Finding a Pretty Rock in the Water

I’ve always loved the water. Any water. As children, my siblings and I loved the streams in the Cascade Mountains with their colorful, smooth stones just beneath the shallow surface. As a little girl, these stones, the edges rounded and softened by the swirling, gurgling water, reminded me of the glass marbles the older kids I knew played with.

I loved the way these stones felt beneath my small, bare feet, as I stood in the ankle deep stream. I would stoop here and there, looking at the marvelous gold, red, gray, brown, and black colors. My mother would stand next to me and when I saw a pretty rock, she would hold open a small bag of cornmeal. I’d plunge my little fingers into it, feeling its grainy texture, and would sprinkle it over the surface of the water above where the rock lay.

“Now,” my mother would say, “what do you ask, Eileen?”

Excited, I whispered, “My name is Eileen. You are so beautiful. Would you come home with me?”

“Very good,” my mother said, pleased. “And what else do you say? Remember that every body of water has a spirit who takes care of it. It is her domain, Eileen. You need to give her a gift of cornmeal, too. That stone lives in her water. She is responsible for it.”

“First, you should ask the spirit of the water if she is okay with you taking the rock. If the spirit gives you permission to take it, you must then ask the rock. If the rock says yes, then you can take it and put it in your pocket. If not, you leave it there.”

“Even if the spirit of the water says yes?”

“Yes, because everything has its own self and they always have a choice in these matters.”

I took more cornmeal, held it in both my hands and closed my eyes. In my mind I saw a watery being, very tall, graceful, with a vaguely human outline made of water. I could feel her smiling at me as she approached. She radiated love and it surrounded me. I laughed because it was such a happy feeling. She was beautiful! The water was slowly swirling counterclockwise around the water spirit, clear and sparkling in shades of blue, green, and lavender dappled with golden sunlight.

I had been taught to communicate telepathically from a very young age, and using these skills, told the spirit my name and requested her permission to ask the rock if I could bring it home with me.

“If the rock says yes,” she said, her voice sounding like gurgling, musical water, “I will approve it. Thank you for asking.”

I thanked her and opened my eyes, throwing more cornmeal into the water. Then I turned my attention to the gold and red oval rock in the water. It was so smooth and pretty. I asked her if she would like to go home with me. She said yes, but that she would like to stay in water. I told her that I had a small fish aquarium and asked whether she would be happy in there. She told me she would.

Once I was finished, I stood up and told my mother everything.

“Okay, pick her up and let’s bring her home,” she praised.

I put my hand into the cool water and closed my fingers around the stone. There was such glowing warmth in my palm as I lifted her up out of the water.

My mother gave one last gift of cornmeal to the water spirit, and we moved slowly out of the stream and onto dry land.

“Look, look!” I said, excited, opening my small palm. “Look how the rock glows!”

She leaned over. “Hmmmm, it does. Why do you think that is?”

“The rock told me that she heals. That is her job. She loves to do it.”

“And what do you feel right now?”

“Warm! Here, hold it, see if you feel It too!”

I placed it in her hand. Her brows rose a little and pleasure came to her expression.

“My, my, you found yourself a little stove.” She placed it back in my hand. “You need to take time to ask her how she heals. Rocks, like people, have various skills and talents. This one is a healer it seems.”

I stared at it, feeling the warmth travel up my arm, across my shoulder and then down, around my heart. It felt so good. “I think she’s healing me,” I whispered in awe, looking at the rock as the sun glinted off her surface, making her glisten.

“Let’s go wrap her in a cotton cloth and then you can place her in your pocket so she won’t slip out or get lost.”

My little healing rock was very happy in our aquarium. She shared her name with me and I would go over and talk with her sometimes, and listen to her wonderful tales of adventure.