Jason And The Five Kingdoms
Posted: Wednesday, December 16, 2009
by David Pekrul
I am submitting the following short story in four separate chapters. This story is a fantasy, an allegory as it were, with biblical and Christian truths. Read it for what it is or read it for the deeper meaning. Either way, I hope you enjoy it.
The following is chapter one. Chapter two will be submitted tomorrow, chapter three the next day and so on. There are four chapters in all.
Jason sat on a stump at the edge of the forest, overlooking a wide meadow. He came here often on warm summer days, just to gaze at the meadow and the explosion of colours given off by the millions of wildflowers that grew there. He observed the grasshoppers and butterflies, the small squirrels, rabbits and field mice. Once in a while a deer would wander out of the forest to feed, and Jason would watch it and sometimes the deer would watch Jason. Their eyes would meet, and at those times, he felt he was part of nature. He was at home here, in a kingdom strangely known as ‘The Place of Loss'.
Jason grew up in a warm and loving family. His parents worked hard to provide for him and he never wanted for anything. It sounded like a perfect life, and this is where this story should have ended, but he felt there was something missing.
His family was very religious and they attended religious services every Sunday. Jason was excited to attend these services, as he felt that perhaps they were the answer to the loss that he felt in his own life. The Grand Orator, as he was called, spoke of love and faith and good works, and Jason drank up every word, but when the service was over he still felt something was lacking.
One Sunday the Orator spoke of two other kingdoms, ‘The Place of Pain and Confusion', and ‘The Kingdom of the Glories'. ‘The Place of Pain and Confusion' sounded like a horrible place. The Orator described it as a dark kingdom. He said it was a cold, lonely place, where every thought became clouded and confused and every action resulted in some sort of discomfort or pain. He said there was much controversy over whether that kingdom really existed, but assured his listeners, that if it did, there was little chance of anyone actually going there.
‘The Kingdom of the Glories', on the other hand, sounded absolutely wonderful. It was filled with light and sound and laughter. There was no loneliness, confusion or pain in this kingdom, only joy and contentment. This is what was missing in his life. Perhaps that is why he spent so much time at the edge of the forest, overlooking the meadow. He was looking for that joy and contentment, and felt that perhaps he could find it in nature itself.
The Orator went on to say that it was easy to find one's way to ‘The Kingdom of the Glories'. All one needed to do was to live a good life, be kind to others and do good works. "Wow", thought Jason, "That seems so easy. That's what I needed to hear. I know I'll feel better now and will no longer feel this sense of loss that I have been experiencing." For the first few days after hearing the Orator speak, all seemed fine, but the feeling didn't last long and Jason was once again sitting on the stump at the edge of the forest, trying to find the answer that would help him fill this emptiness.
He soon began spending more and more time at the edge of the meadow, and as time went by, he started to hike and explore the forest itself. On one of his hikes he crossed a hill, and overlooking the valley below, he saw a narrow path winding away in the distance. Curiosity got the best of him and he just had to find out where it led.
It was no easy task finding the entrance to the path, as the whole area was covered in thick brambles. Each time he tried to enter the brambles, the thorns would scratch and pierce and sting. It seemed like a futile effort, but Jason was not one to give up so easily. Besides, he was in nature, the place where he loved to be, and as he searched for the entrance to the path, the nagging sense of loss seemed to fade slightly, but only slightly. It seemed like forever, but he eventually found the correct spot in the brambles and pushed through. Hurting and bleeding, he stumbled onto a narrow pathway, the one he had seen from the top of the hill.
Now that he was up close, it didn't look like much of a pathway at all. Not only was it narrow, but also the sides of the path were not clearly marked. It was covered in large boulders, patches of bramble and crevasses and it climbed and fell, making walking difficult.
He should have been discouraged by this time, but the longing to rid himself of these lost feelings pushed him forward. He didn't know why, but he felt that this pathway was somehow the answer for which he was looking.
The sun was hot that day and the sky was completely void of clouds. He had not prepared himself for this journey and had not brought any supplies with him. He was hungry, tired, hurting, but mostly thirsty. It was overwhelming, (this thirst), and he could think of nothing else. His mind became somewhat delusional, and he dreamed of a place where he could drink of cool clear water and never thirst again. Could there really be such a place?
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The sun was still burning overhead when he awoke, and he realized that he had passed out. He was weak and confused and his eyes would not focus. He laid there for what seemed to be an eternity and tried to look around, but saw only blurry rises and depressions, where once there was a pathway.
Slowly his vision returned, and in the distance he saw a high wall and a massive gate. The gate was at the very end of the path. It was a formidable looking gate, but yet it stood open, as if to welcome him to enter. He had come too far to stop now, and although he was in pain, weak and thirsting, he stumbled on. Reaching the gate, he fell across the threshold and found himself overlooking a wide meadow.
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Top-level comments on this article: (2 total)Intriguing so far! Can't wait to read the rest - well set up and am guessing at parallels... MarijoThanks for reading the first chapter, Marijo. I think what is intriguing about this story, is how it came about. The outline for the story came to me in a dream one night. All there was to do then was to put it all together and fill in the blanks. Hope you enjoy the rest of it.
I cannot help but read into this story, I identify alot with the lad.Dreams are very powerful, I believe. I eagerly look forward to the next chapter!Thanks for reading the first chapter, Kian. I built a couple layers into this story, but you may find more. I have submitted the second chapter. Hope you'll tell me what you think about it.Regards,David
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