Sleepless Nights & Willow Trees

With pen and paper, he sat in the shade of the giant weeping willow; His back supported by its massive trunk.

“Biggest one in the county they say…26’9” around the base.”, Ol’ Chug would tell any visitors willing to listen.

Ol’ Chug Miller swore he and his best friend Tom planted it along the pond when they were just kids. Two boys with an idea for a future rope swing at their favorite swimming hole. His story, however, was heavily contested by several folks in the area who said the tree had been there for over 100 years, and Ol’ Chug was only 89.

Still though, the “Twin Flame” as the tree became known as, was locally famous among young lovers and romantics. Legend was that if a person wrote about their undiscovered true love while under the shaded canopy of willow leaves, the tree would lead them to their soulmate.

Folklore or not, Rick had been visiting the tree for quite some time now. The pull to go was, quite literally, unavoidable. He knew she was out there somewhere doing exactly the same thing. So, with the faith and patience of Job, he would come to the tree daily, hoping the legend to be true, and this day was no different.

He rested against the old tree, and looked straight up at the deep green ceiling speckled with bits of light blue. He whispered to the world around him, “Where are you?” He spread his arms out wide and spoke just a little louder, “Look!…This is me trying…Do you see me?” He dropped his arms down, and closed his eyes to reflect on the night before. It was another sleepless night watching midnight come and go with wide open eyes. Feeling the subatomic string that bound them both together. Knowing she was out there, but not sure who she was or where to even look.

After a long pause, he filled his lungs with a slow meditative breath, and felt for the words that might take him to the stranger he knew he loved. A warm summer breeze weaved its way through the umbrella of resting limbs, and as the feathery leaves shimmered and danced in the sunlight, he began to solidify his thoughts for the Twin Flame once again…..

“My secret words now scrolled down on this paper. Two lovers bound tightly, and yet somehow are never. I pull on our string and you tug on it back, but why only pull when my bedroom stays black? When the clock strikes twelve, I’ll still meet you there, and another sleepless night, alone we will share. I do have hope, and my faith will stay, because string we pull helps guide my way”.