The barren grey land stretched on for miles. It used to be a sight to see- Mother Nature’s pride and joy.
But then the men came.
With their large guns, their metal contraptions and their unfriendly balloons, they convulsed Her, destroying Her floral gifts with their poisonous air.
For years the anger went on, men fighting left and right of Her lush land now a monstrosity of barbed wires and debris.
On Her land they now named the land of no man.
For years She looked across what used to be Her own, what used to be Her prized possession, what used to be Her gem, Her source of happiness.
Now, She wept at the sight. She could no longer take the barbarous conditions.
Like the lifeless soldiers She too, began to fade away. Mother Nature began to lose hope.
Then…
One day, She felt something in the air. Something good.
She noticed that there was a slight change in the scene, a radiant light shining at a distance, in one of the two long dirt channels the men made when they first entered
Her land- then still pure and full of life. She produced a strong gale across the fighting to mute its ear-splitting sounds, to clear away the mess, to numb Her of Her pain – for just a moment.
A bright spark was erupting from that dirt pit, and She truly wanted to witness it.
She slowly moved towards the luminosity, and came upon the trench as silently as She could. She looked down.
Below, stood a child, almost skeletal in physique, shivering. It seemed as if he did not notice the light around him. A large, filthy piece of cloth covered his body. Three rips were made to give way for the child’s head and limp arms. Judging from its worn out colours, the sheet was once the pennant that represented one side of men in the war. Mother Nature remembered those banners were held up tall and proud by them as they entered Her land, if only She knew what was to come afterwards. Around the boy lay unknown scraps – his food for the days to come.
There was emptiness in the boy’s eyes, as he peered out of the trench to seek better shelter, better food, better company. He gazed across the vastness in desperation, only to slump back into the dark tunnel. Nothing and no one in sight but the fighters, as always.
Mother Nature shed a tear.
The pain made by this little scene was by far the worse She had ever experienced.
Suddenly, She began to hear footsteps approaching the boy, slowly, calmly. The boy, too, heard the approaching sound, and turned his head towards the direction of the steps, eyes and ears alert, ready to flee.
The shape of a figure began to loom in the fog, but the boy eased his tension; for all at once the trench felt warm and brighter than before, and the boy began to do something that Mother Nature had not seen in many years:
The boy began to smile.
The figure got closer and closer, and finally came into vivid view- it was a woman, dressed in army uniform. She was beautiful. Her kind and graceful face beckoned towards the boy, who was speechless at her appearance. The woman steadily raised an arm, and reached out to him.
Come…
The child, still awed, cautiously began to step towards her and raised his frail hand so that it almost touched hers, but he paused. He stared at the woman, with longing and new-found hope. Then he looked back, towards the barren grey land that stretched on for miles, towards the men who were still fighting other men, like monsters.
He turned back to the woman, What about them? The woman smiled again and nodded once.
Let it be.
And with that, the boy took her hand, and together they walked into the fog.
Mother Nature silently observed the pair as they faded away, and She too, smiled, for She felt all is well.
The next day, the fighting just stopped. The men took their metal machinery, and left. Leaving Her alone, to clean up their mess.
But Mother Nature felt eased, and heaved a great sigh of relief. The miracle she had long hoped for had come.
Let it be. All is well.
Author’s Endnote:
This narrative is loosely based upon the Beatles’ song, “Let It Be”. Reference: Beatles, The “Let It Be.” Let It Be. Apple, 1970.