Found and Lost, and a Little Blue

 

 
            Ralph doesn’t really get the blues. But he did miss the big Amigo hat. It had come to him in such a magical way, and had been dismissed a little reluctantly. He knew it just wouldn't do for the lord of the Great Forest to be swanning around in a big old cowboy hat, no matter how much fun it was. He sighed.
            Ramona saw him gazing into the fire, then looking up to the sky, as if he was not in his usual glad place. She knew that his spirit of fun was a little crushed.
            “You did the right thing, Baby,” she said.
            “I know. Thank Birdie for her sharp eye,” said Ralph. “She didn’t even have to say anything.”
            “It’s probably a good thing. In some strange way, It worked,” said Ramona. “You looked good! I wouldn’t have been able to say, ‘get rid of it.’ Why don’t you take a walk? You always find something to be happy about when you move around the forest!”
            “I’ll do that!” said Himself.
            And he did! He gathered himself up and strolled up to the Gifting Stump meadow to take another fond look at how well the alder trees were gathering together. There was new growth everywhere and soon he would coax blackberry vines to climb the Alder Tree House to add to its richness.
            He walked inside, glancing approvingly at the nice flat black slate floor. He was so pleased with all that he saw that he forgot about the big cream colored Amigo hat
            Then he wandered on up to Uncle Bob’s place and sat with him and Suzy by their fire. Having a second breakfast didn’t bother him at all! That accomplished, Ralph decided to visit the river on up the other way.
            The early spring sunshine warmed his head. It felt good just to be out and about walking in his forest.
            To get to the rive he had to go through the Home Clearing. While there he kissed Ramona and Cherry. The cats were lounging around the fire, so Ralph asked them if they would like to come with him, that he was going up to the river.
            “You don’t need to catch fish today, Baby,” said Ramona. “I’m already working on something else!” She winked at him over Cherry’s head. “Feeling better?”
            “Mhm!” he said.
            The river ran like an endless silver being. “Run forever, Silver River,” murmured Ralph softly when he saw it there. Some things are really beyond expression, but sometimes he tried anyhow. He took a seat on his favorite boulder. The cats crouched on either side of him and watched the river run too.
            Finally, Bob, looking closely at the familiar rocks and pebbles, said, “Forest Lord, I have never seen that one before. The round one. What do you think it is?”
            Ralph stood up, seeing the strange round rock for  himself. Then he waded out into the edge of the moving water. He picked it up. It was a perfectly spherical ball of granite with little shining specks in its surface. It was about the size of a basketball. He looked around some more. Hidden under the surface of the water he found two more, just about the same as the first one. Dark and wet, sparkly in little spots, and mysterious they were.
            He held them in a row upon his crossed arms.
            “Brothers,” Ralph said, “Let’s take these home and show Ramona.”
            As he and the cats walked back up the riverbank and into the forest he thought that maybe he could hear a harmonic ringing sound, but couldn’t determine its direction. It wasn’t very loud.
            “I hear something,” said Bob.
            “So do I,” said Ralph.
            Back at home he showed Ramona and Cherry the strange granite balls, saying, “Look what the Silver River gave me today, Mona!”
            “A mystery for sure,” said she. “I wonder what they are, besides round rocks?”
            Ralph laid one at each third position around the fire circle. He noticed that the light harmonic ringing became inaudible when he did that. It gave him an idea.
            He moved them together so that they were touching each other in a row. The ringing came back and was louder. “So,” he realized, somehow the ringing tone was coming from the round stones.
            Then he moved one away from the other two, and the tone changed. It became deeper. So, he put it back into position and moved the other one away. The tone changed again, becoming so high that their ears almost couldn’t catch it.
            “Let me try something,” said Ramona.
            She placed them in a triangle position, but touching each other as they lay on the forest floor. “Hm,” she said. The harmonic tone was more complicated. Three sounds at once and louder than any other arrangement. “Well, then,” said Ramona.
            So then, she kept them in the triangle position but further apart. We would say that each was about four feet from its fellows.
            All at once the Home Clearing was full of a multitude of voices, shouting a song in impossibly glorious tones. The song filled the forest clear up to the meadows, over to the stone cabin of Ooog and Thaga, and even up to the Silver River. Every soul heard it.
            “I’m not sure I can bear it,” cried Ramona! She rolled the rocks together again, where they hummed harmoniously.
            “Put them back, Mama!” said Cherry, “I want to hear it again!”
            Ralph, the pumas and the wolf watched open mouthed.
            “It is the voice of Heaven, Mona! Put them back!” said Ralph.
            So, she did. Once more the forest was filled with the Heavenly Praise song. They couldn’t distinguish the words, but it didn’t matter.
            “That’s enough,” said Ralph after a long while. Then he picked up one of the stones and laid it beside the door of the cave. He picked up a second one and placed it by the fire circle. At last, he took the third stone inside the cave for safe keeping. The singing ring died down to a subliminal whisper.
            “That is a real miracle,” he said to his family and their familiar beasts.
            “When Twigg and Leely and the young one get home, we must let them hear it,” Ralph said.
            “Of course,” agreed Ramona. “It won’t be long now, will it?”
            “Not long,” said Ralph and he wasn’t thinking of his absent Amigo hat at all. His mind was full of the song of the Singing Stones only.
            The family ate their evening meal of potato, onion, and mushroom soup in awe and reverent silence.

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