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23 KM To Nerdiness


You know I'm super fly...🪰 | 23 | Straight/Black/Nerd 🐢 | Ask For Ko-Fi | Twitter

More Blog Posts965

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    Read More

    4 comments · 76 views
  • 2 weeks
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  • 3 weeks
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    6 comments · 58 views
Aug
27th
2022

Nature Calls, A HeartWood Short Story ❤️🌳 · 3:23pm Aug 27th, 2022

From the schmuck who bugged all of you with his wacky and ambitious tales, may I present a simple story from the world of HeartWood, Nature Calls.

Please share your thoughts. :heart:


"Father, the sun could rise at any minute. Hurry!"

"Patience, little sprout. Your old plant still has a spring in his roots. Isn't that right, Oren?"

"Heh, if you say so, Pop."

It had been a while since we delivered dad to the Final Sow. It was in the early hours of the morning, about an hour before sunrise as we trekked the peaceful hills of Golden Heights. My young son, Ced, juggled between bouncing along the mountain's wavy terrain in fits of anticipation, and sheepishly kicking stones in silent worry.

Unlike most creatures in the world, we Acacians—beings of nature and healing—see moments like these as, not a time of sorrow, but of celebration. Pop lived a good 524 years, he felt ready to join the family. I wheeled him in his bamboo-made wheelchair the whole trip. He knew he was capable of walking, but I just moved him along. It was his day after all.

"I hope to make my mark on the tree when the time comes," Ced chimed, hopping along the flat rocks decorating the path ahead. "Hopefully, I'll have one of the biggest branches."

"Are there any little branches in the cards as well?" Pop giggled softly.

"Yuck, no way! No one's making a garden guy outta me, especially not Poppy!"

"Who is this Poppy gal, child? Do you like her?"

"Of course not, that's horrible! S-She's weird, she looks at me weird, and I'm a free spirit."

"That's what we all say," I laughed, ruffling his leafy scalp. "Maybe you'll break the cycle."

Ced swiped a flimsy twig off the road, waving it around. "I will, to be the strongest warrior in the kingdom. Never shall I fall for distractions like Poppy's lovely hair, her bright eyes...the way she laughs..."

"You are an odd one sometimes, kid. I'm sure you'll make Mother Nature proud."

"Don't pretend like you didn't have your quirks, too, acorn," Pop chortled, craning his neck to look back at me smugly. "Need I remind you of your mother's toast?"

"The what?" Ced said.

"Your Grammy Petunia liked her marshmallows with a little char, and your father here always used to say it 'tastes like burnt' when he was a wee sprout."

"Nobody corrected me though." I sighed.

"Bah! We let you be great."

"I was a child. No child has perfect grammar, obviously."

"You were twelve."

Pops and Ced cackled at my expense for a good while. That's family for you.

We had continued up the mountain, where a vast array of Acacia family trees standing out amongst the normal spiny foliage told us we were getting closer. The night sky began to grow lighter, its sun creeping up in the horizon. Our stroll came around a meadow with many hefty family trees scattered around. Up ahead was a humble, flowing river surrounding the one we came for—the tree of the Elwood clan.

Crossing the wooden bridge arched over it calm current, I scooped a swig of the cool liquid in my travel cup. "Water?" I offered Pop as I wheeled him to the other side.

"Yes, please." he uttered.

I softly pour a generous spritz upon his balding head, Pop let out a relaxed sigh as the water dripping down his frail form seeped into his green skin. Meanwhile, Ced greedily splashed waves upon waves of the river into his face, earning a chuckle out of Pop and I.

Soon, we're standing before our thick tree, the air fell quiet. For a moment, I felt a tiny lump in my throat from the heavenly sight.

"Happy to see you again, great uncle Ash!" Ced broke the silence, waving between the plethora of curvy branches. "Auntie Jaz, cousin Earl, looking healthy."

There, the sun's rays bled gracefully through the mountain's trees, its warm light spreading across us.

It was time.

"You good?" I asked, watching Pop sit still in his seat.

"Yes, my son," he said. "Just taking in the view. I always loved seeing the sun rise."

After a moment, I stood back as Pop rose from the chair with a twig-like SNAP in his back. Stretching his brittle wooden bones, he slipped a thin slab of bark from under his collar.

Oakland Elwood, he carved upon it with a sharp finger. Taking a deep breath, he then turned to us with a warm smile. "Oren, Ced," he nodded, looking us both in the eye sternly. "You two take care of each other now. To look out for one another, to be strong and noble...and to give this lad some hedge clippers, I think I spot a blade of grass on that chin of yours."

