For Mason...

The silence of the night was shattered when the cries were heard from a group of animals. They gathered around a young hare, his golden body laying at rest under the stars. He was young, and had hopes and dreams despite being a timid creature. The other animals had supported him for so long, and even they wanted to see his goals accomplished.

Seeing the young hare lifeless on the ground was tragic. They didn't understand why he had died, what had caused it...but it didn't matter, they were heartbroken this night.

"Look up to the sky.", one of the elder animals said. The others around the hare looked up and saw two glistening stars that were brighter than all the others. One was shimmering a brilliant yellow, and the other was a bright white. The elder smiled, "The hare is in good care.", he said to the others.

"How do you know?", they asked him. He looked down to them, "He has gone to the Grey Rhino, see them dancing together? Our hare is not lost this night, his earthly life may have ended but he is with our friend and guardian the Rhino.", the elder replied.

The animals looked to the sky. There the two stars stayed bright for the remainder of the night, and all of them shared memories of the Hare. He had died this night, but he would be forever alive in their hearts.

Please pray for my cousin tonight. I just found out he died from a drug overdose. We're all really shocked that it happened, he had a bright future ahead of him.

I just saw him the week before Dad passed away, he was going to come visit me if I ended up living in Texas. I don't think he was suicidal or anything, so I don't know. But please pray for him. I prayed part of the Rosary tonight (got stopped because Brandy wanted to go out) but I'm going to finish it in a bit.

Mom's going to fly over to Texas to be with my Aunt tomorrow morning.

Here's a photo of him with his dad and brother. He's the one wearing the orange jacket.

Have you been wanting to hear some new music? Maybe you need something for writing/art inspiration? I decided to make this post with some of my favorite songs. Feel free to click any one of the pictograms for a random song (Special thanks to Raz for making them for my *nodnodnod*)

This isn't fully complete (will totally add more songs when I think of more, I have an extensive collection), but here's some to enjoy for now It is a wide variety of genres so don't be surprised if you find a song from a genre you don't listen to. [b]Also make sure you have your volume turned to about 'medium'.

Anyone got a good sad song? Share them here via Youtube if you don't mind.

Mine handsdown would have to be Great White's "Love is a Lie".



I love this part of the lyrics:

So breathe a last and broken sigh
Oh silent night come now to me
And if I dream of light
Come down and be with me
And in the dark we will not see

Return to Nature Index

A heavy rain falls today. You stay home for the day, listening to the sound of thunder that shakes your home. You sit in your chair, holding onto the plush deer. Vito lays on you, his little plastic eyes seeming to look up to your lovingly.

The rain lures you to sleep, relaxing in the chair and resting as you hear it hit your windows. You awake to find yourself someplace you have never been before - an isolated desert landscape surrounds you. You look around to see small hills, desert shrubs, and small cacti. Above you see birds of prey that circle around, and a slight breeze brushes past. You are surprised at how warm the place is.

"Mommy, you're awake!", you hear Vito say to you. You notice he is standing there with you - he has grown significantly since you remember. He is no longer a child but a young buck.

"Hello Vito...", you say, and then looking around, you ask, "Have you seen my friend, the other deer, who always is with us?" The little one shakes his head. It's just you two this time.

"I woke up here and found just you. I kept calling to you but you didn't hear me.", he said.

You look around, "We need to figure out where to go. It's going to get hotter out here soon.", you say. Instinctively, you notice a lone rock nearby, and see your deer's pictogram has been etched into it. "This way!", you say, and you start to walk in the direction that the pictogram seems to point to. Vito follows closely, his eyes wide open.

The two of you walk for a while. The landscape seems to be the same for miles, and the sun continues to bear down on you with heat and light. As you are walking, you see Vito collapse next to you. You turn and look to him suddenly, "Vito?", you ask.

He isn't speaking. You reach down and pick him up, holding him on your shoulders like you have before. He is still breathing, but you can tell he is exhausted.

This story is dedicated to the artists of the Endless Forest community. After you read, please look at the request beneath it for a fun event.

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"Inspiration"

I called your name, asking, "Let me be born today. Bring me to life." You answer as your pencil touches the paper. You have thought of me all day, and slowly you begin to draw my frame.

The lines connect and become my body, my skeleton. I feel myself start to take shape. You take a pen and ink in the pencil lines, giving me eyes, ears, a nose, a mouth, legs, and a tail. I can finally draw upon my senses as each are added. You finish the last details and return to your pencil, creating a scenic landscape for me to live. You provide sunlight, grass for me to eat, trees to protect me, and birds to keep me company. You finish the land with your pen, revealing the true beauty of your own imagination.

You then take a box of colored pencils and make my world come alive. Your strokes give beautiful definition to the world, and I feel the land I stand on pulse as if it had it's own heart. You then place the pencils on me, and I suddenly feel myself become one with the landscape, my body having warmth and a pulse of my own.

