Ancient trees supported crowns of copious vegetation all around. Some broadened and ascended, giving way to hundreds of mahogany and wild fruit trees, most of them interlaced with thick dangling vines. Life sprouted in every form, representing each of their kingdoms. Some leaping, gliding, and flying. Some sang and chirped from their hanging nests before taking off from tree to tree to the open sky. Others raffled through the fallen leaves and muddy dirt on the hunt for their daily food.
The earth still smelled of rain and wild blossoms. Mila was studying a newfound flower when she heard a set of human steps, plus the ruffling of tree leaves, and quiet tip toes coming to a stop behind a large bushy fern. She craned her head to see Alexander with little Iris on his shoulders.
“Good morning, my loves.” Mila welcomed them, laying her Healer tablet down on the ground and standing to embrace her husband and little girl.
Mila and Alexander welcomed each other with a long tender kiss.
“How did you know where I was?”
“Well, as it turns out you have some spies. Machi, Pepita, and Misha had followed you and as they went back to the house for breakfast, they led us to you,” answered Alexander, lifting Iris off his shoulders to hand her to Mila. At almost three, Iris was a little beauty with big brown curls, sparkling honey eyes, and rosy cheeks. She stretched her arms to her mother, giggling.
“Come here, sweet girl.” Mila picked her up and kissed her cheeks and held her in her arms.
“Ready or not, here they come!” alerted Alexander as the little squirrel monkey they had rescued, jumped to Mila’s neck from the branch where he had been patiently waiting for his turn. Pepita, the baby parrot, flew to the other side of Mila’s neck and pecked her on the lips when she turned to greet her.
“Here, a gooseberry for you.” Mila gave the parrot a golden berry that grew wild and was very sweet. “And for your too, Machi.” She offered it to the monkey before he snatched it from the parrot.
“Well, they all had breakfast already, a fruit salad and a cup of milk for each. It was meant for Iris, but she was a good girl and shared…” Alexander winked at Mila, caressing Iris’s cheeks. “Before Machi and Pepita stole the fruit from her bowl.” Alexander grinned, handing Mila a fish from their pond.
Mila, with her rescued babies and her own Iris, went to a big bushy fern and placed the fish on the ground and stood back. A spotted furry claw appeared from behind the leafy greenery and dragged the fish in.
“Good morning, Misha!” Mila greeted the baby jaguar.
“So, what is here?” Alexander asked, glancing around, trying to determine what had drawn Mila away from their bed before the break of dawn.
“Well, there is always a first. I was sleeping and dreaming when Time moved me to this place.” Mila crouched around an exotic flower never seen before.
“Good morning everyone!” said Leo and Hadi, approaching the family and joking. “Oh! We have the full tribe!”
“What are you doing here?” asked Leo, stretching his hand to pet Misha. The Jaguar came out and licked his hand.
“Wow! I gave her fresh fish and all I got to see was her furry paw.”
“It must be the name: Leo, lion heart. We might be kindred spirits.” The handsome Sachapuyo flashed his perfect teeth. “What are you doing?”
“I was about to show my husband this new flower I was learning about and cataloguing when everyone arrived.” Mila touched the plant again, letting the sparks of life inundate her soul. Then, suddenly, she noticed deep gashes in Hadi’s bleeding calf. Perfect! “Hadi, what happened to your leg?”
“I walked through cat claw brambles.”
“It ripped your flesh! Where were you?”
“Well, we went to check if the representatives of the international construction company were still visiting. Rumor had it, they were planning to clear hectares of forest for a luxury ecolodge right here.” answered Leo, picking up Pepita, the parrot and setting her on his broad shoulder. She immediately pecked him on the lips as she had learned to give kisses. “But, they are gone!” He finished with a wide grin, caressing the parrot’s soft feathers.
“They might try again later, but for now they are gone.” said Hadi, stepping towards Mila as she was calling him closer.
“That’s what happens when you encircle a camp with shrunken human heads on a stick like crystal balls where they saw their very near future,” said Alexander chuckling, holding Iris’s hand. “Very effective for the foreign sensibilities, I would say!”
“Not to mention a couple of darts with a minuscule drop of sleep potion courtesy of Pharma-NorTech,” added Leo, petting Misha. The big cat snorted, rubbing her head against his calf.
“That probably scared them, but cutting down trees and attaching the word ‘eco’ to a construction doesn’t make it environmentally friendly.” said Alexander, picking up Iris and placing her on his shoulders. “Especially when they planned on causing major deforestation to build their chain for tourists who want a close encounter with the wild.”
“I just found this new species of the orchidaceous family. It has quite potent healing properties.” Mila offered a prayer, just like her great-grandmother Tzofia used to do. She clipped a few long leaves and cut with her nail a line allowing the sap of the deepest green to emanate. “Hadi, could I show you what this flower does, please?”
The strong Sachapuyo approached her and presented his bleeding legs.
Mila placed the sap on them. “Just wait. If I understand the plant correctly it’s going to…”
And she didn’t finish the sentence.
“The pain went away immediately… and look! The wounds are sealed!” Hadi exclaimed, nodding at Mila and the orchid.
“I can’t wait to show it to Gadiel!” Mila grinned.
“Wow!” Hadi looked as the natural antiseptic actively sealed the wound, leaving it as if it was a week old scar.
“Since you mentioned it… Gadiel must be waiting for us in the Garden of Life.”
“Lead the way Leo, Lion Heart!” said Alexander, collecting his family. Iris on his shoulders while the monkey and parrot on Mila’s.
They all followed Leo in a line along the one-person dirt path through the jungle. Natural pergolas with hanging bellflowers welcomed them. Anthurium and asters illuminated the road to the natural, arched door from which red, yellow, and purple orchids bloomed. Armies of butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds coasted from one flower to the next. Some round armadillos and bears roamed in search of treats.
They entered the garden delimited by colorful fruit trees. Every ample space in the medicinal herbarium was crowded with equally colorful people. Healers from every jungle tribe were sitting, others strolling with ancient tablets powered by the sunlight.
“Shalom!” The delegation announced their arrival, approaching Gadiel. He was showing an old Ashaninca healer how to use the natural tablet. The device was less complicated than the smartphones and tablets left by western organizations, asking them to upload their ancient knowledge to the “cloud”.
“I don’t think it is even seven in the morning and school is in full swing!” said Mila, kissing Gadiel on both cheeks.
“What can I say, we are available teachers and they are very motivated learners,” said Gadiel, leading them to his green office, a natural nursery. “This way they keep their knowledge and pass it to their children without anyone stealing it from them by pressing a few keys and hacking the cloud for a profit.”
“The corruptibility of power—even the most well-meaning organizations could have a few leaders willing to turn a blind eye for the promise of a fortune to be made.” Alexander asserted, handing Iris to a joyful grandmother from the Kakataibo tribe. The child left happily with the old lady who flashed a toothless grin when Iris told her to color her cheeks with the red, black and white patterns as hers.
“Well, according to the World Health Organization,” Gadiel handed his tablet to Mila and Alexander. The couple scanned through a report he got from the president of the organization through Svend, requesting their intervention. “The measles outbreak in Somalia is getting out of hand. Our brothers and sisters need the gift found in this Sacred Garden.” He signaled the group to follow him to his lab. “So, let’s get to work!”
The end.