The Relic

She always came to see me, except on rainy days.I looked forward to her visits and when the day was sunny, I waited until I saw her appear over the hill, usually humming a melody andhappily skipping as she walked.

The arrival of spring was a wonderful time -the huge flocks of migratory birds hoveringover me and the almond trees blossomingsignalled that spring was just around the corner. In spring everything filled with colour and sound, birds and squirrels revelling in their courtship rituals. Everything filled with life.

"Hazel Eyes" always watched with bewilderment the magnificent world around us. Some days, she would spend the afternoon with me, and in summer she stayed until dark. She laid down on the grass and watched the night sky - the starlight was bright, and we were able tomake out the details of the constellations easily. She glanced at the stars through the crystal clearsky, raised her hand and pointed to one of the stars, then moved it aiming at another and so on until forming a figure. It was a magical game. When she finished, the figure she had drawn was left illuminated in the sky, then it faded gently until finally vanishing altogether. Then she began drawing a new figure. And another.

In winter, and especially at the height I used to live, everything was concealed by a white mantle. It was fascinating to see how her footprints soon filled the new virgin snow, just as letters fill a blank page. The animals awaited in their burrows until it stopped snowing, only to leave in a hurry, eager to see the splendid scenery. Everything covered by that thick white coat, a veil of perfect whiteness. "Hazel Eyes" was bewildered by this landscape, thrilled by the first snowfall and the chance to go out and jump on the snow. Sometimes she'dpick up a handful of it in her hands and squeezeit hard, compacting it, and then would lickit to savour it.

"At first humans invented language to communicate with each other and eventually they perfected it to the point that they stopped talking for fear of corrupting it". When "Hazel Eyes" became older, she made sounds and gestures to try to communicate with me. She loved to see plants blossom, and discoveredhow, where there was nothing but dirt initially, plants with beautiful flowers and trees with sweet fruits would grow slowly just bydepositing a seed. So she began devoting more and more time to this, marvellingin seeing how those beautiful trees grew. She planted different species and went on to create magnificent gardens. She walked with satisfaction, admiring that strikingtapestry woven by Mother Nature. She had a large family and taught her children how to care for the land and the plants, and made them understand that all that was needed was a little effort for nature to show her appreciation. If you offered Earth a drink, she'd return the favour by providing you with food.

I don't really know when or for what reason she started acting like a Gardener, and went from observing nature to interacting with it, creating new plants. I guess after much contemplating and observing all living creatures, it awakened in her a deep respect for all of them, discovering something she identified with, perhaps adopting them as brothers, or even as teachers, as it was through watching many animals that she learned how to create those beautiful gardens. It seems that even the wisest person has a lot to learn from an ant or a goldfinch.

She fashioned forests of almond and cherry trees which, when in bloom, filled the world with colour. The appearance of their flowers was the unmistakable sign of the arrival of spring. When the flowers matured, their petals broke away, white as snow, flying gracefully in the dainty breeze. "Hazel Eyes" walked under the canopy of the trees with her eyes closed, her face glancing at the sky, her hands outstretched like wings, small flower petals falling over her. She walked over them, over a swampedlandthat felt soft under her naked feet. Walking on flower petals was like walking on feathers.

Time passed quickly for me, as quickly as summer comes and goes. That's how I saw "Hazel Eyes" grow older. She no longer came to me skipping or playing. She now found it hard to climb up the slope. The brightness in her eyes seemed to be slowly fading away, that inquisitive look began to crystallise, freezing like water in the cold winter.