Chapter Twenty. Fancy Meeting You Here!

Fancy Meeting You Here!

"Wow," Derby said to himself as he walked outside along the picturesque trail. "This is a nice change. I wonder where I am?"

"Hello Mister," said a little voice. "I've got a big brother named Rumper. He can jump over a fence and he has twelve girl friends!"

Derby looked around to find the source of the cute voice. He found his new friend at the foot of the hedge, which lined the trail with a winding, waist-high natural fence. The voice was coming from a baby bunny, which stopped intermittently to nibble on low hanging berries which dangled from the hedge row.

"I like the fat ones, don't you? Mommy says if I eat too many of them I'll turn into a Goober Pie and be served at a banquet for the Queen. Do you think it would be fun to be served at a banquet? I do!"

Derby was delighted for the change of scenery and didn't stop to consider how he arrived at such a merry place. He dived right into the conversation with his new rabbit friend.

"Well, let's see. You've got a brother named Rumper and you like Goober berries and you think you'd like to be eaten by the queen. All of that makes you a very interesting little bunny. What is your name, my floppy-eared friend?"

"My name is Kinko. I'm the youngest of twenty seven. I've got lots of brothers and sisters and about a million cousins. Plus I've got lots of friends. Do you have many friends Mister? You've got a big nose."

This made Derby laugh. "Well Kinko, it is very nice to know you! And you're right, my nose is a little big for my head. I've got small fingers though. Don't you think?"

"My mommy says that I shouldn't talk to strangers. Especially ugly ones with big noses. Bye!"

And off little Kinko bounced, into the hedge and out of sight. So Derby decided to continue down the trail, to see what other happy adventures awaited, along this charming "Springtime" setting.

Soon, the rippling sound of a nearby stream attracted Derby's attention. He noticed an old wire fence was hidden by the hedge row and he managed to climb over it in search for the creek which beckoned him.

"Glop. Bloop. Watch your step. Gurgle. Plop. You're mighty high out there. Are you a monster?"

Again, Derby was caught off-guard by the sound of someone who seemed to be addressing him. But he wasn't quite sure from where the voice eminated. The sounds of bubbles and gurgling continued...

"Never met a fish I didn't like. Flop, blobber, slurp. Yes sir, fond of fish. Sure am. Fish and flying bugs. Love em both. Goo-gurgle-glop."

The splash alerted Derby and brought his attention to the shallow water near the bank. It was in those waters he noticed the scaly and glistening fish he was now engaged with. To his knowledge, he had never talked with a fish before.

"How do you do Mr. Fish. A fine day to you," said Derby while offering a slight bow to the wiggling swimmer.

"Watch your step there Monster. Glip-glop. Wouldn't want to get your shoes wet. Ever meet a fish you didn't like? Don't think so! Fish and flying bugs. Good as worms. Blub-glub. Sure do like fish. Monsters, not so much. Bye!"

With those last words, the little shining creature splashed the surface as it wiggled its tail and swam away.

"My my," Derby thought to himself. "Sure are lots of friendly animals here." With that he reached up to grab a branch on a nearby tree, and he was struck by the comfort of the sunshine which was filtered by the tree leaves.

"Sunshine, water, trees and grass, a charming trail and beasts with the gift of gab. All the things which seem to bring me perfect serenity," Derby thought to himself, feeling as if he didn't have a care in the world. As he noticed himself start to whistle a tune, a bright reflection of something in the woods attracted his gaze.

Through the thicket of thorny vines and brush he found himself pulled along to an "out-cropping" of sparkling minerals, imbedded in some rocks protruding from the earth.

"Hello Mr. Ripley!," said a voice of distinction. "Welcome to Umpa's Lair. We are Shrinegold, the Spirit of the Vein. At your service! Please sit, there, on the stump, and tell us you are well."

This time Derby didn't have a face or mouth to talk back to. The eloquent speaker was somewhere else, but seemed to be coming from the general direction of the glistening minerals and rocks, which broke the surface of the clearing, and reflected the light of the sun.

"Thank you Shrinegold. Are you the rocks and minerals which shine so majestically, here in the woods?," asked Derby, somewhat at a loss for not knowing who to reply back to.

"We are the Spirit of the minerals. We are the energy in gold, the luminosity of silver, the strength in steel, the healing power of zinc. You may say we are the lungs of the great Earth Spirit. Earth yields to us and we yield to water. We're incorruptible and pure, the source of illumination to all mind. Our elixir enlightens all living beings. Look for us now within your own lungs. Pause now to be rid of your sadness."

As the rock spirit spoke to Derby and suggested that he allow grief to be released from within his lung area, he, uncontrollably, coughed up a hard golf ball-sized mix of phlegm and muccus, which he spit out with an energetic, "Phew!" into the woods.

He felt instant relief, even though he hadn't noticed that he was storing any sadness at the moment. But as his spit smacked the trunk of a nearby tree, he was surprised to hear the ricochet of the splatter in the form of an angry reply.

"Hey, watch where you hawk your wad there bud. These are my woods!," said the disturbed voice of the wood.

"Relax Tim Tum," said the rock spirit. "This is Derby, the Father of Zol. We're honored to have him visit us. Please show him some respect!"

"Well OK then," spoke the tree man, "but he needs to practice his aim with that grief spill. That is some nasty stuff!"

The mellow and refined voice of Shrinegold seemed to extend from the wealth of all knowledge and further explained to Derby, "Mr. Ripley. Tim Tum is just one of the tips of the mighty root. He is wood. Water yields to wood. And he himself yields to the mighty fire. All that is green and flowers descends from his root. Tim Tum and his family are mighty warriors and his Spirit is very ancient. You will learn much from him."

"Well here you are!," the familiar voice echoed in the woods, and seemed to enhance the setting with a layer of peaceful resolve. Derby turned to see Umpa approaching the clearing, sporting a wide smile and a twinkle in his eyes.