9 June 2012
. 1 Every full moon the Mountain of Wishes was welcoming people from all over the world to make their wishes come true. There were rules, of course. One person - one wish. And the person has to get to the top without any help, without knowing the secret of the Mountain. Many of tourists and hopeless people went home disappointed, telling that there's no chance to get to the top, losing everything they've had, spending all their money to visit the Mountain. Hearing that, people turned sceptic and each time less and less went to try their luck.
2 The story I'm about to tell you doesn't have a happy ending, just as life doesn't always ends happily either. This story is about a widow who lost her man in the war, hopeless, with a beautiful baby girl in her arms. At that time woman's tasks were limited to household, she couldn't work, and she didn't have anyone else to turn to. There wasn't any chance to find someone who would take care of her with a child. Her last hope was the Mountain of Wishes. Her one and only wish was being able to take care of her daughter. So she decided to climb up to the top and make this wish to come true.
3 She was amazed by how many people were there, waiting to the full moon, praying or sacrificing. She was ashamed she hasn't done any rituals, she was just trying to fixate her thoughts on her daughter, what for she was there and that she won't give up until she's at the top. It's doable, she knew, because many many people climbed up to the top before, the only difference was they were doing it in the daylight, not in the night, and not at full moon, obviously. But it couldn't be much harder, she thought. Of course she was wrong. It was harder than anything else she's ever done in her life. On the way up she felt like dying, she didn't know how she'll return home or if she even will. But she didn't turn back, she didn't give up. And there was she. At the top. At the top of the mountain. The Mountain of Wishes. She made it.
4 Sadly she had no idea what to do there, should she speak out loud or just think of her wish. And how badly she wanted some water. Seconds after she arrived, a woman came - from where, she didn't see. She was so beautiful and bright, she couldn't be a human, she looked like an angel. She asked the widow what's her wish and gave her water. After she drunk, she felt like new born and she was able to go home without any pain or tiredness. The queen of the mountain -she called her like that in her thoughts- made clear that she wasn't allowed to speak about her experience or how she got to the top. When she arrived home, she felt like nothing had changed. But the next day her garden was filled with water, just like after a flood. She asked for help and they've found out she had a source of water in her garden. So the whole village helped her to build a well. And as the nearest water-well was miles and miles away, it was a blessing for those people, and it was a blessing for her too, as the people in the village made the living easy for her and her daughter. Every time they went for water, they brought a whole lot of gifts, from food to clothes, sometimes money too. She raised her daughter in happiness, but she broke the rule of the Mountain as soon as her daughter was old enough to know. To know the secret of the mountain. It was easy to figure it out. You're not allowed to give up, you have to keep on climbing and then you'll be there - by the queen of the mountain, telling her your wish and she'll make it come true. She also warned her daughter to use this secret only when she's really in need, when she really needs help and the only hope is making a wish to come true.
5 Her daughter was beautiful, all the boys in the village wanted to marry her, secure her a life without worries, she had everything she needed. But not everything she wanted. So she decided to climb up to the top of the mountain the upcoming full moon. She didn't give up, she knew the secret, she thought she could trick out the queen of the mountain. Struggling with breathing, thirsty for water, she climbed and climbed, the whole night, but she never arrived. She never saw the queen, she never made her wish come true. She died on the way, she never made it to the peak. Her body was found the next day - halfway. The first who died by giving a chance to her luck. The dead of a young and beautiful girl scared people away, they were afraid to try. The legend of the Mountain slowly died, people were only whispering about it, until no one was alive who would knew the history of a mountain, what gave hope for the hopeless.
6 The secret of the Mountain. Your wish had to be worth it to die for. People who didn't give up were ready to die for something what they really needed. What really mattered, what would have saved lives, what was the only chance and hope to be worth being alive. That's why the widow's daughter never got to the top. She knew the secret, she didn't need anything, but she was eager and wanted to be successful to make her wish come true. She wasn't ready to die for it, but knowing the secret she didn't give up, and that's why she had to die...
The Mountain of Wishes • Opuss № I