#44. Walk in the Wilderness (Excerpt)

44 (Sept 16)
Write about a walk in the wilderness - on the beach, in the woods, a mountain hike. Is it a walk for pleasure or because you ran out of gas, or is it an emergency, and you need to find a phone?
OPTIONAL: Work on your fiction and share.

In one of my early fairy tales, a little girl named Anya goes on a journey to search for her wings. She has friends who help her at the early stages of the journey, but at some point they have to leave her, so she can continue her journey alone. That's where I pick up the story today to write about Anya's walk in the woods - I am not translating it from Russian, rather I'm taking my character and seeing what happens.

Anya started her walk bravely and rather merrily, because really, what was there to be afraid of or to make her hesitate? The sun was shining brightly, the birds were singing cheerfully, and the trail was winding down between beautiful tall trees and bushes blooming with flowers of all colors and sizes. Anya was greeted by pretty butterflies and her old friends - lightening bugs.

"Oh hello there," Anya said. "Isn't it a wonderful day?"
"It is, it is," her friends agreed with her. "And where are you going on such a wonderful day, Anya? Still looking for your wings?"
"I am actually. But I really think I'm close now."
"Don't forget to call for us if you need help."
"I won't. Thank you, dear friends."

As soon as Anya started feeling hungry, a big open field filled with wild strawberries, her most favorite berries, appeared in front of her. She stopped there for a brief rest and yummy snack, and then moved further.

By the time the sun was going down to the horizon, the magical forest got darker, and instead of cheerful bird songs Anya was hearing scary animal noises, and in place of colorful flowers, she was seeing faces of unknown creatures who'd smirk and giggle looking at her, echoing one another.

"What a silly girl!"
"What a silly little girl..."
"I heard she's looking for her wings..."
"Hehe. Everyone knows girls don't have wings!"
"Girls are not birds! Girls don't have wings..."

Unfriendly words and laughter and rather annoying echoes almost made her cry, but she put on a brave face and continued walking. The trees were getting taller and taller and hung above Anya like giants, covering the quickly darkening sky. The bushes were getting wider and wider, with branches stretched out in all directions, whimsically distorted. It was getting harder to walk on the trail as the branches scratched Anya's legs, and soon Anya realized that she somehow had gotten lost. She was not in the friendly magical woods anymore, but rather in the scary witch forest instead. A huge owl flew right over her head, screeching loudly, and as if that was not enough, lightning glared and thunder rattled, and a it began raining cats and dogs. Anya started to run, but the trail was so slippery that she fell and rolled down the hill into a gully. A little mirror in a carved birch bark frame, the mirror Mama gave to Anya before she started her journey, fell out of her pocket and broke into hundreds of tiny pieces. Anya burst into tears and cried until she finally fell asleep.


Rise and Write 43-49