Growing Panes

She sighed as a cold gust of wind hit her, causing her to shake uncontrollably. It was not comfortable out in this field, exposed to the elements; but she did what she could to protect those she loved.

For the millionth time, she worried what would happen when she became too old to protect her creatures. She had leaked for many years, and knew there were spots in her that were too cold and wet for habitation.

The farmer tried to fix her up from time to time, but it never seemed to be enough. She wished she could speak with him, and help him help her help the animals they both tied to keep safe. He did not understand whenever she tried to groan and creak in the areas that needed the most repair. She wished he would learn to speak her language- she had no mouth in order to learn his, after all. There was no way for her to be able to make the strange noises that he did.

How did he not know that they couldn't understand him? He knew he was angry when he was loud, and happy when he was quiet...but that was about it.

It was like he was not at all interested in hearing them, but expected them to hear and understand him.

He was not there very often, however. So it was just a barn her friends.

They could communicate just fine.

She let them know when a storm was coming so they could protect themselves. They would respond they understood with stomps and rumbles. They knew that she could only hear through vibrations. They were very kind.

She would let them know the safest place to huddle. Sometimes, they were locked in an area that was bad for them. They would become wet and cold there. She would do my best to shift in a way that released them from the bad area. She was always sad when the doors refused to creak loose.

Animals would come and go; she was happy for the former and sad for the latter. These creatures had life spans much shorter than even the farmers that would also come and go. She wondered why the farmer did not hammer on them to make them better like he would make her. It was most likely something to do with their smaller size.

The farmer began fixing her less and less. He was moving slower lately, so she guessed that a new, faster farmer would come soon. It had happened dozens of times, after all. The new farmer would fix her up, add many more animals, and life would be wonderful for a while.

But a new farmer never came. Neither did the old farmer return.

The animals stomped their displeasure; She moaned with the desire to help them. She was finally able to use the wind to dislodge her door, and they were free for a time. They would always return; this made me happy. She wonder if the humans ever had a similar feeling. They did not seem as sad when the animals left, or happy when they came. She assumed they did not, but they did not speak each other’s language, nor was she able to go to the other buildings and see firsthand how they react with their own kind.

The farm house seemed to not care for them much, but that was, again, just a small sample of human kind. There had to be more than this for them, right?

It would be too sad if they didn’t have those kind of connections.

She and her creatures lived happily for a time, then there was a loud rumbling, and many humans followed after. They took all of her friends, and left her alone. No one ever came back.

She sat in that field, home to only small vibrations from time to time. They kept her from the crushing loneliness brought on by the theft of my larger critters.

Eventually, she became a useless husk. No wind or rain was kept from her insides. She no longer felt any but the most accidental of vibrations.

The farm house was eerily silent as well.

One day, she felt the movements of several humans. She hoped they were there to fix her up!

Instead, they walked around for a little while, then left.

This would happen multiple times. She was always left puzzled.

What could they want with a building that had no walls and no creatures?

Still, it was nice to have the occasional visitor.

These humans seemed happier as well. They would rumble in a pleasing way.

One day, she simply stopped feeling anything at all.

New buildings, tall ones, replaced her. They did not creak and groan as much as they swayed. They invented a new language- one of flashes and heat instead of vibration. Very few animals were welcome anymore.

There was no more room in this world for barns, and not a single being was left to miss them.