Legend of the Wren - The Journal
Installment for March 2024
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—The Journal
The next day went by quickly, even though Joseph was awake early that morning because of the never-ending dreams. He accomplished so much. There is always something to do in maintaining a camp area. He found a new area open to the sunlight that had potential for planting a few vegetables and it was only about a mile away from his camp. It would be great for a few fall plants. Peas, spinach and cabbage sprouts, possibly some scallions.
“I’d better set up a few tin cans and pie plates in the trees to make noise in the breeze to keep the animals away. I’ll share some of the spinach with them, but most of it I’ll harvest before the first frost in November.”
Wandering in a new grove near the garden area, Joseph sat in a soft bunch of grass and quickly fell asleep. He must have slept for a few hours because he woke up just at sunset. He stared at the setting sun blindly for a few minutes. Just then there were strange sounds coming from several directions.
Joseph heard a group of people in the distance. He could not make out what they were saying, but some of it was in song. He heard young men and women saying something joyful and it sounded like a poetic verse.
Joseph slowly got up from the grass and stretched. He could hear the sounds better now.
“The voices seem to be coming just north of here. I wonder what it’s all about?”
He started to move in the general direction of the group of people. So as not to disturb anyone, he crouched behind a bush that was only 10-12 yards from the group of folks. He could see them clearly now and heard them singing about nature and dancing in a group. They seemed happy about something.
The group of young people had come into the grove and drew a circle in a clearing. They used corn meal to mark it. Then they walked around and around on the circle to bend the grass down making indentations on the ground. There were lanterns along the edge of the clearing. And a small fire.
They said poems and quoted out of books that they brought there with them. Some of them danced.
Joseph looked around the area they were in. He saw about 10 people. Most of them were in their early 20s. along the perimeter there were backpacks and bags, rolled up blankets and some boxes and baskets with food. He did not quite know what was going on but could tell they were there on purpose and planned on staying there at least for the evening. He was fine with that.
The longer he watched, they became more purposeful in their actions. Some of them started to get wilder in their movements and looked different than they were in the beginning. Joseph could sense a strange energy begin to form around the group. It made him feel light and free. He began to perceive strange movements around the trees and plants in the area surrounding the group.
He sat quietly and closed his eyes for a few moments. The sensation was akin to the “silent waiting” that he had in the Meetings. But this time he saw visions, at least he thought they were illusions. Wisps of energy in different colors swirled around the people and then around him.
Joseph remembered Ben talking about sorcery. Ben said that sometimes there was confusion about the word ‘sorcery’. That truly it has a deeper meaning, that connecting to Source (Universe, or Divine) and working with that energy was ‘Source-ry’. But that many mistakenly believed it to mean something evil, tapping into and using negative energies to affect a certain means. When people do not understand something, they tend to attach a negative impression to it. Ben had talked about this many times.
He said when people come close to Source, or God, while using Nature in a manner of healing they sometimes look mysterious and magical. Ben spoke of these things in an understanding way; in a way that Joseph thought of it as a highly spiritual act.
They were not hurting anything, so he was getting ready to leave on his way back to his own encampment. Just then, he heard other noises coming from behind him. He sat still for a moment to focus on the sound and where it was coming from. There were other people headed his way. It was Donavon’s gang.
Joseph was in a place that was concealed to others, and if he remained still, they would never know he was there. He just sat and watched.
“We’ll find those Satan worshippers and scare them out of here!” was the first thing he could hear.
“Satan worshippers? Who was that?” Joseph was astonished to think there was such a thing. “Surely the people I hear over there are not negative. They are connecting to Source.”
Quickly, Donovan and a few of his crew ran into the circle of people. They were surprised and ran in different directions. Some of them grabbed each other, some grabbed the blankets and food. But they all had run out of the area so hurriedly that Joseph was surprised. One minute they were there and the next minute they were gone.
Donovan and his gang were upset they could not catch anyone. “Maybe we scared them away for good,” said one of them. “We need to make sure those devil people don’t return.”
Joseph stayed still for a few minutes longer. He wanted to make sure that everyone had left, and he was completely alone before he moved. Gradually he stood upright and looked around cautiously.
As he went back to camp and his lean-to, he shook off the unusual events of the evening. He started to plan out his early fall garden.
Early the next morning, Joseph grabbed a page of old newsprint and a marking crayon and headed out the entrance of his place.
“I’d better go back to the new garden area so I can get a better gauge of the dimensions. I need to know just how many seeds to get.”
He spent about an hour walking the garden plot and deciding where to plant the peas, and spinach. Then with care, he copied the plot area on the newsprint. Then added each row and every point of planting. At the head of the paper, he wrote “Fall Garden.”
After he was satisfied with his planting ideas, he decided to look over the last evening’s circle gathering. Wondering if that might be a good place for a Spring planting, Joseph walked the distance and along the outer edges of the circle that was drawn.
As he was walking backwards and looking at the full view of the place, he tripped on something. Catching his balance and turning at the same time, he glanced down and noticed a strange book of some kind. He gently moved it with his foot to make sure there were no snakes or other small critters under it. When he determined there was no issue with it, he bent down on his knees and picked up the book.
It was bound in heavy leather and latched with a small metal hook and loop. This kept the book closed but not locked. He flipped the hook out of the loop thinking there might be a name of the owner inside the flap.
