And now for a little story

I was thinking that I have not been doing anything about my book for the last couple of days and I imagined myself coming up against a wall, so here is a story about the wall...

I am standing on a road paved in gold. It is a long road and most of it stretches away behind me, but ahead there is a wall. It is made of huge, solid gold coloured stones and I have stopped on my journey, looking back with pride at how far I have come. Then I glance furtively at the wall. I know the end of the journey is only a few miles ahead. I could climb the wall or walk around, I have the magic in my veins to disappear the wall completely, but I fear what I might release. What if a vicious beast or torrential river lie on the other side? They would surely eat me alive or sweep me away. For lack of knowledge about the terrain ahead, I wait and wonder. I am too scared to cross. But this is my path and whether I reach the end is in my hands alone. No one can check ahead on my behalf because the path appears differently to all who walk it.

There is a crow perched in the branches of a nearby maple. She speaks with the voice of a woman rich with experience.

"Courage, my dear," she says. "You have made this road too big in your head. It is only your first and when you reach the end there will be many other paths to chose. You will have a hundred grand adventures, so let go your fear and rejoice. The wall is no more substantial than a shower of mist. Go. Walk through. Let us finish this and reach the place of new choices."

I feel the wall and realize it is as she says. The wall is only mist. I walk through to see a wide river and on the other side, a dog chained to a post. He is growling at me.

I wade into the river and it is not as deep as I thought. It rushes around my ankles, pleasantly warm. As I approach the far bank, the dog begins to bark and tries to jump and me, only his chain holding him back. I turn to look him in the eyes and say, 'Sit', but I have never been much good with dogs. I am more of a cat person. I glance over my shoulder and laugh to see my pet cat, long sleek and black, looking thoroughly put out as he daintily crosses the stepping stones which were not there a moment ago. He feigns superiority, but I am glad he has come to my rescue. The dog tries to intimitade Mister Cat, but Mister hisses back at him and the dog shrinks to half his size and runs away to hide in his kennel. I am free to complete my journey with Mister Cat trotting along at my side. Ahead are the crossroads and I am thrilled to be arriving here, where I am allowed to make a new choice and take on a new direction. Some of these roads lead back in time while one has a space ship and suit ready for extraterrestrial exploration. There are yet other hazier paths which I know will be clearer when I return to this place next. For now, I choose to enjoy the cross roads and take my time to choose. I am proud to have this first journey behind me, but I do not need to dwell on it, there are too many new adventures to contemplate.