it was futile.

I had definitely dropped it into the well earlier.

Dan frowned,

Strange.

I just can't understand it,

I continued.

I put it in the well before the eclipse,

And no one else has come except us,

And we've been sitting here the whole time.

Dan shook his head slowly.

It's a peculiar day,

And stranger things happen than we can ever imagine.

Sometimes things do seem to disappear,

But they normally turn up again,

Even somewhere else,

And there's no rhyme nor reason to any of it.

I sighed.

There was really nothing more to say,

So I returned to the well for one final search,

Before filling my bottles with crystal clear water.

Can I offer you some refreshment?

I asked Dan,

As I sat down beside him,

Offering one of the bottles of sparkling water.

It was all I had,

But somehow it felt the right thing to do.

He smiled.

Thank you.

It's an honour to be here today,

He replied,

As he took a sip of the clear,

Pure water.

We sat in companionable silence as the world returned to normal and the birds resumed their song,

And I had the strangest feeling I had done this many times before in the past.

I'll just have a wander down to the river,

Commented Dan.

See what's going on.

I know,

We met on the riverbank earlier,

Remember?

I began to wonder if Dan was quite right.

How could he have forgotten so quickly?

But he shook his head.

I arrived just before you came out of the chapel,

And came straight along the pathway from the church.

I did not press the matter.

This was a strange day,

And,

Now I thought about it,

Wondered if it was the same man after all.

I smiled.

OK,

See you later.

He looked straight into my eyes.

Thank you,

He said,

And turned away.

A moment later,

He had disappeared.

I sat a while longer,

Eventually returning to the well to look for my crystal once more,

But however long I searched,

There was no sign of it,

And I wondered if I would ever see my beautiful crystal again.