Miraculous Woods

One day, she’d had enough,
Enough of her old life.
Too much chronic pain,
And misery, suffering and 
Confusion to keep on living.

What did she do? Plan to kill 
Herself? Or did she make another 
Choice, one not quite
So final?

Did she reach out 
To a friend or a church?
Did she contact family
Or seek professional help?
No, none of those.

Did she begin to write,
To record all the traumas
In her life that she had
Experienced,
Torturing herself along the way?
Nope, not that.

Did she gather up all the 
Paint she had, and
Begin splashing it around
All over the walls and herself?
Did she end up green, blue or purple?
No, not even close.

Did she go to the hospital
And ask to hold the preemie 
Babies, those who need all
The touch that she never 
Received throughout her life?
No, not that.

Did she take her gun out
To shoot some animals (or herself),
Take her fishing pole to
Catch some fish, did she do
Something that seemed useful?
Nope, not her.

Maybe she dropped to her knees
And, prayed to her god, the 
One she thought was letting her
Down, maybe even punishing her
For some unknown original sin.
No, she didn't.

Or, perhaps she screamed out the
Names of all those she accused of
Abuse and neglect, almost everyone 
In her entire life, reinforcing the
Horror she was born into.
No, too loud.

What she did do was to sink
Deep down into her bed, pillows
Galore, and cried and cried,
Weeping not just for herself,
But for all people and animals,
The planet and the universe.

Maybe, just maybe someone
Heard her, came to see what
Was wrong, was ignorant 
About how she had been 
Feeling because she had never 
Discussed these feelings with anyone.

Maybe this person was 
Shocked, scared and didn’t
Know what to do for her,
Someone who seemed to be as 
Grievous, sad and sorrowful as anyone
She had ever met.

Perhaps this person got 
So frightened that she called
The police or a hospital,
Or maybe she ran out the door 
For help, not knowing what to do.

The wailing woman swiftly jumped 
Up to escape whatever was about to happen.
She rushed out another door into
The woods to keep from being locked up.

Running deep inside the woods for a long time, 
She finally stopped, breathing heavily,
Sat down by an old oak tree and let
Herself relax. All that adrenaline,
Seeping through her pores.

Darkness swept through the
mossy undergrowth, she 
Closed her eyes and began to
See visions of beauty and 
Brightness, shiny sparkles.

Amazed but no longer scared
She felt a soothing stroke of
Glory and grace wash
Over her entire body,
Refreshing and relieving.
She fell asleep. 

The next day, when she left
The woods, this woman was
No longer the same person, 
But one transformed
From the misery she had felt
All of her life to the joy and  
Enthusiasm she had always longed for.

The police had come and gone,
The person who had found her
No longer present. She went 
Back into her home, wondering
What had happened to her.

The mystery remains unsolved
While she still enjoys the rest of her 
Life, living in a different way than
Ever before, smiling and eager
To adventure throughout time.

May you enter your own
Miraculous woods one day.