Something touched my cheek, light as a fairy’s kiss. My fingers felt for it – one blossom, a sliver of velvet. I had never tasted a flower before, so I cautiously put it in my mouth. It clung to my tongue like wet tissue paper. Disappointed that it tasted like medicine, I peeled it off and threw it away.

What a contrary world I saw, looking straight up from flat on my back! The sky was not blue. It was white and green, like popcorn and turnip greens! The trunk of the tree was a log path, leading up and up. The crisscross of scratches on my arms and legs testified that I was a seasoned tree climber. But somehow I felt this tree was different. It was actually calling me to follow its path to the sky, "come up; explore!"

Hugging the trunk I felt its roughness on my cheek, as rough as the blossom had been soft. It hurt as I dug my knee in and reached for the first branches. But it was a good hurt. Soon I lost touch with where each hand and foot were. I was bent all out of shape, as in the twister game.

And then I saw it, a perfect saddle, where two branches joined near the trunk. I used a stirrup knot for my foot and lowered myself into the seat that fit me perfectly. I was Queen Cleopatra on a camel! Below me were my subjects. "Bring me bowls of fruit, slaves," I commanded. I ate my apple, saved in my pocket from lunch. Never had fruit tasted so luscious. Food for the gods! Juice ran down the side of my mouth, and I let a slave wipe it away with a linen cloth.

There were tiny peepholes above me. The sun reached through with slender fingers of light. One stabbed me in the eye. I moved my head back and closed my eyes…What was that? A motor? Was dad cutting the grass? No, it was too close for that. Really close. A bee was invading my private territory! I froze as it came even nearer, so near I felt the breeze from its wings on my cheek. "Go away! Go away! The blossoms are sweeter than I," I kept saying, inside my head. And it did, and I could breathe again.

The Apple Blossom perfume swirled around me, like a genie coming out of Aladdin’s lamp, taking it with me into a magic land of dreams…How long was I there? I could feel my bottom only in prickly spots. It had gone to sleep! Perhaps I had slept too. Someone was calling my name, from far away. I couldn’t risk answering from where I was.

Like a lizard I slithered down the tree and began to run before my feet hit the ground. Close to the house I gasped for breath and answered, "Coming, Mother."

And so began my secret life in my secret place. Gradually furnishings were added. My doll bed mattress made perfect padding for my saddle. A board from the woodshed became a shelf for supplies – including my current book. Best of all, I found a piece of rope, which I tied above the saddle. It was perfect for quick Tarzan get-aways.

When the leaves began to fall I had to abandon my nest in the tree, like the birds, to return in the spring. I don’t remember the very last day that I visited my secret place, but I’ll always remember the first. I’ve never told anyone before. Today I have shared it with you.

Notes from Marta:

Did you have a secret place as a child? If so, visit it now, in your mind’s eye. Be there.
What other pleasant childhood memories call to you? Close your eyes and let them wrap around you.
Feel at home. When you are ready, stretch, and return to today, totally at peace.