I couldn't wait all day, so I went ahead and picked the right trail. I hoped the right I'd chosen was the right right. As I went farther down the trail I realized the day was getting dark. Oh no, I wish I'd started the story with me carrying a flashlight in my pocket. Never mind. The bush was getting thicker, thornier, the surrounding getting creepier. At this point I'd lost count of how many scratches I was getting all over my body. I looked up, even the moon was eclipsed in half. I thought for a while if I'd made the wrong choice after all. But whining right now is futile, I've got to keep going, hoping that the end to this pricking thorns is just several steps ahead. Unfortunately, the end was never showing up. I was extremely exhausted, my legs were killing me, I was not going to last any longer. Just to top it all, I suddenly tripped over what seemed to feel like a rock, and "Dushh!" I fell hard on my knee. Now at least I know I had one bruise on. That's it! I give up! Where on earth is this place anyway? Wonderland? La-la Land? I almost passed out when a familiar glow glided over my face, emitting pleasant warmth. "It's you, butterfly buddy! Did you just come to my rescue?" She just did what she does best; hovered around and around and swirled playfully, which I found quite amusing sometimes, especially at this very moment. I got back on my feet, unsteadily, ready to follow her lead. "Here we go again buddy." I followed the glittery trail that she left behind as she flew ahead. Her glow looked even brighter and remarkably more beautiful in the dark. "Hey, you shouldn't have left me by myself back there you know. Some bad guy could've kidnapped me or something." I expected her not to answer, and she did exactly that. ^^ After a while, we finally made it to the end of the jungle of thorns. I couldn't believe my eyes. I saw a pond. Err..this time it was just an ordinary pond, no glitter, no glow, no flashy lights, no nothing. But I couldn't care less. I was so much thirsty that I just dashed to it and drank from it at that instant. To my surprise, the water tasted really sweet and good. Not only that, as soon as I took a sip of it I became rejuvenated and fresh again. Weird? Peculiar? Strange? Alright, I don't know what else to expect from this place. I turned to the butterfly and remarked, "You must know this place pretty well to have guided me twice. Why don't you lead me all the way out of here then?" Instead of responding to my request, she made the same goodbye gesture as before. Soon afterwards another butterfly similar in nature flew into the scene. I soon figured they were a pair. Now they both were saying goodbye. But this time I didn't ask why she had to leave, nor did I try to persuade her not to. She's a butterfly. A butterfly is meant to be with another butterfly. Why should an earth-bound creature like me get in the way. So I watched as they flew away over the pond, swirled around each other, and then vanished in the distance. "Well I guess this is goodbye?" I turned around. Before me a sign read, "You have completed stage 1 of this journey. Please proceed here." I was dumbfounded, speechless. All this Indiana Jones-like adventure I had gone through, and it was just the first stage of the entire journey? How many stages are there altogether? I thought to myself, "Man..I could really use a pair of wings right now." -THE END-
