Jars of Clay

Dawn approaches. The forest comes alive – flowers open towards the sun, drops of dew shimmer in the new sunlight and the mother deer wakens her child. Creatures emerge from their dens to continue life without worry. It is spring, and the squirrels are already busy preparing stores for the next winter. Orange sunlight begins to creep in between the noble brown tree trunks and casts its first rays on an unsuspecting little creature.

What was this being that caught the first light? It had no animal characteristics, save large butterfly wings on its back. The stunningly beautiful silver wings were illuminated in the new sunlight and the creature stretched out to reveal human hands. One could also see human feet, and a human face, much smaller than even a newborn’s. With a push off the ground, the being gracefully propelled itself into the air.

Easily weaving in and out of branches, the female creature greeted the forest with her dance. Oh, how she loved the morning light! It was now visible that the creature was not an it, but a she. Two ears in the shape of leaves protruded out of her shiny charcoal hair. A fair silver gown adorned the beautiful creature.

Giving a charming sigh, the fairy smiled. Fairies were not meant to be out in the daytime – this was their main time to rest and prepare for the night. But she loved the sunrise so much! Being a little late wouldn’t hurt anyone.

“Amelie! Amelie!” the animals cried out. “Good morning, Amelie!”

“And a good morning to you, sir badger! Have a wonderful day, miss sparrow!” Amelie smiled a warm smile from her heart – she loved the forest and everyone in it. Soaring home she continued to greet her friends.

Night is the time the fairies come out. No one knows the reason for this, not even the wisest of the wise. Nonetheless, the fairies trust the reasons of their ancestors and preserve tradition. Amelie was no exception: although she loved sunlight there was a Light that was more precious and sacred to her.

Not until the evening did the female fairy come out of her home under the ancient tree roots again. This time, the full moon shone its light through the foliage. Amelie stepped barefooted on the forest floor, with an object safely tucked in her hands. She kneeled and carefully set the object down amongst the leaves, as she began to sing a melodious song. As the song progressed, Amelie moved towards the clay jar and removed its top. A transfixing light could be seen inside, illuminating the night forest.

Amelie sang. She sang angelically; even among the fairies few could match her voice. No words could be understood by any human ears – they were songs of old passed down by the ancient Father. And as she continued, the light strengthened. She had stayed stooping so far, but suddenly rose up and began a glorious dance! Wherever her bare feet touched, new life sprang from the ground. Flower buds emerged and tree seedlings surfaced.

This was the power of the Jars of Clay – the light hidden within gave the fairies the power to bring life to their surroundings. But only singing sweet songs from the heart awaken this gift.

Observing the dance from a distance was another fairy. He often watched the young maiden, and admired her skill. At times he was jealous; he did not have the natural gift that she possessed. He lowered his gaze to the ground as he leaned on the enormous tree next to him.

“Brother! I didn’t know you were coming to visit, Joshua!” Amelie’s singing stopped and she rushed to her twin’s side. And indeed, though they were not identical, the similarities could be found. Their charcoal hair mirrored each other. However, their garb contrasted – while Amelie’s gown was a bright silver, Joshua wore ebony to match his stretched out wings. As Amelie hugged her brother, she broke out in song once again and beckoned to her twin to join.

Joshua knew that he was not gifted in song or dance. But though next to his sister he looked like a weed compared with a rose, he knew she loved him and would not care. He brought out his own clay jar and set it next to the other in the grass.

Carefully he went through the steps and sang quietly. The moon continued to shine brightly. Amelie danced as gracefully as ever.

“Have some fun!” Amelie shouted with a smile. Joshua sighed and, trusting his sister, left his pride behind and let loose. What a wonder it was to behold – two such graceful creatures dancing and singing in the middle of the night! The forest grew under the feet of these fairies.

Joshua hadn’t felt this free in a very long time. He didn’t visit his sister often, but whenever he did it was an encouraging experience. The light in his clay jar steadily grew brighter as he pranced and sang under the moonlight.

Unknown to the siblings, others were also observing, just as Joshua had been watching Amelie not very long ago. As he spun, Joshua thought he saw four fairies in the shadows. He suddenly became self-conscious, and his feet would not do what his brain was commanding. The fairy voice cracked, and the light in his jar of clay waned. He tripped over his own legs and fell to the forest floor. The clumsy fairy’s anger got the best of him, and he turned toward the hiding spectators.

“Don’t you have any sense of privacy?” Joshua lashed out in a loud voice. Amelie was startled and stopped her happy singing. She drew back to the jars and put the top on hers. A cloud passed overhead and covered up the light from the moon.

Four male fairies came out from their hiding place, flew over to Joshua and stared into his angry grey eyes. Joshua firmly held his ground with an angry frown on his face.

