THE THIRD REALM: YELLOW — Another way of seeing

Once again, she came upon rubble, wounded trees, and fugaíns fighting over fire. But now she wasn’t looking for someone to fight. In their movements, she recognized the fear that had ruled her, and she kept enough distance to continue on her way.

Among the ashes, she discovered a shoot. It was barely a green twig, tiny beside the blackened trunk from which it grew. She bent down to look more closely.

Farther on, she found a caterpillar, then the trembling of newly unfurled wings. She stopped at the sound of birdsong. She didn’t know whether those sounds had always been there or had only just arrived. She did know that she could hear them now.

She remembered Helio’s words: “The outer world reflects the inner world.” Anger had kept her from seeing the whole realm. Now, alongside the damage, she could see the life that endured.

She felt no desire to declare the dragons better. Nor to condemn all the fugaíns. She kept walking, tending the small flame she carried.

As she crossed the border, she sensed a yellow wheel in her solar plexus. It turned in harmony with the red and orange ones. She felt the earth steady beneath her paws, the bonds connecting her to others, and a quiet strength encouraging her onward.