"Pops!" Ced smiled, patting Pop's playful hands away.

"You'd make a fine warrior someday, sprout. Here." Pop reached into his tattered pocket, fished out a tiny green metal band, and placed it into the kid's palm. "For that special girl of yours, to cheer you on later in life," he said with a wrinkled wink. "It's good luck, too, so cherish it."

"I'll...I'll look after it," Ced stated, frowning. "But only because it's luck, I'm not gonna put this ring on any finger."

"Just keep that ring away from any branches poking out the ground, I've heard stories."

Not a second went by before Pop pulled us both in a firm embrace, the sun—now in full view—completely bathing us in the light. I knew it was inevitable, but I failed to catch the stream of maple tears escaping my eyes as it stained what was left of Pop's stubby, vine-like hair.

Ced sniffled. "I'm really going to miss you."

"Ela is taking me home, child," he rubbed a gentle hand up the boy's shoulder. "We'll all meet again someday, just enjoy all the world offers. Don't stress it, I'm the one that should be worried. I'm praying they have poker in there, heh."

"Hee, silly Pop."

I felt the air escape my chest as Pop turned his full attention to me. "You're a good plant," he said with a fatherly pat on the arm. "Promise me you'll carry on my legacy, and my good looks."

"Pfft, I promise, you old son of a birch." I chuckled under the tears."

"I love you both."

"We love you, too." Ced and I said.

Bark held tight at his side, Pop wobbled toward the tree. As he placed the hunk of wood against the trunk, a welcoming green aura fused the bark to its surface. Remnants of the mist trailed off to coil around his hunched body. Sharing a final wave, Pop leaned into the growing light outlining the shifting doorway forming around him. There, he uttered a faint "Hello, family", until not a trace of him was left in sight.

He was going home.

He had become one with the earth, finally.

A moment of silence later, Ced shuffled toward the tree on his knees. "I will make you proud, Pop." he bowed, holding his hands together.

I stepped beside him, resting a hand on his back. "He's always been proud of you, kid."

Above us, a patch of our tree's trunk had begun to warp itself—as if something was trying to break through—in and out. Suddenly, a brawny branch broke through, towering over us with a bountiful, leafy shade.

"Looking good, Pop!" Ced stumbled back to give a thumbs up to the new limb.

There, I got an idea. "Have you been studying the bark language in school yet?"

"A little, though it might be kind of messy. Why?"

"Read Pop's story for me." I grasped my son delicately by the torso, lifting him toward the fresh branch with stretched arms.

"I'll try..." the boy blew a nervous huff, brushing his fingers across the pattern of the limb's bark. "Let's see. Grew up in Chestnut Grove, been on seedling watch for decades...this last one is hard to read."

"What could you make out?" I asked.

"It has to do with Grammy Petunia. What does it mean to 'fur-tee-lize' with someone–"

"Skip it."

"I was just wonder–"

"Skip it, lad!"

"Okay, okay," Ced resumed reading. "You were born, he raised you greatly...the burnt incident."

"He did not just add that to our history, did he?"

"Nope, I'm just messing with you. That is still funny."

We laughed. I folded Pop's bamboo chair under my arm as I lowered my son to sit upon my broad shoulders. "That about it?"

"We'd join him in the earth by the time I finish reading all of it."

I shrugged, turning to head toward the wooden bridge. "Fair point."

"What's important was that he was happy. Happy with us mostly."

I felt that dreaded lump in my throat return. Ced caught my shaken posture. "Are you okay, father?"

"I'm fine, Ced, I just...remember that your old plant loves you."

The grateful goof wrapped his soft green arms around my forehead, wiggling in place. "Always." he giggled.

By then, the sun had already shined over the grand mountain. The morning dew had since been soaked up and the beauty of the land was in full display. As we sauntered down the path for home, I let out a thankful sigh. That's what a Final Sow does to a creature, makes you take in every beautiful or bittersweet aspect of life. It never signifies the definitive end, but rather open the eyes of our children to see that things have only just begun for them. To keep the memories of our ancestors alive; in our hearts, our souls, or a magic tree if optional.

Ced's story was just beginning, I may have to coax him into talking to this Miss Poppy character. I know it's his story, but the lad needs a good shoving every once in a while. He's still more odd than yours truly.

Whatever happens though, the future had a lot to offer, and we were going to savor every moment of it.

Together.

Report 23 KM To Nerdiness · 356 views ·
Comments ( 19 )

5682204
At least you care.

Wish I had more input.

