<--> Part III

"The boy retracted his eyelids to let all perception enter.  He glared at the first sign, trying to dismantle the words until they were naked, revealing their true meaning.  CERTAINTY...ACCEPTANCE...SECURITY.  He couldn't figure out why most of the world was obsessed with obtaining these things; why most deemed this path the safest for one's life.  He shifted his eyes to the other sign, looking deep into the words.  UNCERTAINTY...RISK...FREEDOM.  He repeated the words over and over as he read them.  Then, slowly but suddenly, quietly but urgently, the revelation crawled into his head and rested upon his brain.  The boy quickly looked up, beyond the sign to the trail disappearing into the lush green canopy.  then he glanced at the car.  He felt his heart begin to beat harder.  He looked back to the trail and the beautiful forest, which eventually enveloped it.  The boy watched as a bird took flight from one tree to another.  He noticed a squirrel run down the base of a tree and disappear under a bush.  He realized that animals are not concerned with security or acceptance.  They are content with being who they are, and they are satisfied with what they have.  His breath quickened as he looked back to the car and the looming city beyond.  He pondered all of the people scurrying around in the shadows of those towering buildings.  He wondered if they were content with being who they were.  He wondered if they were satisfied with the path they has chosen.  The boy concluded that maybe some were, but most were trying to fill the void where their childhood hearts once sang.  Most were trying to get somewhere the car would not take them because in this life, nothing is certain.  He felt a wonderful burning in the center of his chest, as he finally turned his back to the car forever.  As he moved to the center of the uncertain trail, he glanced at the sign, which pointed to it.  A subtle smile crept across his face.  For now he knew what the sign meant.  The boy stood before the path of uncertainty, held his head high, and said these words aloud, "This is the route for my life.  I know because my heart has shown me the way.  This PASSAGE will not be an easy one.  There will be numerous obstacles blocking my way, and many challenges to overcome; but by doing so I know that I will learn and grow from every experience, pleasant or unpleasant.  I understand that by taking this uncertain path , I may risk acceptance and security, and at times life might be filled with suffering; but if the risk is taken out of life, then there will be no true living.  Through the risk of the life I am choosing, ultimately I will be free."  Tears of joy began to gather in the boy's eyes as he took the path of uncertainty, because he knew he was following his heart, and his heart had told him to stay true to the dreams of his youth.  Just before the boy was consumed by the thicket of trees he looked back over his shoulder to where the car was.  He began laughing out loud and singing lovely songs of freedom because the car had vanished.  STAY TRUE TO THE DREAMS OF YOUR YOUTH." -CRegg Rondell