At the top of the tower he waited. His long hat danced in the breeze that tickled the top of the trees. His cloak playfully swayed in the wind frolicing about in the open sky. He looked out at the world below from the balcony of his great tower. He silently stood like a king surveying his land, or a god watching its creations.
I took a shaky step into the main room on the top of the tower. The room I had been ascending too, for what felt like forever. I cautiously walked trying my best not to step on the many books that were stacked on top of each other, creating a labyrinth to walk through.
The ceiling went up to a point like the Wizard’s hat, touching the sky. The cold stone walls were lit up by beautiful stones surrounding magical runes, casting a warm glow on the cluttered space.
“Hello young traveler.” His voice was beautiful, like the morning after rainfall, soft and clean.
“Hello.” I replied cautiously, as if being assertive and confident would cause him to turn to dust and disappear.
“Please, Join me.” He said it softly, nonetheless his voice echoed off the walls.
My feet started moving without me putting any thought into it, taking me toward the mystical figure in front of me.
“My tower is well hidden and far from all. Why have you traveled here, young one?” He asked as I stopped next to him and looked over the balcony, then I looked up at him. His eyes bore down on me, a soft copper brown gazing into my soul.
“I seek your wisdom, Sir Wizard.”
“Many do.” A chuckle left his throat. I averted my gaze from his, looking toward the scenery in front of me.
“But few travel to my spire. What wisdom do you seek to take such a journey?” his voice was kind but distant.
I took a deep breath, “How, how do I have a life I can love?”
A playful smile crossed the old wizard's wrinkled face showing the crows feet next to his eyes, “Have you ever heard the trees sing?” he asked earnestly.
I didn’t answer, not knowing how to respond to such a question.
“They speak the words water can’t; rustling and growing.”
I looked up at him to see if his face had any answers for his cryptic words but it was content and calm.
“Have you heard the rocks rumble to the gossiping grass or seen the leaves dance with the wind?” As the words left his mouth the wind picked up causing the trees around to rattle and shake.
He took a deep breath of the gust and continued, “The clouds float lazily carrying the rain that flies to the ground, finding ponds and rivers where they share the stories of their travels.”
“What does this have to do with my question?” I asked, annoyed and confused.
The wizard looked at me, disappointment creeping into his happy face. He held up a finger and turned into his tower motioning for me to follow, “As the butterflies flitter above, their beautiful colors grace the wide skies.” He waved his hand and the tall ceiling erupted in a tornado of colors and butterflies.
They spun around the ceiling, the bright blue sky behind them. They moved almost as one creature, millions of wings flapping at once anticipating each other's movements.
“As the sun shines down hitting the glittering scales of fish swimming in the waters below lighting the damp dark below, the ocean whispers stories to the sand rising and falling through the day.” He tapped my shoulder taking me out of the enchantment with the creatures flying on the ceiling and pointed to the floor.
I looked down, and jumped. It looked as if I was walking on water. Fish swam beneath my feet unbothered, completely unaware that I was standing above. I crouched down, looking at their movements. It was the first time I'd ever been so close to swimming fish.
“Have you felt the moss between your fingers as the fairies coax you to a tiny toad stool for a cup of tea?” His smile was infectious as he handed me a cup. Inside was a pond of tea, a little frog sat on a lillypad croaking at me from his perch before diving into the drink.
The Wizard pointed at a pile of books, it started shifting, moving, and eventually there appeared a field with some creatures grazing, “Do you watch the wild boar grazing as the fox yips to her cubs beckoning for them to come gaze upon the wild beasts.” As he talked little paper creatures moved, foxes inside a little den watching the boar’s in a field.
The wizard put his hand lightly on my shoulder leading me back to the balcony. “Hear the birds chatter and chirp on the branches talking of the beauty they found on their flys, flights and the squirrels scuttering as they find food to hide.”
“Look and see the dragons lurking deep in the mountains sleeping on a glittering mountain of gold. ” he pointed toward a tower of books aranged like a mountain range, a paper dragon walking its way out of the cave and breathing words like fire.
“And under the leaves under the trees in the dark rough ground the worms and moles burrow. Making holes and homes, tunnels and passages, protected by the earth as they move.”
He handed me a book and when I opened it worms popped their heads through the pages.
“Are these book worms?” I asked him.
The Wizard laughed, “You can call them that.” he walked back to his deck, and the magic he had cast on the tower slowly disappeared.
Closing his eyes apparently at ease, he took a deep breath and continued, “Have you looked at the beauty when the sun sets and the world is filled with vibrant colors, unknown during any other time of day.”
I looked out at the sky that was starting to darken, wondering, when was the last time I truly appreciated the sun departing the world and the gift of color it left us with.
“Do you know what it means to feel Traveler?” He asked. His voice had changed, it felt heavier as he spoke.
“Not just the cold bitterness of the morning or the sting of the heat when the sun is high: Nor the chill of the water as you enter and fall into its depths. Or the blistering heat of the sun in the desert.He stopped and looked intently at me, “I ask if you know how to feel the beauty of the world.”
“Do you look toward the sky and feel the air blow through your hair seeing the trees frolic in the wind, wishing to fly like the birds in the sky?”
“I say this not to teach or lecture of wisdom but to ask, what do you see when you look around you? Do you walk through the world trying to see its beauty? Or do you ignore it, your mind focusing on miserly important things that matter for a time and then are gone.”
He stopped talking waiting for an answer. I tried to think of one. I tried to think of the last time I truly saw the beauty of the world around me. I traveled long and far to meet the Wizard, through lands unknown. I tried to recall what they looked like.
“I… don’t know.” I finally answered him.
“I think you do know.” He said, taking a deep breath. “And I think maybe you should think about the beauty that life shows you, big and little. Then you will start loving it.”
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