39 In The Company Of Friends

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Stephen Whiteside
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39 In The Company Of Friends

Post by Stephen Whiteside » Tue Nov 22, 2011 5:51 am

39 In The Company Of Friends

© Stephen Whiteside 22.11.2011

With a light heart, Horatio and Magnifico set off down the river after Dulcie. It was a wonderful feeling to be following for once rather than making their own tracks. Dulcie exuded an air of casual yet supreme confidence, and they had instant and complete faith in her judgement.

What is more, even though she was flying, she seemed to retain a great awareness of the conditions of the ground below her. She never asked them to do something that was too difficult for them. They never had to leap across a huge gap, or climb a steep wall, or plunge though impenetrable foliage.

Dulcie appeared unhurried, yet she never dawdled. The rodents needed to move steadily to keep up with her. They were never themselves rushed, yet if they had slackened off they quickly would have fallen behind.

The damselfly seemed to know all the animals of the forest, and they all knew her. Hi, Dulcie! somebody would call out. Hi, Bert! she would sing out in reply. Hi, Ray! Hi, Sheila! Hi, Fred! On and on it went. Some of these creatures were very small, and some very large. It mattered not. Most of them seemed to be potentially either predator or prey relative to damselflies but again it appeared to be of no consequence. Large birds. Small insects. They all seemed to know Dulcie. And she knew them.

The world appeared transformed. Where once it had felt so hostile, it now seemed friendly. None of these animals were their friends directly, but the friend of a friend is almost a friend, after all. And all of these animals that greeted Dulcie also caught the eye briefly of either Horatio or Magnifico, or both, and nodded briefly and smiled. And Horatio and Magnifico nodded and smiled back. They felt they had been noticed, and well regarded for being friends of Dulcie, and that they would be remembered.

It made Horatio and Magnifico puff out their chests and lift their chins with confidence and pride. Horatio still felt a great pain in his shoulder from where the owl had attacked him, but somehow it seemed to come from far away, almost to be hurting another rat who he once knew, but now no longer had so much to deal with. Another time. Another life.

They skipped along merrily. The chirping of the birds in the sky no longer sounded sinister, yet it was the same chirping. The gurgling and splashing of the water no longer sounded evil and menacing, yet it was the same gurgling and splashing. The wind in the trees no longer sounded ominous and threatening, yet it was the same wind.

Life was a hoot. Life was a laugh. Life was a joy.

Horatio could almost taste that delicious peanut butter now. He could almost smell the rich peanut milk. He could almost see the beautiful peanut cow.

True, Dulcie had not actually said she knew anything about peanut cows, but neither had she questioned them. And it was clear to Horatio that Dulcie was all seeing, all understanding, all knowing. It was only a matter of time. If anybody could find a peanut cow for him, it was Dulcie. And he was sure she could.
Stephen Whiteside, Australian Poet and Writer
http://www.stephenwhiteside.com.au

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Maureen K Clifford
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Re: 39 In The Company Of Friends

Post by Maureen K Clifford » Tue Nov 22, 2011 8:38 am

Life is always better when you share it with friends. ;)
Check out The Scribbly Bark Poets blog site here -
http://scribblybarkpoetry.blogspot.com.au/


I may not always succeed in making a difference, but I will go to my grave knowing I at least tried.

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Stephen Whiteside
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Re: 39 In The Company Of Friends

Post by Stephen Whiteside » Tue Nov 22, 2011 10:38 am

Too true.
Stephen Whiteside, Australian Poet and Writer
http://www.stephenwhiteside.com.au

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