Admiration

Meredith assumed that the day's work must be done by now, judging by the position of the sun in the sky.
She reflected that her mother was indeed performing a valiant task and deserved her full respect and admiration, even if the end result of her labor was of dubious success. Her mother was sustaining all life on the planet, she judged. It was an enormous, impossible task.

No Matter What

"Thank you for your help, dear Meredith," said her mother. "It has made my work easier today. But now you and the shaman must return to your hiding place behind the boulder. And remember your promise not to interfere, no matter what happens."

"Strange things have happened today," said Meredith. "What more might I expect?" But her mother had turned away toward the spring.

"Your mother's work is not finished yet. Quickly, behind the boulder," said the shaman.

A Phalanx of Figures

The sky was growing dark and threatening again. A hot wind blew up, carrying with it gritty particles, like those in the polluted air surrounding the city. The foul smell of hot tar entered the wood.

Meredith heard a rumbling noise in the distance, soft at first, but growing louder by the moment. Before long the cause of the sound became clear. A phalanx of tall gray marching figures carrying cell phones and laptops crunched their way through the wood, oblivious to obstacles of any kind. They emerged beside the beautiful spring. Behind them, the woods were stripped bare of foliage.

Meredith wanted desperately to chase these figures out of the grove, to force them to take back their putrid air and their despoiling feet, but she remembered the promise to her mother not to interfere. With difficulty, she restrained herself.

Ant-Like Army

Meredith's mother was now standing on the flat stone where Meredith had first seen her. Calmly she drew blue corn flowers from her basket and threw them one by one into the clear water, and watched them float away. The ant-like army of gray figures seemed to see her, for they soon surrounded the spring and trampled through it, churning up the mud and leaving a trail of oil and grime behind them.

"Run, Mother," cried Meredith, but Mother Earth made no motion to flee. Heedless of her promise not to interfere, Meredith darted forward to help her mother, but Shaman Far Heart held her back. She struggled desperately with him, but could not break loose.

"Let me go," she begged.

"No, Meredith, you must only watch," the shaman said. "You came here to learn the truth. Now here it is before you. You can only begin your task when you understand what is happening to the earth, your mother."

Trampled Earth

Meredith still struggled helplessly against the shaman's restraining hand. Horrified, she watched as the army of gray figures descended on her mother.

One of them had an ugly purple scar across his cheek, which Meredith was sure she recognized. Could this be the little starving, sickly baby which Mother Earth had healed only so short a while ago? Could he have recovered and grown so fast? And the other children too, could they have so quickly developed into this army of ant-like gray people who moved relentlessly onward toward her mother?  

Soon they overwhelmed Mother Earth, stripping away her basket, pine boughs, fruits and grains, tearing at her white robe and trampling her down onto the ground with booted feet, grinding and bruising her poor body. As she fell, her head struck against a stone, and she lost consciousness.

More Trampled

Meredith could stand this torment no longer, and with all her strength, she wrested free from the shaman's grip.

Crying, "Stop! Stop!" she rushed to her mother, pushing the gray figures aside. But the more she pushed them away, the more they came on in ever growing numbers. Meredith reached Mother Earth and threw herself down on her mother's wounded lifeless body.

The gray figures continued to trample on Meredith and her mother, each step causing excruciating pain.

Bright Sun

"It is enough! Go now!" said a deep voice. The sun suddenly shone more brightly and the gray people drew back, turned and tramped away in the direction of the city.

Strong gentle hands lifted Meredith and placed her on a grassy knoll. She struggled to open her battered eyes. The intense sunshine was dazzling. She managed to focus her vision in time to see a man tenderly pick up Mother Earth and place her next to Meredith on the knoll. The man's form was familiar.

So were his hands. Even the voice... "Father!"

Relief

Meredith tried to move. Every inch of her body throbbed with pain, but miraculously nothing was broken. She leaned over to help her still unconscious mother. Her father was sitting with legs crossed softly chanting a prayer.  

"I have some medicine that will help," Meredith said, reaching into her sacred bundle. She pulled out the beaded pouch and extracted a pinch of the sacred leaf. "This is a powerful medicine, given to me by the Ancient Ones to heal and restore the earth. Surely it will help my mother."  

Crushed Herb

Meredith crushed the dried herb between her fingers and gently rubbed it into her mother's wounds. The wounds closed up immediately, and Mother Earth slowly regained consciousness.  

Meredith took another pinch, crushed and rubbed it on her own bruises which soon disappeared. She still felt pain from the internal injuries, though.

Her father cradled his wife's head in one hand, offering her water, saying, "Here, drink this. It is from the spring. You will feel better soon."

"I know I will," said his wife, "but it is getting worse every time."

"I know, my darling, you are a brave woman." He stroked her hair.

Her father stood up to his full imposing height and opened his mouth to speak when Meredith noticed his strange attire. He was clothed in red, black and white robes and on his back he carried a quiver full of golden spikes like rays of the sun.

Meredith fell back in wonder. "Why, you are Father Sun! I remember in the sandpainting, in the cave of the Ancient Ones, you were waiting. Yes, I have it, you visit Mother Earth every day. You must wait until she is attacked and trampled by that mindless mob of gray people, and then you come to save her."

Meredith was so angry she wanted to hit him.

Father Sun

"Please tell me what has happened here," Meredith said. "What are you doing here and why did you disappear? I thought you were dead. I am so happy that you are alive, but how is it possible?" cried Meredith wringing her hands earnestly.