With the last bit of color, I live in the world you created for me.

No longer am I a part of your mind, but a living creature in a world of my very own. I now will do my share to honor you, by inspiring those who see me and my land to dream of their own creatures to bring to life. I have become a living dream for all to see.

Thank you for creating me.

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Were you inspired by this story? Did you see your own deer come to life in your mind as you read it?

Heya guys, I wanted to give some tips on writing that I feel work really well for me. Try these out if you want to write but have trouble getting started:

Finding a Muse

Ancient Greek writers and poets often would invoke a muse to aid them in their writing. Modern muses are easy to find:

Music is an amazing tool in writing. Personally much of my writing is inspired by music, and I liked all different kinds so there is no wrong kind to choose. If you need something melodic to keep your mind on the writing, try bands like Enigma, Sky Sailing (Owl City), and Thriving Ivory. For those who like to write darker stories, bands such as Halestorm, Nightwish, and Within Temptation are great bands for you. I also like post-grunge bands such as Nickelback, Breaking Benjamin, Live, and Shinedown, as they often have great lyrics in their songs that can spark ideas for stories. Try listening to the lyrics of your favorite songs, and see if anything comes to mind. You'll be surprised at what will trigger inspiration. Also try singing along to the songs you're familiar with, you might come up with a storyline from there. (Thanks to Mick Kreiger for the additions)

If you prefer to be more adventurous with music, and you have a spare $10 to spend, try going to your local Wal-Mart/Target and choose a CD at random.

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You've daydreamed all day today. Your little fawn, Vito, has filled your imagination. You wonder what he will look like when he's older, how he will behave, what his personality will be like...

You come home and find the little plush fawn sitting on your chair, as if he was awaiting your arrival. You smile and pick him up, sitting in the chair and resting the little fawn on your lap. You stare deeply into his plastic eyes, and almost in a trance, you feel yourself grow tired. Sitting back, you fall asleep.

"Good morning, Mother.", you hear a voice say. You awake to see both Vito and your deer waiting for you. Vito has grown a little since the last time you saw him.

"Mother?", you ask. Your deer nods, "You were the first person Vito saw when he was born, so he sees you as his mother. Don't worry about it.", they reply. You tilt your head at the little one, who eagerly smiles at you. He is quite handsome for a little fawn.

You soon discover your surroundings - a gradual slope rising up, grass everywhere with boulders that seem to litter the place, and a trail that goes up the side of the hill. "We are at the base of a mountain, and today we will be climbing to the top to meet an oracle.", your deer says to you.

You want to ask what they mean by 'oracle', but you see Vito start to make his way up the trail, and look back at you. "Are you coming, Mother?", he asks. You smile and nod. You trust your deer and know it will be explained later. Following the fawn, you watch him as he frolics and bounds on the trail. Your deer stays behind you, who seems to be enjoying the walk as well.

The three of you go up the slope, none speaking but all finding the climb to be a little more difficult with each step. At one point Vito, who has found himself to be more tired than you or your deer, sits on the trail. "This is hard!", he says at once.

Nekumbra, my spider doe, has become an adult today.



"Hello, my pretties. My, don't you all look delicious today..."

I've got her walking around now if you'd like to meet her. Look for her hourglass pictogram. Just keep your fawns at a distance...she'll start to drool on them when she sees them.

((The Perspectives series focuses on you looking through the eyes of another species. I may not write very many of them but they will be fun to write))

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"Roots"

Trees are wonderful organisms. We live next to them in our daily lives, though they probably never know we are here with them. To understand a tree, why not consider their life as your own?

You begin as a seed. Where you come from may never be known, but you somehow make it into the ground. Maybe you found your own way there, or maybe someone cared enough for you to plant into the soil, but you've made it there. You were dormant, waiting for something to ignite your life, and that is this moment.

You take what you need to grow. Your mother, the Earth, gives you water and nutrients, and shelters your fragile body. Your father, the Sun, warms you and sends powerful rays that help you grow. You have a planet and a star that love you deeply, and from that you become stronger.

You dig your roots into the ground, and slowly emerge from the soil to explore the world around you. This will take time, but you continue to nurture from your mother and father, and little by little you sprout. You observe the beautiful world around you, and find other trees who are much larger than you but are there to give you support and friendship.

You try out a year on the world, growing easily in the spring, having a wonderful summer with your father, watching the others around you start to wither in the autumn, and feeling the bitter cold of the winter. The world can be rough to live on, but you persevere, living for another spring, growing stronger and bigger every month. You have big dreams, and not even the elements will stop you from achieving your goals.

Finally, you have become a tree. It was a long time but you reach up to your father and hold tight to your mother.