“Nice work there, clumsy! I can see you’ve been practicing,” the green-winged fairy taunted. His friends gave a chuckle. The leader joined in on the laughter, then stopped and stared in Joshua’s eyes once again. “Listen to me, runt. You may have a talented sister, but apparently it doesn’t run in the family. Give up on these delusions of grandeur; you’re just an embarrassment to the rest of us!” With these words he gave Joshua a push. Joshua fell to the ground, landing on his side, crushing some rhododendrons.

“Brother,” Amelie whispered, looking into Joshua’s jar. There was no beautiful light inside anymore. A dark flame was slowly kindling.

The fairy that had been knocked to the ground shook with anger. He could think of no smart words to retort back; nothing that would make his provokers back down. As he raised himself up with his right hand, instead of life spreading a dark patch appeared where he had touched. His head bowed, the anger swelled up inside him. He breathed heavily.

The agitators waited for their victim’s reaction. When Joshua raised his head, the four fairies were shocked. In his eyes were anger and hatred, and his eyes were no longer a charming grey but a dark ash. He took a step forward. Under his bare foot death spread – green turned to ash. He jumped toward the green-winged fairy, and grabbed him by the collar. They both stared deep into each others eyes with loathing. The leader looked down, and saw what was happening: darkness was spreading through his clothing. He shuddered and quickly tried to shake off the firm grip.

A few steps behind, Amelie stared wide-eyed not at her brother, but into his clay jar. The dark flame was growing at a rapid pace. She had never seen anything like this; weren’t the Jars of Clay meant to hold life-giving light?

The taunting had hurt Joshua badly and had propelled him into a state where he thought of only one thing: getting rid of the trespassers. He held his adversary firmly but before he had a chance to strike, the three other fairies grabbed him and soared into the air.

Joshua wrestled free a few feet above the ground. As his black wings fluttered he propelled himself and pushed one aggressor into an old elm tree. Joshua’s hands were engulfed by a darkness in the shape of fire = a dark flame. He proceeded to attack the other two fairies in the air, then dove and gave the green fairy a blow in the chest. Once again he firmly held him and the darkness crept through his hands and feet. A thing like black mist was rising from his beautiful wings.

The anger in the black fairy grew; the thirst for violence was not quenched. He completely forgot about his dear sister who was but a few feet away. Amelie watched the event unfold, and could not move a muscle in her body, she was so afraid. Fairy anger is not a thing that any living creature ever wishes to see.

After the initial shock, Amelie realized that she had to somehow stop this. She looked back down to Joshua’s clay jar, and a horror suddenly came over her. Reaching for the lid, she hurriedly attempted to seal the flame. But it was too late; as she leaned over, a jet of flame exploded and washed over her.

A high-pitched scream woke Joshua from his trance. He let go of his victim and turned around to see his sister engulfed in a dark fire. He stood rigid. The cloud passed and the warm moonlight shone into the clearing once again.

Amelie lied on her back staring up into the night sky. She was alive, and no burn was on her body. Her wings, however, were no longer pure, but were ripped and torn. Those silver things protruding from her back were covered with burns and scars.

“Brother,” the fair maiden’s voice strained.

Joshua knew now what had happened – he had hurt his beloved sister. His blind rage had turned against his own family. Why had he let it go this far? He shivered as he watched the flame continue to erupt from the jar. This was the manifestation of his emotions.

With the agitators long gone, Joshua fell to his knees and began to weep. Warm light returned to his eyes as they were washed with tears. His hands returned to normal. The ground no longer blackened under his feet. He overcame his rigidness and rushed to his sister. He laid his hands on the frayed wings, and suddenly felt the urge to sing. It was a sad song, and was not sung in any human language.

As the melodious song resonated in the night, Joshua’s jar of clay returned to its previous white, pure light. The dark flame was no more. Joshua continued to sing amidst the tears over his sister. He felt strength return to him – but this time it was a different strength. Not strength to dominate, but to protect. He closed his eyes.

“Brother,” a voice cracked, “don’t do that again.”

“I know, I know, I’m sorry,” Joshua sobbed. His tears glistened in the moonlight. Then, to his surprise, he heard Amelie’s voice singing along with him. Eyes still closed shut, he smiled a sad smile.

He suddenly felt Amelie getting up! He opened his eyes, and to his amazement, she was now standing, wings spread out, miraculously healed. Her charcoal hair fluttered in the slight breeze, and she sighed with a smile, looking down on the tear-stained face of her brother. An illuminating light came from the opened jar of clay.

Joshua wept. Never had he experienced such pain and fear of losing someone he loved. He understood now. Taking his clay jar in hand, he sang this time not a song of sadness, but of joy. The light of life was strong, and Joshua began to dance. Amelie looked on as her graceful brother’s feet brought forth flowers from the ground and his ebony wings thrust him into the sky. Although Joshua had hurt her, he had also brought her back to life.

Joshua finally understood – the Jars of Clay held the treasure of life. It was not about skill or talent, but the heart that he brought to the song and dance. Amelie watched from below as Joshua spread the light of his jar, and brought life to his surroundings. Amelie pushed off the ground, and with a joyful song joined her beloved brother, fluttering their wings all through the night.