worlds where our infancy was spent,and boldly sought the stars, shedding our humanness as sunlight shedsthe dew, or a bright, soaring moth of the night its ugly pupa case.
"We grew great and wise, Jimmy, but not quite wise enough to shed ourhuman heritage of love and joy and heartbreak. In our childhood we mustreturn to the scenes of our past, to take root again in familiar soil,to grow in power and wisdom slowly and sturdily, like a seed droppedback into the loam which nourished the great flowering mother plant.
"Or like the eel of Earth's seas, Jimmy, that must be spawned in thedepths of the great cold ocean, and swim slowly back to the brighthighlands and the shining rivers of Earth. Young eels do not resembletheir parents, Jimmy. They're white and thin and transparent and have tostruggle hard to survive and grow up.
"Jimmy, you were planted here by your parents to grow wise and strong.Deep in your mind you knew that we had come to seek you out, for we areall born human, and are bound one to another by that knowledge, and thatsecret trust.
"You knew that we would watch over you and see that no harm would cometo you. You called out to us, Jimmy, with all the strength of your mindand heart. Your Uncle Al was in danger and you sensed our nearness.
"It was partly your knowledge that saved him, Jimmy. But it took couragetoo, and a willingness to believe that you were more than human, andarmed with the great proud strength and wisdom of the Shining Ones."
* * * * *
The voice grew suddenly gentle, like a caressing wind.
"You're not old enough yet to go home, Jimmy! Or wise enough. We'll takeyou home when the time comes. Now we just want to have a talk with UncleAl, to find out how you're getting along."
Jimmy looked down into the river and then up into the sky. Deep downunder the dark, swirling water he could see life taking shape in athousand forms. Caddis flies building bright, shining new nests, anddragonfly nymphs crawling up toward the sunlight, and pollywogs growingsturdy hindlimbs to conquer the land.
But there were cottonmouths down there too, with death behind theirfangs, and no love for the life that was crawling upward. When Jimmylooked up into the sky he could see all the blazing stars of space, withcottonmouths on every planet of every sun.
Uncle Al was like a bright caddis fly building a fine new nest, thatchedwith kindness, denying himself bright little Mardi Gras pleasures sothat Jimmy could go to school and grow wiser than Uncle Al.
"That's right, Jimmy. You're growing up--we can see that! Uncle Al sayshe told you to bide from the cottonmouths. But you were ready to giveyour life for your sister and Uncle Al."
"Shucks, it was nothing!" Jimmy heard himself protesting.
"Uncle Al doesn't think so. And neither do we!"
* * * * *
A long silence while the river mists seemed to weave a bright cocoon ofradiance about Jimmy clinging to the bank, and the great circular diskthat had swallowed up Uncle Al.
Then the voices began again. "No reason why Uncle Al shouldn't have alittle fun out of life, Jimmy. Gold's easy to make and we'll make someright now. A big lump of gold in Uncle Al's hand won't hurt him in anyway."
"Whenever he gets any spending money he gives it away!" Jimmy gulped.
"I know, Jimmy. But he'll listen to you. Tell him you want to go to NewOrleans, too!"
Jimmy looked up quickly then. In his heart was something of the wonderhe'd felt when he'd seen his first riverboat and waited for he knew notwhat. Something of the wonder that must have come to men seeking magicin the sky, the rainmakers of ancient tribes and of days long vanished.
Only to Jimmy the wonder came now with a white burst of remembrance andrecognition.
It was as though he could sense something of himself in the two toweringspheres that rose straight up out of the water behind the disk. Stilland white and beautiful they were, like bubbles floating on a rainbowsea with all the stars of space behind them.
Staring at them, Jimmy saw himself as he would be, and knew himself forwhat he was. It was not a glory to be long endured.
"Now you must forget again, Jimmy! Forget as Uncle Al will forget--untilwe come for you. Be a little shantyboat boy! You are safe on the widebosom of the Father of Waters. Your parents planted you in a rich andkindly loam, and in all the finite universes you will find no cosiernook, for life flows here with a diversity that is infiniteand--_Pigtail_! She gets on your nerves at times, doesn't she, Jimmy?"
"She sure does," Jimmy admitted.
"Be patient with her, Jimmy. She's the only human sister you'll everhave on Earth."
"I--I'll try!" Jimmy muttered.
* * * * *
Uncle Al and Pigtail came out of the disk in an amazingly simple way.They just seemed to float out, in the glimmering web. Then, suddenly,there wasn't any disk on the river at all--just a dull flickering wherethe sky had opened like a great, blazing furnace to swallow it up.
"I was just swimmin' along with Pigtail, not worryin' too much, 'causethere's no sense in worryin' when death is starin' you in the face,"Uncle Al muttered, a few minutes later.
Uncle Al sat on the riverbank beside Jimmy, staring down at his palm,his vision misted a little by a furious blinking.
"It's gold, Uncle Al!" Pigtail shrilled. "A big lump of solid gold--"
"I just felt my hand get heavy and there it was, young fella, nestlingthere in my palm!"
Jimmy didn't seem to be able to say anything.
"High school books don't cost no more than grammar school books, youngfella," Uncle Al said, his face a sudden shining. "Next winter you'll bea-goin' to high school, sure as I'm a-sittin' here!"
For a moment the sunlight seemed to blaze so brightly about Uncle Althat Jimmy couldn't even see the holes in his socks.
Then Uncle Al made a wry face. "Someday, young fella, when your booksare all paid for, I'm gonna buy myself a brand new store suit, and hiemyself off to the Mardi Gras. Ain't too old thataway to git a little funout of life, young fella!"
* * * * *
Transcriber's Note: The following typographical errors in the originaltext have been corrected in this eBook:
Page 31: "sunilght" changed to "sunlight"
Page 32: "tie" changed to "tide"
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