Thru the Door - Karen

As I sat idly in my armchair, staring at the dapple of leaves and sun on the floor below, I heard a knock at the door. I went to it at once, and opened it to find a woman standing in the dark. She was quite tall, and quite old, though not a bit bent, and she wore a gown of vivid crimson. In her hand she carried a staff, a sturdy rod of dark wood, topped with a cluster of quartz crystals which gave off a thin silver light.

"Mistress," she said, inclining her head toward me.I peered past her into the darkness. I could see a faint sparkling, sense a subtle movement of air. "Hello, Old Mother," I said. "How kind of you to guideme tonight."

I picked up my bag and said, briskly, "Shall we go?" Imotioned with my hand to Katy, who sprang to my side, tail wagging, dog smile shining toward the crone."Come, child," she said, and turned to walk away. I took one last look at my little cottage, the sunlight shimmering through the windows, throwing prisms on all of my beloved objects. It was the last I would see of it for three months. I stepped over the threshold into the darkness.

Immediately I tripped over something. I stooped to feel for it, and found myself holding a large geode. I tossed it into my bag for later study.

We wound our way through tunnels, small rooms filled with stalactites and stalagmites, caverns with the sound of dripping water, through iron gates and crystal doors, through rooms lit by phosphorescent lichen, and past a singularly magnificent room, penetrated by a single shaft of light falling on a small pool ringed with pink lotus blossoms. After some time, we stopped to rest and dip water from a shallow depression in the rock to our mouths. "Not all are called to the Grotto, Mistress," my guide said. As she faced me I noticed that her skin was firmer, her eyes brighter, her hair less silvery. She looked familiar. "Those whoare called must make use of the gift, or be lost." She pointed herstaff at me. "You could be lost, Mistress. Take care."As I pondered her words, we passed through what was to be the final gate, entering a central atrium of sorts, a cathedral-shaped cavern with a central pool, a small waterfall, and a statue of a dark goddess, a goddess I had not seen before. Instinctively, I knelt before her countenance. The crone laughed with delight, and I looked up to see her shed her gown and frolic naked around the pool. She was young as a girl, firm-skinned and silken-haired, and she danced lightly. I gasped.

"Welcome to the Grotto della Sibilla," she said, and danced down an adjoining tunnel. Her laughter echoed in the chamber. I approached the pool, from which Katy was drinking, and looked into its depths. I saw within it a young girl, the girl I was at age 10 or 11, fearless, creative.wild. I touched my face; it still borethe wrinkles and roughness of my forty years, but within the heart of the pool, I was reborn. A lotus blossom unfurled near my reflection. In its center was a shimmering jade-green snake. It uncoiled itself in a leisurely manner, glanced at me with a knowing look, and slid onto the cave floor. It proceeded along a corridor, and it was clear I was meant to follow. After some length of time, we reached a bright blue door with a raven painted on it. The snake slithered up the door and wrapped itself around the knob, waiting.I opened the door and my guide silently slithered away. I was in a chamber, comfortable and cozy, hung about with vivid tapestries and silks. There was a downy bed laid with pillows and a soft robe, a glowing lantern next to it, and a great expansive length of table set with a simple plate and cup. Fruit, cheese and bread waited. A small alcove in the wall was carved with the words "il desiderio del cuore" (the heart's desire). Iwould explore this later. Tired from my journey, I lay on the bed, and within minutes, my eyes closed. I was at rest.