Hi there. I have a story to share and it is one that may be hard to believe. A little while back, I was feeling a mistrust of the world and the people within it. I found myself spending more time alone; Hiding away from everyone. In truth, I was a little depressed and I couldn't shake it. Fear was dominating me and I really thought everyone was out to get me. I couldn't figure why the world was so cruel and unsafe. It just wasn't worth taking chances anymore. I read a story about some people who believed if you listened to the earth, you would hear it move and in doing so, would discover your place in the world. The world would show you meaning. Sounded silly at first but I decided I would give it a try.

I put my ear to the ground yesterday and listened. I did that because of that story I read I wanted so bad to hear it turning and find meaning in myself. The day was nice and the ground smelled fresh and clean. So I set my mind to listen and hear. This is what I happened; This is what I heard...

At first I heard nothing at all. A blade of grass ticked my inner ear and an ant crawled across my nose before deciding to jump off and go elsewhere. I adjusted my position to get more comfortable and continued listening. I thought maybe there was a measure of time before the sound of the earth became audible. I still heard nothing. I laid on the ground for what felt like a very long time. There wasn't any sound of the earth that I could discern. Still I waited longer. After all, I had invested time and I didn't want that to be wasted. I may have drifted into sleep laying like that but I am all but certain I was awake the whole time. I heard something. It was faint but I could make it out. It wasn't the earth I was hearing. I was hearing something else that was delicious. Beneath me was the burrows of two small animals. The burrows had to of been very close to each other because the two animals started to talk to each other.

I heard the words, "Is he gone?".

I swear I was wide awake at this point. My heart rate jumped through the roof. I almost move to look around me to be sure those words didn't come from someone near me. I was alone and in a place people don't often go so I resisted that urge to look. I glad I didn't move because they where listening for me just as hard I was listening for the sounds of the earth.

Then I heard, "I didn't hear him go but I think he is gone." That voice sounded a little higher in pitch so I knew it wasn't the source of the first voice.

"Should we have a quick look to see and be sure?" Said the first voice.

"No, I don't want to risk it. You can if it will make you feel better though I think it is safer to wait and listen a little longer.", said the second voice.

At that point I couldn't move if I wanted to. I was paralyzed with a swarm of emotion and disbelief. Was I hearing what I was hearing. My eyes where closed and A picture started to form. Not like when I imagine an image; Rather, It was a picture that seemed printed on the inside of my eye lids. I saw the soil beneath me. There was dark soil and stone and clay. I saw tunnels moving randomly in the earth. I saw an area that had two bulb shaped areas that where close to one another. One was just above the other. In these tiny dens, I saw a mole in one, and a mouse in the other. They both sat on their haunches and where looking up.

"I don't dare take that chance." It was the mole who spoke. "I am terrorized by the fear of be eaten. I should think I will stay here and live in my burrow where I am safe and never go back out there." I recognized it as the first voice.

The mouse then said in it's higher pitched voice," We can't do that. We must go out into the world. If we don't what then is the point of ever living at all? I don't want to deal with the fear of what is not known either but I can't see staying in here for ever. We must deal with fear." The mouse was the second voice I heard.

"What of all the other things that move about out there? They are all out to get us. I can't trust anything. How can we survive in a world that hates us so. It must hate us; Why else are there foxes and the like that try to get us? Why did that man stop over top of us and remain there. We don't even know for sure if he is gone! What was he doing there? Oh I hate the world and everyone in it! Why was I born at all?" The mole's voice came fast and was dismal in tone. I felt guilt wash over me for adding to their fears of the world. I almost moved to leave them but I remained still.

"I agree the world can be dangerous.", squeaked the mouse,"And sometimes we have to be cautious less we get hurt or worse. But surly you don't believe the world wants to get you? The world is the world and it is the nature of the world to give hardship to those within. It is what forces you to live and not just be without meaning." The mouse's voice was clear and he spoke with a belief that was infectious. It was hard not to feel an immediately liking for it.

"How does hardship make me happier to be alive? It makes me miserable! If it wasn't for the things out there that prey upon me, I may have grown wings and learned to fly. Instead, I sit in the dark and hide from the world." The mole was steadfast in its depression. I could hear it in its words that it had given up. It made me feel bad and, as silly as it may sound, I wanted to hug it to try to make it feel better.

"My friend it saddens my heart to hear you speak so." The mouse's words echoed my own feelings. "You needn't hide from life in this way. You are a mole and that is a great thing. You have purpose and you are good. How can I help you to see this? We must take risks to discover ourselves! It is the way of all creatures big and small. Even the fox has fears. Even that man who was here has fears I would bet. Yet all must continue to be what they are despite their own personal fears."

"Why then do they give me so much to fear then? If they are afraid, I should think they wouldn't want to make anyone else feel that same feeling. I don't bring fear to anyone's doorstep." Pleaded the mole.

"My friend you are a mole. Do you not have a larder in which you store your living food? I mean no disrespect to you, but to an earthworm, you are surly terrorizing. Do you purposely try to bring fear into a worms life? I think not. You are being a mole just as you should be. You and I are friends so I don't fear you but I have known others like you who have eaten mice like me. Should I judge you as the same as others like you? I don't. I measure each creature on an individual basis. I know the nature of life but I don't assume everyone is the same. They are not. I take my chances and in doing so, I have learned so much." This mouse was extraordinary. It spoke with wisdom and a kind of peace that touched my soul. Imagine that, a mouse effecting me so.

"You are my friend." said the mole, "And I would never hurt you. I am glad you don't judge me the same as those of my kind who would do harm to those of your kind. You bring a richness to my life that I would not want to be without. As for the worms I eat, I hadn't thought of them as having feelings before. I have always eaten worms and didn't notice them as something that can feel fear. I am no better then everyone else I guess. It would be wrong of me to hate them and not hate myself as well. That I won't do. Maybe I have been rash in my perceptions of the world. You are a wise friend mouse. I hope you and I can be friends for ever." The mole's voice took on a different sound. It sounded more reflective and comforted.

"I am glad to hear you speak these words mole. I will always be your friend. We can't avoid taking chances but we can trust that when we take a chance, we have one another to trust if things go wrong. I will always help you when I can and I know you will do the same for me. It was chance that brought us together and chance when I first talked to you. A risk I am glad was taken. Chance isn't always bad." Said the mouse in its warm squeaky voice.

That is when I a dear-fly decided to take a bite out of the back of my leg. It hurt! I jerked my leg when the fly bit me and the sound I made stopped the conversation I listened to as if it was never was. I scratched the bite then try to listen for more from the mouse and mole but they didn't resume their talk. The bump on my leg itched away and I had to scratch it. I couldn't lay still any longer. Besides, I think the mole and mouse would be extra cautious now that I had given myself away. I stood up and walked away loudly to be sure they could hear me leave. I didn't want to give them any reason to fear me any longer. As I walked away I thought about what just happened. Did I fall asleep and dream the whole thing? Even if I did, was that part of it? Is that how one is able to hear the world and its message it has to give? I don't know. The mole and mouse showed me things in their talk. I feel better about the world now. So what if I did fall asleep. It still gave me what I needed to get back into the world and live. I am not hiding anymore. I am not afraid to take chances. I look at people differently now. Everyone has a message and I like to discover what messages they have now. It is worth the risk. In short, if you find yourself feeling defeated by the world, I would strongly suggest that you try what I tried. Put your ear to the earth and listen. It may be that the world can help you change your life to.