The Moving Magical Trees

- Shabana Chowdhury Ahmed

There was a time when good magic and evil magic roamed the earth side by side. People were superstitious and protected themselves with good magic. Nature provided the good magic but at the same time evil was also lurking around nature.

The story teller tells her tale. 

Once upon a time in medieval England a tribe of tree worshippers known as the Druids lived in a dense forest. They planted small oak trees in a large circle and built their houses inside the circle of trees. They nourished and tended their small trees till the trees grew into magnificent tall and strong trees. They  planted herbs and herbal plants in the forest too. They also made clay pottery. From the herbs and herbal plants they made herbal medicine. Every Sunday they took their clay pottery and herbal medicines to the town market nearby and sold them.

Community life was their way of life. Every evening they would build a bonfire with dry leaves and sit around it. In the mornings the older folks were busy making clay pottery and herbal medicines, while the younger generation were sent into the forest to gather fruits and berries from the wild trees. On one such occasion the young Druids ventured deeper into the forest and discovered the ruins of an ancient temple. Curiosity led them to explore the interior of the temple. They found three large chests of iron. Unable to hide their curiosity they forced open the chests. The chests were full of gold coins and precious gems. They carried the chests back to the village. 

The village Druids all gathered around the treasure chests to see the precious gold coins and precious gems. The old Druid, who was their leader, told everyone not to reveal their secret to any stranger till he decided what to do. The chests were placed in the old Druid's house.

Next morning the young Druids went into the town market to sell their pottery and herbal medicines, while the older folks made pottery and herbal medicines in the village. The town market attracted many people. The young Druids were captivated by the hustle and bustle of the market place. Their nostrils smelt the aroma of variety food. That day was unusually hot and they became very thirsty. So they stopped at a traven to drink cold beer. One led to two. Two led to three and they were totally drunk. The traven was full of people and a gang of robbers dressed as villagers came in and sat near the young Druids. The robbers would wait for some people to get drunk and when these people leave the traven, they were ambushed and robbed by the gang.

The young Druids left the traven to return home. The robbers followed them and while walking one young Druid started talking about the treasure chests in their village. The robbers heard everything. As they all came near the village, the robbers decided to wait till nightfall then go rob the treasure chests. Night came and the Druids went to sleep. The old Druid also fell asleep. The robbers went into the old Druid's house and took the chests. As they all came out of the house and was moving towards the forest the oak trees began moving and formed a dense circle around the village. The robbers tried to squeeze through the trees but could not. The sharp branches of the trees became alive and pierced the hearts of the robbers. 

The Druids woke up to the screaming and came out of their houses and saw the dead robbers. The trees moved back to their original places. The moving magical trees paid their debts to the Druids. 

Nature moves in a strange way. It protects and also destroys. Without Nature no life would exist in the world.