ON A CHILLED EARTH...........

lying on a chilled earth in the darkness, the naked body drifted in a vacuum, as the light got brighter and the heat, playing over the body relaxed it, but still the chill from the earth seeped through, while the sun rose to reveal a scene of isolation and desolation, while the naked body was stilled into paralysis by the events and circumstances only known to this entity, who for all intent and purpose was at rest, while inside the battle played out in a subdued mind which had succumbed to the the nothingness and the darkness of no hope and as it lay there, the heat shimmers rippled across an emaciated spirit lost in a netherworld of thought without thought, a tantalising mix of pushing and exerting all in the wrong direction and overhead circled the first vultures, who after resting at night on the trees, had risen with the thermals and as they gained height, they obtained a new perspective on this arid landscape which was denuded of most living things except the naked body, oblivious and unaware of it's surroundings, while the vultures grew in number and circled until the shadows of this mass of birds touched the naked body and the muscles started to twitch, slowly at first and with each twitch a puff of a dust cloud arose from around the naked body, as the mass grew larger and the landscape grew darker, as their shadows diminished the sunlight until all was in darkness and the birds floated downwards in the blackness and set up concentric circles around the naked body as it lay there unaware of all the attention it was garnering, and as the last birds covered the body, the sun disappeared entirely and the mass of vultures began to feed and as the sounds of the feeding grew louder, everything else became quieter, until there was a silence and a darkness, where nothing could be seen or heard and when the first light caressed the landscape with it's gentle touch, there were the bones of the naked body lying in the same position it was before the visitation and then the sky became overcast and the cumulus nimbus grew pregnant with the expectation of an event, while the lightening played across the heavens and the thunder rolled across the landscape with the shouts of nature,as the first rains hit the earth and raised the dust even higher, until a sheet of water fell and all grew dark once more, while the earth soaked up this life giving force, which saturated the bones and as the rains started to diminish, the most amazing event transpired, happening in an instant, the bones grew skin and the naked bones were reconstituted and it arose from the desolation and opened up it's eyes and in that moment and instant all around was transformed into a luscious forested plain with a stream running nearby and the birds were singing and as the being looked around, it smiled for the first time, in a very long time and finally realised it's purpose and smiled with humility and gratitude at the opportunity to inhale and exhale and the joyousness of the journey ahead.