Paranormal Summer (Indigo Moon Rising) (16 page)

As she opened her eyes, she realized that this somewhere else was hot and wet. The air was alive with the sounds of birds. The sunlight filtered through the canopy above.

“
Oh, wow!” Jillian whispered loudly. The landscape took her breath away. They were surrounded by tall trees, and foliage everywhere. Huge tropical flowers wound their way up tree trunks. The songs of birds echoing up high could be heard. “What do you think we're doing here?” Jillian asked.

Illianna shook her head, “This is your quest. What do you think?"

Jillian took the pouch from around her neck and loosened the cord. With anticipation she looked inside. It was dark. Then she saw flashes of fluorescent colors in the darkness. She took a deep breath and relaxed. Just to 'be'. The lights dashed and flashed again and then came together to create a pattern. The pattern would seem to be horizontal, and then float up vertical. When it was vertical the pattern changed to another and the first would disappear. Jillian looked around.

“
Am I supposed to find the pattern?” she asked Illianna.

"Is that what you feel you need to do?" Illianna asked her, smiling.

"Yes, that feels right," Jillian said as she began to walk around, looking at the lush green vegetation.

“
When I was born I was very tiny, and ugly,” a voice said. “I had so many feet. I had to climb everywhere. I had a hunger and ate and ate and ate. And I grew so fat that it was like I was exploding out of my skin. I became gigantic and heavy and clumsy. It wasn't easy at all.”

Jillian listened as she walked around, trying to find where the voice was hidden.

“
But I had faith. I, somehow, from deep down inside I knew, I knew that one day soon it would happen. I focused on what I had to do and forgot the rest of what was going on. I followed my instincts. Whenever doubt entered my mind, I brushed it aside and did what my gut told me. Then finally one day I went for a walk. I walked until I was exhausted. Then it got kinda foggy, but I do remember making myself a little pillow and took a nap. I had the most glorious dreams!! And when I woke up, I had to stretch and stretch. It felt so right, like nothing else ever had. And as I looked around things were the same, but different, and then I realized it was me. The real me! "I am magnificent!" I thought, and the next thing I knew I was in the air floating and dancing in the breeze!

Jillian was walking back and forth, looking high and low for the voice until she had it narrowed down to a small area.

“
99% of
you
is invisible, too, unless you learn to look beyond what your eyes see.”

“
What do you mean, it's invisible?” Jillian asked as she looked closely at one tree trunk. Illianna was smiling as the scene unfolded before her.

“
Did you know your heart makes its own electricity to make it beat?”

“
Nooo!” Jillian said in surprise.

“
It does this in perfect harmony with all of the rest of your body so you don't have to worry about it. Do you see your heart? Do you have to remind it to beat? How about blinking, swallowing? There are thousands of things your body is doing for you every moment, and you don't see it or think about any of it at all. Healing, growing, and adapting. You have trillions of cells all working in harmony!”

“
I never thought about that.” Jillian said with amazement.

“
See, it's the 99%. Think about how you would feel if you had no family. No friends. No home to keep you warm and safe. No food to eat. No clothing or even a bathroom. And you don’t know if and when things will ever change. How do those thoughts make you feel?”

Jillian paused and lowered her head at the thought of having less than she had now.
No mom and dad, no aunts and uncles, no cousins, no friends. No place to live, no bedroom, no bed, no food to eat, no clothing. She could see herself on the street. People either rushed past her, or they stared at her, almost in
disgust. Some were even scared of her, some pointed and laughed. Her heart sank to the lowest pit. She felt so alone and empty, it echoed. It hurt so badly. She felt like curling up into a ball and crying. She felt like she couldn't even move, much less answer
.

“
I...I don't want to think about it. It feels terrible,” Jillian said looking up, her eyes filled with tears.

“
Perfect!” The voice said enthusiastically. “Now think of something that made you happy, something that made you feel really good.”

Jillian stood there looking amongst the lush vegetation, thinking.
I am on a quest to find the answer to the secret of the stone. I have made all kinds of friends. I have a mom and dad that truly love me, my aunts and uncles and cousins. I have a place to live, my own room, food to eat, more clothes than I want to take care of, and Tiffany Marie! She broke into a smile. The party, the cake, the ice cream, the oils, the boxes, her cousins, and riding Illianna!
Jillian was again in tears. She could feel her heart expand so big, like it had no edges. It was immense, and it felt warm and full.

“
Wow, that feels so good!” she said, smiling at Illianna with tears in her eyes.

Illianna was staring at the pouch that held the stone. Jillian looked down. There was a soft, pink, light glowing from within the pouch. She took it off of her neck and took the stone out. She held it in her palm and the glowing grew and grew. The pink glow started changing colors as it started to grow beyond Jillian and move outward, surrounding her in brilliant lights. The plants and animals all seemed to glow with electricity. Everything was so bright and beautiful.

“
My thoughts… create my feelings!” Jillian said looking around for the voice.

“
How would you like to feel that kind of happiness all the time?” it said.

Jillian started to laugh and wipe the tears from her eyes, “Is that possible?”

“
That's up to you, Jillian!”

