I sat in quiet reverie beneath the boughs of the most gentle and
humble of trees, the beautiful golden willow.
The hot sun beat down upon her branches but could not
penetrate the cool soil beneath, so the mossy fragrance of mother
earth enveloped me, and I was once again attuned with nature.
Her whispering branches softly touched my cheek and my soul
wept to see such beauty.
It would appear we were in unison, for as though in answer to
my unspoken word I heard the tender murmur of her reply.
"Deep heart, I weep because you care that I weep for the sorrows
of mankind, for the blindness and the cruelty on this earth and
in the world that was once a kingdom of golden light.
"Many moons ago when the world was young and the children
of the soil had tender hearts and simple tastes, indeed their
hearts were full of love and each man was a brother. So, dear
heart, now you know the reason why I weep."
I looked at the ground and saw a tiny white daisy, face upturned
as if looking to the heavens, so I said, "Tell me, please, why do
you look thus? Can it be that you are praying?"
She answered me and said, "My span of life is limited but
others of my family follow suit - unlike the willow who only
weeps, I pray for all, that they some day may find the truth for
which they seek and then the world will once again stand in the
light, and every man within his heart shall find and share the
brotherhood of love".