"TALES OF GHOSTS"
about Love and Death from the Land of Mists
a collection of short stories
in the “Playing Another Reality” series
"The OLD LANTERN's DREAMS"
1. The OLD LANTERN's DREAM
A fluffy willow branch was dozing in a Venetian vase on the windowsill, when a delicate Butterfly appeared on it. The Girl, who couldn’t fall asleep, got up from the bed and went to the window.
“Good evening, Mrs. Butterfly! You are very beautiful! Where did you fly to us from?”
“From the Land of Dreams,” answered the Butterfly and showed the Girl her wings in full glory.
“Is there such a Land?” the Girl was surprised.
“Certainly! You often visit it as well!”
“Dreams live in the Land of Dreams, don’t they? So are you a dream?”
“Not dreams only, there are also wishes and fantasies, and even fears…”
“Fears?! No, no, dear Butterfly! Please, don’t talk about fears! I’m already scared!” the Girl asked. “Better tell me: do sweets, all sorts of delicious cakes and ice cream live there?”
“Certainly!” the Butterfly smiled. “Even the ones you haven’t tasted on Earth yet!”
“And what about the animals? Pusses and kittens, for example, are they there too?”
“Yes!”
“And… may one pet them and play with them?”
“Yes!”
“And… what about castles with princes?”
“Why not! Of course, there are obviously as many castles in the Land of Dreams as people on Earth!”
“I would like to move to the Land of Dreams! But to the place without fears!”
“Fears exist in the places where they are feared!” the Butterfly reassured the Girl. “As soon as you stop being afraid of them, they will immediately disappear and will never appear in any Land! Besides, you can visit the Land of Dreams every night when you sleep. Or every day when you are dreaming of something!”
“Well… if it’s so good there, why did you fly here, to us? Don’t you like sweets or are you tired of living in a castle? We have almost no castles here. And I’ve never met a prince! Granny forbids me to play with kittens outside and doesn’t allow me to bring them home. And I have sweets on holidays only!”
“According to the laws of the Land of Dreams, all dreams and wishes sooner or later must come true on Earth.”
“So will I have a lot of sweets? And a kitten? And a prince to live with in a castle?!” the girl exclaimed happily.
“Yes, if they already live in the Land of Dreams, and… if you destroy the fears that prevent your dreams from descending to Earth.”
“And you… Did you have to deal with fears too?” the Girl wondered.
“Yes,” the Butterfly admitted. “I am the dream of the Old Lantern. All his life he wanted me to fly to him in reality, but at the same time he was afraid of caterpillars! However, any butterfly first appears on Earth in the form of a caterpillar.”
The Girl yawned, she didn’t understand the connection between caterpillars and butterflies, but she wanted to talk a little more with the Butterfly about… fears!
“Do our fears have their own fears?” the Girl asked.
“Of course,” the Butterfly sighed.
“So the fears of our fears have their own fears too, and do they all live in the Land of Dreams?!” the Girl got surprised and yawned again. “The Land of Dreams must be so scary!”
“If everyone fights with the own fears, for example, laughs in their faces, there will be no fears anywhere! They will exist neither there nor here!” the Butterfly laughed. “And now… could you, please, open the window! It’s time for me to find the Old Lantern, that has been dreaming of me for so many years.”
The Girl didn’t want to say goodbye to the Butterfly, but she imagined that somewhere in the night the Old Lantern was awake, waiting for that particular Butterfly all his life, perhaps as much as the Girl had been waiting for a kitten… and for a prince in a castle as well as for sweets… and she opened the window.
“Bon voyage, Mrs. Butterfly!” the Girl whispered.
“Thank you! Have a happy journey too!” the Butterfly smiled and waved her wings to the Girl.
Granny entered the Girl’s room.
“Aye-aye! Come to bed!” she said and closed the window.
The Girl soon fell asleep. However, since then, each time the Girl finds herself in the Land of Dreams and meets her fears, she tries to laugh in their faces in order to bring closer the meeting with the kitten and the prince, she will live with in a sweet-sweet castle, that is dreaming of them as well.
1989–90