5682366
Well, look at it this way, you got 36 views on the blog, so you can't say they're not interested...?

Anyway, I do really like this story, it's very sweet and heartwarming!

5682372
Thank you, really.

I guess, but it'd make me happy if they confirmed that they liked it or something, comments fuel me. People are known for just stealthily leaving.

5682373
Yeah, that's fair. But I'll comment when I can, if that helps?

Sometimes I'm guilty of stealthy leaving, even on blogs by people I usually comment on, but it's usually because I'm in a rush when it's blogs

That was so adorable!

You did your best with this.

Well, I don't regret signing up too see this one bit.

Let's start (and finish, 'cause it's my only point, really) with the emotional impact.

Writing highly charged, serious stories is one of the hardest and riskiest ventures out there, as failing to invoke the right emotion in the reader may lead to an instant and spectacular downfall of a tale.

I'm happy to say that with this short bit, you have done a great, no, phenomenal job of realistically transferring that bitter-sweetness of conversing with a person that accepts that their end is near. Throughout this entire story it felt like an ordinary conversation, yet you can tell that there is an underlying sense of sorrow. This emotional battle is made better by the serene sunrise setting you went for, as it makes the entire thing feel both wrong, as the new day that sunrise brings should not start with a family member's passing, but at the same time the branch that appears makes it feel right, symbolising pops' passing onto the next stage; a new beginning of sorts.

Another thing I wanted to note here was the fact that characters recalling other members of their clan by their branches really drives home that a single person (or well, plant) may go through this process many many times with their different relatives; which at the same time is incredibly depressing, but as stated above, the physical continuation of the person living on makes it feel like they aren't truly gone, allowing one to instead view this as an area of positivity.

I would love to see a continuation/extension of this in the future, but in terms of feedback this is all my brain can come up with to say at the moment; being honest, this story kind of hits home, making it hard to analyse and write about withought getting side tracked into my own dillemas. Don't take this as a bad thing by the way - if your stories make people think, they are more likely to remember, and return to them.

5682445
Wow, that was well-said, friend. :heart:

I'm glad to hear you enjoyed it, just a simple slice of life to help with the universe's worldbuilding. I have another one in mind involving one of the more prominent main characters of the world, Lea, the daughter of Mother Nature who's the queen of HeartWood.

5682447
I'd lie if I said that this short bit didn't intrugue me, so I'll totally be down to read the next one when it's out!

A nice heartfelt side story.

Oi, beautiful as always.

You create such vibrant and heartfelt scenes, the emotional impact of this story evokes thoughts of those I lost in my life, the hope I'll see them once more after my tale is complete. The scenes, the characters, everything here is the best of you...I'm happy to have read this.

See? I'm not completely useless just yet...XD.

Oi, I saw that Corpse Bride reference...don't think I didn't.

Lovely story.

5685675
Means the world hearing your thoughts, thank you so much.

Pfft, you're never useless, silly goose! 💞

Always a ray of light.

5685677
Eep!

Lightning is coming in fast, I'm going to log out for a bit to see if it gets bad.

Compiled my thoughts on this first story, I apologize for the wait.

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For not knowing really anything about this world of Heartwood. The story does work as a beautiful little slice-of-life tale. It's really interesting how the cycle of life is interrupted within this world. These creatures, though fantastical, share a human connection with the reader. As we've all or I suppose most of us have dealt with the issue of loss. It's a sour note on the melody of life, but here it is handled tenderly with love.

The characters are unique and interesting enough, to where more insight into their world would be welcomed. The pace was spaced well, I didn't find myself wandering away from the main point at all. With colorful descriptions and likable characters, this short is a wonderful prequel for things to come. 

This works excellent as a prologue to I'm guessing a wider range of stories, like a slice-of-life anthology. With a few strokes of the pen, you have breathed life into an intriguing universe. My attention has been captured, and I'm equally excited to see more.

Pacing, as stated, was sufficient and bouncy. It kept the plot moving and characters in motion to capture my attention completely. 

The characters were unique and well-written. The small moments with them carried weight and were delightful. A highlight of the short for sure.

Description, this was highly crafted with care. The world was colorful and alive, I feel this might be your specialty in world crafting.

The plot, overall was a solemn and sweet slice of life. The opening sequence works beautifully to ease readers into a world of magic and awe. Something I'd love to explore and uncover, to escape the dreariness of reality.

A unique take on the view of life. It was sad, yet hopeful of the future. A nice story, with a pretty moral.

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