Leaving The First Land (part 5)

When the Four Seasons woke on the following day they found that their dream had been perfectly true. The Magic Tree had split right down the middle. Half of its trunk was alive and well and growing the same as it had before. But the other half was down on the ground just waiting for them to use.

It was hard to say if the dream they'd all had was completely real or whether the dream was more of a story the Magic Tree told so they'd feel okay about using its wood for a boat. Whatever it was, there was one thing for sure, the hollowed out hunk of the Magic Tree's trunk certainly made a hull of a boat. So the Four Seasons worked all the rest of that day using branches and leaves and pieces of bark to add on the decks and the mast. When it grew dark they continued to work until finally at dawn they were done.

But the rain kept falling throughout the day and the Magic Tree was soon completely surrounded. The Four Seasons knew it was time to leave. The Magic Tree knew they'd be going soon too, so it asked them to take away the seeds of the trees that had lived in the First Land. The Four Seasons agreed and promised to plant the seeds again when they found a good place where they wanted to stay.

And the Magic Tree gave them each one of its branches to take away, too. Summer received a long smooth pole that was light and extremely smooth. Fall got a middle-sized walking stick that was twisty and gnarled. Winter was given a good thick staff that was very strong. And Spring got a pair of short clackity sticks, one for each hand.

The end of the First Land came very quickly. That night just at sunset the edge of the ocean had come all the way to the Magic Tree's trunk. The Four Seasons said one final goodbye and climbed into their ship. Darkness came, then a dreamless sleep, but when the Four Seasons awoke the next day, all they could see of the Magic Tree was the tip of its very top branch. It waved goodbye and they all waved back. A few moments later the branch disappeared beneath the sea and the First Land was gone.