“
Yes, I want to keep this feeling,” she said as she laid her cheek on Illianna's massive neck, stroking her mane.

“
Then live in harmony! See yourself doing just that. You have decided what you want. That was step 1. You can feel gratitude for what you do have. That was step 2. You are feeling it. You
know
that it's real. Live it! That is step 3. Remember, who you are now is what you thought of yourself in the past. You
must
have known how magnificent you are!”

“
But what about when I get sad, or mad?” Jillian said looking up at the light filtering through the canopy.

“
Don't give those thoughts any energy. Don't feed them. Feed only the finest thoughts! See, feel and acknowledge only the happiness and marvelous things in your life. This will uplift you and open your eyes to even more than you imagined! Use the words ‘I Am’ carefully, because that is what you will be.”

As those words were spoken, Jillian saw the first pattern on the trunk of a tree. She moved closer, studying it. Suddenly, large black wings lifted up from the trunk and began to flutter through the air around her head.

“
I am Elora,” the butterfly said, suspended in midair, looking into Jillian's eyes.

As she closed her wings, Jillian saw the second pattern. The patterns she saw in the bag were of Elora's outer wings. “You can only see one side at a time,” Jillian exclaimed.

“
But they were always there!” Illianna said, nodding her head.

“
Awesome!” Jillian exclaimed. “But you are so beautiful, what did you mean about being ugly?”

“
I was born a caterpillar. I had to have faith, faith from my gut telling me that I was exceptional; I just had to wait for my metamorphosis! Now look at me, I AM a beautiful butterfly.”

“
I AM amazing, too,” said another voice, with a Spanish accent.

Jillian looked around and didn't see anyone or anything.

“
I AM da bomb!” this voice said again. “I, too, have been metamorpasized!” the voice laughed.

“
Focus on what it is you are seeking,” Elora said, landing on Jillian's shoulder as Jillian began looking for the voice in a nearby tree. She could see ants, a spider, a few beetles, a moth and a slug on the bark.

“
I'm over here,” the voice said from a branch near Illianna. Jillian looked closer. There was a pair of large, red eyes staring back at her. It was a tree frog! He jumped down onto Illianna's back

“
Oh! Wow!” Jillian said, awe struck. His eyes were red, and he had a lime green face, and orange toes.

“
A pleasure to meet you,” he said, bowing. “I am Raoul.”

He started to climb up Illianna's neck and finally reached her head, where he sat and looked at Jillian. “Illianna and I go way back. I can remember one time…” he started to say.

“
Raoul, focus on Jillian,” Elora said.

“
Oh yes, Jillian's quest to find the secret to the stone,” he said, sticking his tongue out at Illianna. She, in turn, started shaking her head as if to knock him off, but as he started to fall, he caught her mane and found himself hanging upside down by one leg.

“
Yes, I am here to find out why my aunt says the stone will change my life!”

“
Isn't it exciting?" Raoul said.

“
Yes, it is,” she said, surprised that he knew what was happening.

“
You should always check your tum-o-meter before you make a decision. Always pretend beforehand what you want to do, and your gut will tell you which the best choice is. You will find that you have much more fun following what your soul feels is right for you. You know what my mama always told me? You can buy the outside, but not who you are inside. Everything and everyone is connected. You may not realize it, but others can feel it when you are not being honest, you feel it from others too, like trust. So, be your original self. Be totally honest and open about everything. Then, you will be in harmony with all of the things that resonate with who you are. You will grow and become more!" He was then standing on his hind legs and acting as if he were dancing the tango. Jillian laughed, how carefree and confident he is.
Kinda like my aunts.

“
Jillian, you are finding out what compassion is,” Elora said as she landed on Illianna's head and looked into her eyes. “It is understanding someone’s suffering or discomfort and wanting to help, if you can. It is a magnificent gift, to imagine yourself in someone else’s shoes and see how it feels. It is a magnificent gift to put others before yourself.
That
is what will move your soul.
That
is why you are here with your friends and family at this time. Help others and you will help yourself.”

“
Thank you, “Jillian said, thinking about what she was remembering. “It's like I knew all of this but it just all slipped my mind. You have helped me to focus on focusing! Especially when it’s right in front of me. All I have to do is remember that all of the answers are in here," she said putting her hand over her heart. "Not out there.”

The light from above the rainforest seemed to get brighter and brighter, almost blinding.

Illianna said, “Put your hand on my mane and close your eyes. Free your mind and just ‘be.’ Send your mind to where it knows it must go, and your body will follow. What you are seeking, you will find!” Jillian took a deep breath and began to relax. To just ‘be.’ In her mind’s eye she could see the tall trees and flowers of the rainforest. She could hear the birds in the distance. She began to feel the rumbling again, and then it stopped. She opened her eyes, and Tiffany Marie was staring at her, the furry little face and brick red nose, only inches away. Jillian began to laugh.
Do you have these dreams with me, too?
She kissed her head and rubbed her face on her cheek and walked to the bookshelf where she had hidden her journal. She stuck Amanda's there and took hers out. She felt that she had to write it all out before she forgot anything. “
Oh, I hope nobody ever sees this,”
she thought.