.. a mist is swirling about in my brain... the haze is before my eyes... something speaking to me out of the darkness. Is it real.. is it a dream... something seems familiar. What are the things I am so afraid of? What are the demons that haunt my nights .... bringing on beads of sweat... furrowed brows... twisting contorted limbs and groanings of anguish.............

.... then the haze clears. The shadows lighten and fade away altogether... heavy, sturdy gates of old are before me... but where is the way to open them.. what must I do to pass... and do I want to enter.. what if my demons await for me there... what will be my fate... it looks to good to be true.. and oftentimes is..........

and will there be traps.. sticky oooey-goooey messes that I cannot get myself out of ... what if there are no knights in shining armor to save me... what if I cannot save myself.....what will be my fate.. am I brave enough to endure it... and I strong enough to withstand it....

...there is a light.. others have gone on before me.. and surely others will come after me. Things are more magical than it would appear... giggles... joyous laughter.... fun times may lie ahead.... this could be a journey worth taking after all. ... who knows what blessings will come about and line my path if only I am brave enough to keep stepping.. one step at a time.. into the future.. away from my past... into the great unknown.....

... though strangeness may come and go... things I don't understand.. ways in which I have not experienced before... come into my path... I move on. I am not alone. Even though obstacles loom... they do not harm me.. not in a permanent way... it makes me stronger.. and ready for the next journey.. the next adventure.... to see where that will go... what beauty lies ahead...

--- and yet, the journey never really ends.. it just changes... we .. each taking our own journey.. sometimes intertwining with those we love... sometimes not... sometimes one must take the journey alone. Sometimes there are wonderful guides along the way... sometimes we must be the guide.... leading the next wild wanderer through... to the light at the end of this tunnel... and onto the next.............

*photos by Elaine A. Russell, taken at the ABQ BioPark Fantasy Children's Garden........