The Caretaker and the Cave

I grabbed my knapsack, put on my jacket, placed my hat on my round bald head, and picked up my walking stick. My granddaughter, Layla, picked up her bag and put on her hat and jacket too. I had made her a special walking stick that fit her hand just right and was long enough so it stood even with her shoulders. There was a leather strap on the end so she could put her little hand through the strap to help hold onto the stick. We kissed Nana goodbye, stepped outside onto the back porch, and walked down the steps. I pointed to the tallest mountain and said to Layla, "that's where we are headed." It was a beautiful fall morning. The sun was shining and the air was crisp when we neared the edge of the forest. It took a few minutes to find the path and make our way into the forest and once we entered, we felt like we had stepped into a magical land.

There were many things to see on the way to the cave. We saw colors of wildflowers neither of us had ever seen before and the bumblebees flitting from petal to petal in their busy busy way. Layla saw butterflies as they rose and fell on the breeze of the mid-October morning. As we continued our trek along the path we happened upon a rickety old wooden bridge that crossed the prettiest of creeks. We paused in the middle of the bridge to watch the sunlight dance off the ripples in the water as protruding rocks interrupted its journey south to somewhere in the valley. There was a large flat rock in the middle of the creek and curled on top of the rock was the biggest water snake either of us has ever seen. His skin glistened in the sunlight and made it difficult to determine his color. Was he black or brown? Maybe he was purple or green? He appeared to be napping and we guess he must have sensed us because he raised his head in our direction for a few minutes as if to say hello and then he lowered his head again and went back to napping. I stood there for the longest time looking at that snake and wondering silently to myself why it was still out in the open so late in the year when Layla tugged at my hand and said, "Come on Poppa, let's go. We don't want to be late." I took Layla's hand and off we went to the cave. I looked over my shoulder one last time and saw the snake's tail slip into the water.

The cave was in sight now. Once there, we could rest and eat our lunch before heading back home. If we were lucky, we might be able to explore deep inside while at the cave. Layla had never seen it and I had only explored it briefly once when I was about 8 years old, but that was 72 years ago. The cave was said to possess magical powers. When I was a little boy, old-timers warned everyone to stay away from the cave, especially in the fall. There were stories of weird noises and strange lights coming from the cave and there had been sightings. People had told stories of seeing what they called monsters and four-legged animals walking upright like humans coming and going from the cave. Some described the animals as having on fancy clothes too. About 72 years ago, a young boy had gone missing so the villagers searched all over for him. They found his lunch pail right outside the cave entrance and they found his jacket inside the cave, but they never found him. Later that same night, people had gathered downstairs in his home to resume the search at daylight, but they heard a noise upstairs. They checked his room and found him fast asleep in his bed. He was still fully dressed and had no recollection of where he had been or how he had got home. That was the same night I became the caretaker, but that's for another story.

The sun kept peeking behind clouds as we came up to the cave's entrance. The shadows made the cave seem darker than it was. Layla placed her walking stick to steady her balance when she heard a loud, sinister voice, "Sssssh, watch where you're poking me, young lass." The snake from the creek suddenly rose up in front of Layla so its head was even with hers. Layla didn't move. The snake's tongue whispered in and out as if it were tasting the air for fear. But there was none. Layla was not afraid. "I'm sorry Mr. Snake. I did not see you lurking in the shadows. Maybe you should not have been hiding so well.", Layla replied. The snake stiffened a little and said my name is Simon when suddenly, Layla reached out, and in a flash grabbed the snake around its neck in a tight, firm grip. Simon shrieked, went limp, and passed out. A minute later Simon awakened. At first, he thought he had died and went to heaven. Then he saw Layla and Poppa eating. He raised his head and saw he was curled up on a flat rock laying in the warm sunlight. There was a plate of fresh fish and a bowl of water beside him that was obviously his so he sat straight up and began to eat too.

"My goodness, Poppa. You didn't tell me she was so fast now.", Simon said. "Layla surprises me every day Simon.", Poppa answered. "But do you think she is ready for the cave?", Simon retorted. I shrugged my shoulders, picked up my stuff, and led the way into the cave. We entered the cave and stopped just inside. Simon went ahead and quickly disappeared into the darkness. Layla looked up at me and said, "Poppa what do we do now?" I took out my flashlight and looked around for the torch that was there so many years ago. "There it is!", I proclaimed and I took it from its perch on the wall and lit it. Soon the cave was bathed in light. I found a large rock to sit on and I motioned Layla over to me. In a few minutes, we are gonna have visitors who are different from us. No matter what happens, I want you to remember that you are always in charge. You control everything. If you want to continue, do nothing and say nothing. If you want to stop, close your eyes. everything will stop and you will awaken in your bed at home, safe and sound. There was a loud sound from the back of the cave. I said, "Hurry, we haven't much time. Come sit beside me on this rock. From this moment on, never let go of your walking stick. Its magic will protect you."

