In the last part of the story, part II, the travelever had just gotten to a deep sleep after the exhaustion from the water fall incident. The story continues in part III starting with the dream he had as he slept:
“The dream was concerning the city that I was so sure is the place, though I had not seen with my eyes, I so longed to get to. The dream was so graphic and real I dreamt myself in it and yet what I saw was beyond words that I could explain. It was as if I was both in the city and also part of the city at the same time. The sun in the city was both the light and the substance of the city. Now you get why I say it’s not explainable in words – It can only be experienced.
By the time I got out of the dream, it was time to get up. It had been so many hours, and yet it felt like a very short time. I am not sure how long I had been asleep, but it must have been more than twelve hours. The sun rays were coming from the side opposite the direction they were coming from when I slept meaning it was morning of the following day. By this time, either the numbness and the pain had comepletely gone or the dream had caused everything else to fade in light of the city. The dream had been so real that when I woke up, I tried to keep my eyes closed for a bit in an attempt not to depart from the reality of the dream city.
When I finally let go the dream and started to figure out what to do next, I was back, but I was not the same. The dream had transformed me for good. It was like a part of me was already in that city while I walked the path towards it. All thoughts of the city I had left were gone and now I was consumed with the city I was going to. The city I dreamt of became more and more my reality than the city I had left even though I had not seen the former and had been to the later. Nothing mattered more than that city I had seen in the dream. My inner conversations were utterly consumed with thoughts of that city.
Obstacles on the path were handled resolutely having resolved nothing would stop me from getting there. The only thoughts of the city I had left were for the people I had left, more so that they’d depart and get a vision of this new city.
After leaving the place I’d had the dream of the night, being careful not to make the previous mistake , I had noted the river getting wider, and more calmer. From my geography lesons, I knew that indicated that the river could be getting to the plains and probably meandering to the opening of the river into the sea/ocean. I knew now that there were less risks of rapids & falls unlike the immediate previous course. I got another raft and went into the river on the makeshift boat. The raft glidded smoothly downstream I really enjoyed.
The further I went downstream, the slower the river became. I started getting impatient with the pace and eventually decided to swim. Interestingly, it was faster to swim than using the raft. I had never tried to swim downstream before and I found it very easy. When I got tired, I’d allow myself to be carried by the current. I soon started noticing others in the water, but I was a little careful as I didn’t know whether we were all going to the same direction.
At times when I got tired, I’d get to the river bank and hold on to the reeds for a while before continuing. At some point going down, I noticed a very interesting group of travelers. They were not struggling as I was and I noticed that they were holding hands as they floated down. This was helping them because they did not need to get to the reeds to rest when one was tired. when one was tired, they just needed to hold on to the others and just float downstream together. They were beckoning me to let go the reeds and join them, but I kept hesitating for a while.
It was only when I let go and joined them that I realized how much
easier it was to swim together. By this time, the river was getting to its mouth and as I joined the travelers, I also noted that group flowed into the open sea. I was suddenly aware of the vast , endless open sea we were entering to. The traveler I was immediately attached to welcomed me and brought my attention to a sight further on into the open sea.
At a very far distance, I could see glimpses of buildings coming out of the see that looked like a city. My fellow traveler told me, “that is the city of the great King, from whom and to whom the river flows.” I suddenly started seeing semblances of the buildings with some I had seen in the dream city. “and what is that I am feeling?” I asked “I am feeling like I am becoming part of the water.” My fellow traveler explained, “as you get closer to the city, the city, the water and the traveler become part of one. That is the reason you are no longer struggling to swim.”
I remembered that in the dream, I was both in the city and also part of the city at the same time. “What about all the loved ones we left in that city we departed from?” I asked. “They will need to make a decision to depart for only they can join you and not vice versa. ” ” and to those holding the reeds?” the message to them is, “Let go the shores!”. ”
And there, the chronicles of the traveler ends, at least for now.
PM