To his amazement, there was no name, no print, no writing. It was full of at least 200 blank pages.
“Now how am I to return this book to its owner if there is no way to find them?” Joseph added it to the pack he had brought with him and took it back to his place.
“I’ll leave it here on this shelf and see if I can find the owner,” he said reaching up to the top shelf in his lean-to. He placed it in such a way as to see it there to remind him to investigate.
Over the next few weeks, Joseph walked into town and asked around. He did not carry the book with him but described it to people he knew. No one recognized it, or who might be its owner.
He was on his way back to the encampment one day after visiting Mrs. Gardner, and Joseph decided to stop in to see Ben.
He talked at length, through signing, to Ben about the leather-bound book of empty pages. It took a few minutes for Ben to understand him, then suddenly, he realized that Joseph was describing a Book of Shadows.
“A Book of Shadows?” Joseph had a puzzled look on his face for a moment. And of course, Ben was ready to share his knowledge of such things.
“This type of book can keep certain information that you wish to have access to, for your own personal use – no one else’s. You can write down your travels, or the best mapping directions you take. It can keep special rituals you use in your nature events or during your planting times.
“The idea of keeping such information in a special book started a long time ago,” Ben continued as he got comfortable on his favorite wooden chair, the one with a heavy fabric stuffed in spots to make it feel better.
“Many say that it started during medieval times in England with witches or wiccan folks using it for their secrets and spells, a kind of magician's manual. And I am sure they did use them that way. But also, in the land that my heritage comes from, the Gyptians used it to keep track of seasons and weather and other nature things that influenced us.”
“It can also be used for inspiration, poems or stories, basically anything that you feel is of value. A common term used in those times was the Book of Ways.”
Joseph realized he could record his dreams and magical experiences, his spiritual journeys. It would be something that can serve as a reference material for future use, especially things he does on a regular basis such as seasonal planting.
After talking to Ben about the book, Joseph decides it can be of use to him. And since the owner left it in the circle in the rush of leaving, in a way, it was meant for him.
It was a good gift. And he would use it well. As he walked back to his encampment, he was already thinking of things he would put in the book.
He started keeping records of where he was, travel info and maps, clippings of paper important to him, etc. Over time, it became a record of his Life.
The leather strap and clip finally broke over years of use, and he used rubber bands or string to keep it closed.
After returning to the camp, Joseph falls asleep and dreams of the cloaked beings.
In this Dream he and an indigenous woman were traversing a cavernous area, researching information and artifacts to confirm the origins of man. There were drawings on the cavern walls depicting a group of individuals. Also, there were many shelves with bound parchments and unusual objects. They spent much time there talking about the objects and getting to know each other.
Quite suddenly the scene changed into an open field with rocky areas and many trees. Joseph stood by himself in front of a large grouping of unusual individuals. Some were tall, some were short, some were robed and others were wearing strange gear that covered their heads and faces. Not one of them looked distinguishable. Their figures eccentrically blended into each other.
Then a telepathic thought entered his mind without prompting.
“You will meet with us to determine your fate. You will either turn aglow of gold or silver, or you will completely disintegrate into nothingness.”
Then the group was gone, and he was by himself.
Behind him he felt a rush of energy. Upon turning, he could see a Huge Lion approaching at a lumbering gate. He was swiftly coming towards Joseph. The Lion stopped short of running him over, but assuredly remained a respectful distance.
“You will follow me,” was his telepathic message.
Joseph instinctively turned and followed. He knew this was the meeting the group told him of. He had no time to be fearful, just walked behind the Lion through the field, up and around a hill to a flat area where the meeting would take place. He imagined the worst that could happen was that he disintegrated.
He expected the group to emerge from a distant building. But instead, the indigenous woman he become acquainted with came running towards him. Her arms were flailing around her, and she was yelling and jabbering about ridiculous things, information about “what he said and what she said,” which sounded like a recap of a recent daily soap opera on television.
Joseph’s intuition opened and he became privy to the reality of who she was. This woman was masquerading as a wise woman of authentic lineage. However, she was one of The Others who had come to confound and confuse everyone. As soon as he had that reality thought, she vanished.
The group of individuals appeared in front of him once more. Their message was this:
“You are One of Us. You are One with All. We are the Celestial Group of Elders, and you are here as part of our mission. You have lived many lifetimes here in human form to bring Truth to this World. The Others come from time to time to keep All in Chaos – to keep you from your mission. We are here now to support you.
“You are One with Us: a part of The Celestial Group of Elders.”
One of the elders turns to him and says “Wake up Joseph. Wake up now.”
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Melissa Leath writes A Mystics Journal on Substack. She supplies outrageous metaphysical babble/rant from a modern-day mystic's viewpoint and provides workshops about empowerment and psychic/metaphysical development. Her books Psychic Integrity, The Respected Practice of Modern-Day Mystics (Balboa Press, division of Hay House Publishing) and Does Your Child See Sparkles? are available through Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Melissa’s long-term study includes years of group development, platform mediumship, meditation, becoming a spiritual medium and minister and a BA in Metaphysical Counseling. She has worked with 10s of thousands of clients in USA and other countries, taught development classes for 12 years and settled into online workshops.
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