2
Rachel Slack
Green Willow
"Nor the time... you must find my tree, you have one month Tomotada, one month to find my tree and drain all the remaining sap. You must then mix it with seven spring herbs: chervil, mustard greens, chives, parsley, rosemary, marigold, and ginger root. Ground these seven herbs together and mix them with the sap of my tree. You must then come back and force me to take in this mixture and it will restore me to my current health." Said Green Willow and with one last breath she fell into a living death. So Tomotada went off to find the herbs and his loves tree. He figured the best place to start would be at her parents' house around where she grew up. So after several days of traveling he came upon that quaint little huddle, he walked up knocked on the door.
"Morning ma'am" he greeted the mother as she opened the door.
"Tomotada how goes you?" asked his mother-in-law.
"Not so well. I must say," ma'am.
"What plagues you my lord," inquired the woman, it tickled Tomotada silly that after all these years they still addressed him as my lord.
"It is your daughter ma'am" stated Tomotada.
"My daughter what has become of her?" questioned the good lady.
"She has become ill; may I ask you were there a willow tree nearby here?"
"No, I can't say there is"
"How about one that green willow used to visit frequently; and always on her birthday I might add." Tomotada had already figured that this tree that his love spoke of with such connection must have been close to her heart. Meaning she would have visited it often.
"Why yes, there is in fact, why may I ask you"
"Without the contents of that tree your beloved daughter and my lovely wife shall fall victim to an early death. Can you take me to it?"
"Yes, yes, make haste! This way, right this way." Tomotada followed the old woman for quite a while until they came upon a tree brown from death and all of its leaves lost. Tomotada walked up to the tree retrieving a pail, a reed straw, a stone hammer, and a wooden peg from his robe pockets. After draining the tree of its life blood and returning to the quiet house he asked the woman one more thing.
"Do you have any of these herbs?" inquired him, pulling out a scroll that he had brought with him. He handed the scroll to his mother-in-law. She unrolled it viewing the most graceful writing she had ever held eyes on. The list contained the seven herbs looking like this:
芥菜
韭菜
香菜
迷迭香
万寿菊
姜根
"Yes, I do believe I have a few of these, hold on." The little woman hurried into her kitchen and came back in a matter of minutes with a handful of stuff and a small velvet satchel no bigger than her own fist. "These…," she said holding up a handful of rice sized green flakes, "are chives. This…," said she, holding up green needle like fronds, "is rosemary. This…," she stated pointedly holding up a bright green plant with an odd leaf arrangement, "is parsley. These are mustard greens." she indicated to a green plant looking like kale. "You can find chervil in a garden since it is used to repel slugs."
"Thank you, thank you so much" declared Tomotada.
"Hey she's my daughter, of course I was going to help" ragged the helpful woman. So with four of his seven herbs already found he headed off to a local farmers stead. After traveling for quite a few days he came upon his quarry. He walked up to the garden is the back and rapped on the gate. No one came so he knocked harder. From around the corner he heard a strained holler.
"I'm coming; I'm coming hold your horses. Have pity on an old man." and old he was as he came around the corner Tomotada saw that this man's hair was white as the clouds that floated lazily across the late summer sky.
"Good morning kind sirs," called out Tomotada, "how are you this day?"
Oh same old same old, my joints creak, and my bones ache; but the question is what do you want?
"I was wondering kind sir if you had any chervil in your garden at this point in time?" asked Tomotada kindly and reverently.
"Oh chervil, oh yes that I do have and plenty of it at that; had to plant it before those cursed slugs massacred my carrots," exclaimed the old man. He waddled to the back of his garden; he bent over and you could hear his back pop every degree closer to the ground he got. The old mad waddled back; he would have been a great goose, and said, "hear take it I have plenty of it." After putting the chervil in the small bag with the rest of his herbs he decided that this man was too old to be tending a garden of this size all alone.
"Thank you wise sir is there anything I can help you with?" inquired Tomotada respectfully.
"Yeah! Some peace and quiet, now get on your way before I whop you with my rake, that right get on." exclaimed the old man. As Tomotada was on his way he turned back and yelled,
"Sir, do you know where I could find some marigold and ginger root?"
"I told you I wanted some peace and quiet, and find a doctor they should have those plants." on his way to find the doctor he thought, my, what a strange old man. But with only two more herbs to go, he didn't let the man's strange behavior plague him for long. After four days of monotonous travel Tomotada came across a cabin set back from the path. Again for the third time that week he walked up to the door and banged roughly on it. After several seconds and short man came to the door.
"Hello sir, how may I service you; my name is Li Po" said the little man a little too energetically.
"Yes I was wondering where I might find a doctor in these parts?" asked Tomotada.
"Well today is your lucky day because I practice in the medicinal arts," said Li Po; as if he had practiced it in the reflection of a clear, calm pool of water.
"Well okay, do you have any ginger root; it's used to aid the elders with their sore joints?"
"I do indeed, hold on, let me fetch you some," Li Po scurried off looking like a small dark mouse. "Here you go. "Is there anything else I can do for you?"
"Well if it wouldn't be too much trouble I was wondering if you have any marigold." Li Po let out a small laugh.
"Too much trouble, too much trouble knows that wouldn't cause me trouble. You see those yellow flowers growing all along the path?"
"Yes, I do, why?" inquired Tomotada.
"That, my dear friend is marigold, all of it is." exclaimed Li Po.
"Thank you sir for all your help; actually do you happen to have a mortar and pestle?"
"Oh yes, here hold on;" he runs back inside and returns with what I requested. "You can keep it I have several of them."
"Thank you again Li Po" said Tomotada sincerely. Heading home he realized he only had about ten more days before I would be too late to save Green Willow. He spurred his horse into a ground eating canter and kept it up all day he had traveled a forth of the distance already but a fourth way not enough he thought. Tomotada decided he was going to rest until the sun started to decline from its zenith and keep this pattern up until he reached his dying love. After five days he finally reached Green Willow. To his surprise she was already awake.
"My love why are you awake?" inquired Tomotada.
"When the sap and the herbs are gathered together and they are within a mile from me the sleep is lifted and I awake. I have been anticipating your arrival all day." explained Green Willow.
"I'm here now willow you are safe I have already made your mixture, here it is" said he, handing her the mortar with the sap and the herb mixture contained within it. After Willow had drained the mixture she was surrounded with a green light. The light lifted her up and embraced her tenderly. In an explosion of light Willow fell to the ground breathing hard.
"Willow, my love, are you okay?" inquired Tomotada panicking.
"Okay? Ha am I okay? I feel great, I'm invigorated," Willow let out an exuberant laugh. "Thank you Tomotada I don't know what I would do without you. I love you"
"I love you too Green Willow human conduit to the spirit of a willow tree." proclaimed Tomotada, "I love you too."