The Angry Wind - Thankful Thursday

It's a grey and blustery day. Although the winds are not constant, they are strong enough to put the dogs on edge and we are expecting thunder tonight. With three thunder-paranoid dogs, that is never fun. The wind got me thinking about "The Protectors," a story I wrote in 2006 and published in Bones of the Woods in 2007.

"The Protectors" is about the rape and murder of a special little girl -- one who has the unawakened soul of a protector. It is also about two shapeshifters racing to find the girl's soul, as it awakens into a protector. Here is an excerpt that describes the victim's soul as it gains both awareness and power.

Breathe, the soul exhaled, feeling a rush when the leaves quivered on the tree branches. “I made that happen,” it thought. Breathe. A silky voice spoke up from deep within the soul’s dreams. Breathe in as if you were the wind preparing to blow a storm cloud over a mountain. The soul inhaled and felt its anger sucked inward. It spit it out, ripping a branch from the quivering tree. The tree screamed in anger and pain. The tree’s scream felt good to the soul. “I made that happen,” the soul thought.

The picture on the left is the one that accompanies the story in the book. It was taken in the forest around our house after a flat-line wind danced up and down the ridge, cracking trees in half and uprooting them. It was partly the power and anger of that sudden wind event that inspired this story. I asked myself what awful thing could possibly unleash such anger. My answer is in the story.

It's Thankful Thursday and I am thankful for a lot of things this week. Monday's snow provided a good photo opportunity, but it melted quickly. I got the potatoes and onions planted yesterday. We had dinner last night with an old friend, our cover designer and illustrator for Dime Store Novel and Mind of a Mad Man. Finally, and most importantly, all the animals are healthy, if not entirely happy about the weather.

What are you thankful for this week?