Ethereal Glow

Fog swirled through the trees until all I could see was an ethereal glow ahead. Still I kept on. How could I not? I was certain the child had come this way.

She had appeared out of the fog at the edge of my campsite. A girl, 5 or 6 years old maybe, dark haired and dark eyed, dressed in a floaty white dress. Ghostlike she was, and silent. She simply appeared, staring at me, the mist swirling around her.

“Well, hello!” I said softly. It felt like I was talking to a young wild thing, a fawn, or a baby rabbit. I was afraid that if I spoke too loudly, or moved too fast, she would disappear.

Afraid? Or hopeful?

Nothing good could come of a child appearing like this. Where did she come from? Where were her parents?

Was she even real?

She looked real. Sort of. Her hair dripped with moisture, rivulets tracing down her face. Her dress was cloud-like, shroud-like. Ghost-like.

But I didn’t believe in ghosts.

Did I?

She turned and walked away into the woods, pausing to look over her shoulder to see if I was following. With a sigh, I got up and followed. How could I not?

She led me down a faint path through the ferns, her feet making no sound. Though I spoke to her, she made no answer. I followed her silent figure. The fog was like a curtain; I pushed it aside before me, and it closed behind me. She, on the other hand, left no impression on the fog, no path to mark her way. I sped up, afraid I would lose her. She stayed just out of reach, just at the edge of my vision.

I could hear water running, a stream, or a small waterfall. Rippling, not thundering. It appeared before me, rising ghost-like out of the fog. A lovely little waterfall, like a bridal veil, like a Christening gown. But that odd glow….

My eyes traced the waterfall, the pool, the rocks over which it fell. I looked back at the child, to ask a question. But she was gone. My heart leaped, startled.

“Hello?” I said softly. No answer. “Hello!” Louder this time. “Little girl! Where are you? Where did you go?” I looked around wildly. She was just here! She couldn’t just disappear! Could she?

I approached the waterfall cautiously. I made my voice soft again: “Hello? Where are you, honey? How can I help you? I want to help you!”

A sigh like a breeze - a cold breeze - just ahead. The child’s head appeared, peeking out from behind a rock. She smiled at me. She beckoned. I followed, compelled.

She disappeared again, but this time I saw the cave she had slipped into, behind the falling water. Again I followed, the water streaming over me as I ducked inside.

The child was there, standing at the back of the cave, beside a shrouded form. She smiled, bent, and curled her body beside another.

“This is my mommy,” she said, her voice a thin whisper at the edge of sound. “I’m so glad you found us. Will you take us home?”

“Of course,” I whispered. “I’ve got you. Don’t worry. Be at peace.”

She smiled. Then she faded away, joining with the small pile of bones, lost no more.

A soft “Thank you” drifted away with the fog.