I almost didn't get the words out of my mouth when Simon returned and behind him came a troupe of all kinds of creatures and animals. Some were dressed in the finest of clothes. They wore beautiful dresses and gowns and had adorned wigs on their heads, almost like the royalty of a court. Behind them, came creatures we didn't recognize. Some looked like friendly teddy bears and others looked like monsters you would find hiding beneath your bed or in your closet at night. The bugs, butterflies, and bees came in last. They were very noisy and soon the cave was filled to the point that it didn't look like anymore could fit, but yet they continued to come. If there was an open space in that cave, they filled it. Simon slithered up to me and ignoring Layla, asked me if she knew the rules. I told Simon she knew what she knew. He nodded in the manner of snakes, glanced over at her, tilted his head as if to acknowledge his throat still hurt from where she had grabbed him before, and then slinked away into the crowd only to reappear seconds later atop the tallest rock in the cave.

Simon slowly rose to a nearly upright position and as he did so, his purple skin shown brightly and the murmurs of the crowd died to dead silence. I want to thank my esteemed colleagues for meeting here today with such short notice. Had we known in advance this was to occur today, we could have prepared better, but such are the ways of the human we call Poppa and his granddaughter he calls Layla. Poppa has done an excellent job of protecting all of us over these past years. He has acted as our caretaker and interloper when we needed such things. He has provided us with justice both amongst us and with the humans when justice was needed. Poppa has been a trusted confidant and advisor to us all. Time passes for us all, but for humans, time passes much quicker and time has passed for Poppa. His body has aged and he finds it difficult to make the trips here as we require. Therefore, the time has come to choose another. Poppa has brought with him his only granddaughter. Her name is Layla. She is almost 9 years of age and if she passes the test, and if she so agrees, we can continue to live in harmony for many decades to come. A low murmur arose from the crowd. For a brief second all eyes from all sorts of creatures were now on Layla. Simon cleared his throat and looked directly at Layla and commanded her to stand.

Layla slowly rose to her feet and glanced over at me. I winked at her and smiled. I saw she had put the leather handle over her wrist and held her walking stick tightly in her hand. She reached up with her other hand and removed her hat for the first time. Her long locks of dark red hair fell to her shoulders and framed her innocent face and bold blue eyes. Her feet were slightly apart and her weight was evenly balanced. She looked as if she were a warrior princess. Simon yelled, "Layla will you submit to the test?" She glanced at me again, this time a little unsure of herself, and then nodded yes. A loud roar went up amongst the crowd. Four large monsters walked over to two large slabs of rock on the cave floor. Using strength only monsters possessed, they pushed the slabs away from each other to reveal a large hole in the cave floor. Everyone fell silent again as a pedestal rose from that hole. Atop the pedestal was a statue of a person in a robe. You could not tell if the statue was a man or woman, only that it was of a human. Simon commanded that Layla approach the statue called the caretaker. She glanced at me again but strode confidently to stand in front of the statue. Simon shouted, "Layla if you pass this test, you will replace your Poppa as our caretaker. If you fail this test, you will awaken tomorrow in your bed." Layla nodded she understood and replied, "What is the test, Simon?"

The crowd became very quiet. You could not hear anyone breathe or slurp or hiss or whatever it is that creatures and monsters do. Simon shouted, "Close your eyes, Layla!" Everyone leaned forward watching her. Layla stood very still. She glanced down at her feet and below her, she could see nothing but clouds as if she were floating in the air. She looked to where her Poppa sat and he winked at her again. She remembered what her Poppa had told her. If she wanted everything to end, all she had to do was close her eyes and she would wake up in her own bed. Was Simon trying to trick her into ending the test before it even got started? Simon is a snake and he might try to be sneaky like that or maybe I really did hurt his neck and this was his way of getting even. Either way, if I close my eyes, it's over before it even starts so there's no way I'm closing my eyes. At least not right now. I think I'll leave them open and see what comes next. Then she looked up at the statue and saw the statue's eyes had turned emerald green and were now shining into her eyes. Layla dared not close her eyes and in an instant, the statue seemed to transfer to her languages each creature, each monster spoke. She knew their likes, dislikes, and their fears. They were not unlike us at all. They wanted to be loved, to have families, and to live their lives and grow old. And she knew in an instant it was her duty to help them do just that. I joined her at her side just in time to see the statue descend one more time before it disappeared too.

I glanced at my watch and said Nana is gonna be upset with me! We should've been home hours ago. Hold my hands, Layla. When I tell you to, we will close our eyes together. It's the fastest way I know to get us home and into our beds. We can always come back here next weekend. And with that, Poppa and Layla held hands and closed their eyes. The next morning, Layla awakened to the smell of breakfast cooking. She got up and ran downstairs to see Nana and Poppa busy in the kitchen. Poppa was sipping on coffee at the big kitchen table. He nodded at Layla as she entered the room and slid into her chair at the table. Nana brought her a plate piled high of her favorite pancakes and placed the plate in front of her. "I heard you had quite the adventure yesterday, my dear.", Nana spoke first. Layla looked nervously over at Poppa who smiled and winked at her, "It's okay Layla. Tell her." Layla looked back at Nana and noticed something different about Nana. Her eyes were emerald green. Nana smiled at Layla and said, "It's ok! I already know everything."