This is part 2 of Collum and Dove, a Mythic Journey.  Part 1 was last week’s blog.  Be sure and read it before you move to this blog.  I will be telling this story in serial form, each week building on what came the week before.

Collum moves to where he thinks the road should be.  Still nothing. He looks down and sees an ant. The ant moves down a very narrow, small ant-size trail. Collum follows the ant, trying not to lose it. Perhaps he will lead him to his clothes and food.  He is now getting hungry.

Collum follows the ant away from the tree. He now sees a line of ants, going deeper into the woods. He decides he might as well follow them. What are his other options? Many briars and bushes later, Collum sees the narrow path widen. He sees in front of him an old cottage, with smoke rising from the chimney. The line of ants goes right up to the front door.

Collum stops. He looks around. He has no idea where he is. The ants, his friends, have led him here. Should he go to this strange cabin? What other choice does he have? He walks up to the door and knocks. Nothing. He knocks again. Nothing. Should he leave? He knocks a third time and the door swings open. He sees a table and chair, a stove with a pot of stew on it, a fire in the fireplace, and a bed in the corner. 

He hears a voice, “Come in. I’ve been expecting you.” Collum walks in and there before him is the oldest man he has ever seen. The man gestures him to the chair and closes the door. Collum sees the ants go across the floor, up the wall, and out the ceiling.

“Welcome Collum. Thank you for caring so much for my friends, the ants.  So many of your kind either ignore them or walk on them. “My kind? Who is this?”

The man said, “Please sit.” Collum walked over to the chair and sat down. The man came and stood over him, looked deep into Collum’s eyes and said, “It is time.” “Time? Time for what?”  “Time for you to be who you were created to be, and it is not a leatherworker.”  Collum knows that but he thought it was his only option.

“Who am I to be? What am I to do?” “This is more than I or anyone else can tell you,” replies the old man. “You must learn for yourself. I can tell you three things. Trust the ants. Live into your name. Go down before you go up. Now, get something to eat and rest for the night and tomorrow you may begin your journey.”

Collum eats some of the best stew he has ever had (even better than his mother’s). He and the old man have a wonderful conversation about ants and trees and birds and rocks. The man is very old and has seen and experienced much. His wisdom and depth of insight astonish Collum and he wishes he could just stay here in this cottage with this old man.  Perhaps he could be his apprentice. The old man says no, not at this time.  The journey must be taken.

In the morning, some fresh clothes had been laid out, a wonderful breakfast is had, and Collum gets ready to leave. He repeats what the old man has told him. “Trust the ants. Live into your name. Go down before you go up.”

“My name?  What is my name?” “Collum means Dove,” the old man replies. “Live into Dove? How?”  The old man is gone.

Collum walks outside and looks around. Where to go?  He looks for ants and sees one. He lies on the ground for a conversation. “I trust you. Where shall I go?  What shall I do?” The ant looks at Collum and wriggles its antennae. Then turns and walks into the grass nearby, so that Collum soon can’t see it anymore. Collum looks around for more ants and seeing none, tries to find the first ant.