I was a mouse.

I was a mouse. I came into the world pink and helpless in a small burrow in a meadow, along with 9 brothers and sisters. Being born blind and deaf, my first sensation of life was that of my brothers and sisters squirming around me. As the days went by, I grew deep grey fur, and my ears came into play. Later, as I grew stronger, my eyes opened, and for the first time, I could see the world around me. It was a dull little world, small, but warm, with not much sunlight filtering through the entrance to the burrow.
On my first venture outside, that all changed. I had never seen such colour, smelled such fragrance, and heard such melody. I soon learned that this beauty came with great danger, for no sooner had we stepped out of the burrow, than one of my sisters was carried away by a fox cub. I was sad, but soon forgot it in the wonder of this new world. It was then that I ate my first solid food. I happened upon a small berry bush, and gorged myself upon its luscious berries. I was so fixated on eating the berries, I did not notice the cat creeping up on me until it sunk its fangs into my skull. As I was swallowed, I felt the nutrients in me being transferred to the cat.
I was a cat. Feeling full from my meal, I wandered leisurely back to my den among the trees, higher up the valley wall. When I reached it, I fell asleep. Upon waking up, I felt a rush of hunger. I walked out of my den and strolled to the river. I waited patiently to catch a fish. After waiting, I saw a nice rainbow coloured trout near the bank. With one swift move, I scooped it out of the water and onto the grass. As the chilly autumn wind rustled through the leaves, I realized, not for the first time, that I was not a young cat anymore.
As time passed, the days grew shorter and colder, and my joints began to get stiff. The cold wind chilled me to the bone, and it grew harder and harder to catch prey. I more and more often went to sleep hungry. Finally, the day came when I could not rise from my den. I knew my time was almost over, but I was not sad. I had lived a good life, for a cat. My heartbeat slowed until it was no more. Spring came and went, I rotted into the ground, and my nutrients joined the soil.
I was the dirt. The hum of the earth passed through me. In the fall, a blanket of fallen leaves covered me. Rains came, and I turned to mud. The river overflowed its banks, and covered the land with brackish water. A few days later, it began its slow drying journey back to the riverbed. Those few days, though, were enough to create a landslide. I slid down the valley and finally came to rest in a sunlit meadow. Not much ever fazed me. I was steady, unblinking, forever. Time moves, I stand still. Winter passed with a sigh, and with spring came new life. A solitary bird, flying high above, dropped a single seed from a berry. As it grew, I felt it suck nutrients into its roots.
I was a bush. The Sun, The Earth, and water was all that I ever needed to survive. My bright green leaves stretched towards the sun, embracing its warmth. My roots reveled in the damp coolness of the earth.
Summer began, and with it I grew buds. Warm rains fell, and spurred me into greater growth. Green young berries began to show on my limbs. A field mouse had babies in a burrow not far from me. Days passed by, and my berries matured to a deep blue colour. Soon after that, the baby mice came out for the first time. I watched as one of them was eaten. A small grey one came over to me and began to eat some of my ripened berries. I felt the nutrients leaving me and entering the mouse.
I am a mouse.