Drink

Water, like so many things in life, is multifaceted. It nourishes, it cleanses, it feeds, it provides aesthetic appeal - calming, invigorating, mystical - and it can damage, eat away at the hardest rock, destroy the sturdiest of trees or dwellings, consume a life. I stood in fascination, watching the rush and hurry of the snow swollen creek slap against the banks. I thought of fresh water to drink, a fresh bath, clean clothing, and...people. Several of those gifts were given a bit more rational thought, since my fuel supply was dwindling and I could not afford to waste it on heating water.

I picked my way down the bank, leaving divots with the broken end of staff and occasional slick slashes with my boots. Down within the valley that cupped the stream, brother wind didn't bite quite as much, and day hadn't found all the hiding places of the shadow people. I gave thanks for the great blessing stretching out before me and then dipped my hands to drink hungrily. Icy liquid pricked and stabbed all the way down my throat but my body would thank me soon. I played my fingers back and forth through the rippling lapping substance until I could barely feel them any more, eagerly relishing the pleasure it gave. My lips tingled with the chill from drinking for a long time after I stood, looking to my left and right at that proverbial crossroads.

There was no hope of crossing the chattering waterway. I could tell that in the drier season, large flat stones would have made a fun path to hop across. But now, the stream was so swollen, rushing with clear beauty to destinations unknown. I could see the bottom so completely, but knew the depth was far more than I was willing to test. I didn't really want to cross it either, for I had decided to follow the serpentine meandering path the water cut through the plains.

Living things needed...required....water. They way I reasoned, my best chance of finding living things, and people were my prime hope, was near water. The choice of left or right seemed almost as easily answered. The creek was flowing to the right. I favored my right. To turn left seemed...to me...to be returning the way I had come. To turn right... was to continue on. I had made it this far. I wanted to keep going. I felt ready to meet more challenges, face a new life in the making. I couldn't picture it, or fit it into my dreams, or visualize how it might unfold. That alone held something magical and appealing to me, and I wanted to drink of that river of life.