There wasn't any walking, today. I felt tired and especially in a lot of pain. My joints feel inflamed and my hips really hurt. So, I took a day off out of my introspective walking. But something happened, in one of the previous days, and I wanted to write about it here.
I met a dragon.
Now, I know, I know whatcha thinkin'. Dragons don't exist. They never existed. They are a figment of our imagination. You meet them in books and movies, but not in real life. Still, I think that when we are open to a life of magic and enchantment, when we stop to look at things in a wider way, taking in the unknown, we can live incredible encounters.
And I met a dragon.
I was doing my usual walking, nose in the sky looking at the tips of the trees, slowly, humming something, calling for Artemis, Aphrodite and Freya to come. I was in my usual world after having stopped to eat my apple along the way on the dedicated bench. When I saw it, on my left. Hiding among the trees. Old. Frail. I could hear him breathing, that heavy exhale that dragons and dogs do when tired, curling up next to a fire. I stopped and looked at him. His eyes closed, his chest slowly and heavily moving up and down, inhaling and exhaling. Rhythmically. Then he opened one eye, to size me. He must have agreed I was not harmful nor dangerous. The eye closed down. So I took a couple of steps towards him, on the moss and unsteady roots. I felt scared, and tentative, but also honoured and ecstatic. Enchanted. Mesmerised and humbled. As if under a spell, I kept on gently moving closer to him, as if not to scare him. Silly me, these handfuls of bones could not harm a majestic dragon! One step, another step, one more. His spine so powerful and royal.
And there I was. Next to him. I reached out a hand and touched him. He was warm. I could sense his breathing, almost as if it aligned with mine. My heartbeat with his.
I leaned on him. If that was the last thing I did in this life, I let any fear go. I leaned and let my body and arms almost hug him. Our eyes closed, we stayed like this for a while.
I only asked for his name. He whispered: EliðiRr.
We did not speak. We did not exchange wisdom. I don't know what I was expecting, nor what I should have done.
I just left.
But every time I go back, you know where to find me.
That is my place, at the side of EliðiRr, an old dragon.
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ps: Rebecca is v happy!
onwards + upwards > out + about
mx
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Date : 17 OCT 2023
Duration : ---
Steps: ---
Location : not gone out
Weather : cold
T : 12°