The Stream

Benito heard the stream getting louder as he walked along a dry, beaten path that slowly turned into soft grass. The vegetation grew thick and dense, forming a wall of every shade of green: emerald, shamrock, jade, and mint. The area went cool, chilled by the presence of water nearby. A few more steps and he saw it: a sparkling, crystal-clear ribbon of water. It moved over smooth, time-polished stones, with a gentle current rippling its surface as it carved through the lush greenery. The sound of it was as inviting as a song. Benito felt an immediate sense of tranquility. The stream seemed to be beckoning him to join it. He walked in, not thinking about anything but immersing himself. The water was sparkling all around him like tinsel. He waded deeper, the stream accepting him into the rhythm of its flow. The feeling was unlike any feeling he’d ever had. It was timeless and exhilarating. The aroma of the forest was very powerful as Benito flowed with the stream. He felt as if he was part of it—like he belonged to it and its flow. He was the flow! It was then that his mom yelled into his room. “Benito! Time to get up and get ready for school.” Benito slowly opened his eyes as he lay in bed not wanting that peaceful feeling to leave him. He began to realize that he had been dreaming of the stream and was leaving that peaceful state and returning to reality. He looked around his room and remembered the dilemma he had been dealing with at school and at the soccer field—the harsh reality of Alexandro, the new kid at school who liked to push the smaller kids around. Benito was a prime target, for he was smaller than the average twelve-year-old Filipino boy. In fact, he was much smaller than all his friends. Benito felt his heart rate increase as he got ready for school. He loved school and was always enthusiastic about learning and especially about playing soccer after school, but since Alexandro came on the scene, his enthusiasm diminished considerably, and it was noticeable by his mom.