So how we're going to begin is you're going to sit comfortably,
However that means to you.
It could be legs crossed,
Could be sitting in a chair,
Whatever it is,
Sit somewhere comfortably that you feel relaxed and comfortable and you're going to close your eyes and you're going to take three deep breaths.
Deep breath in,
Count to four,
Deep breath out,
Count to four.
And each time you exhale you're going to try and relax your body a little bit further.
So you're going to inhale,
Pause,
Exhale,
Pause.
So as you're doing this and you're relaxing,
It's in those pauses between breaths where we're going to go.
That is where your creativity meets your imagination meets your subconscious.
So let's see what awaits you in the spaces between breaths.
Darkness.
The raven's embrace leaves you floating in a world without substance.
It's like floating in a black pool.
Gradually rays of light begin to leak through the darkness.
It is not the warmth of the sun but rather the milky white mystery of the moon.
It seems the storm is passing and you are staring at the storm clouds as they make way for the majestic gaze of a full moon.
It is like a beacon in the darkness calling to you.
You drink the milky elixir of the moon's gaze.
It soaks into your soul and saturates your weary bones.
Deeper and deeper you sink until the only thing left is your foggy breath twinkling in the moonlight.
You let the moon's rays take you from this place until there is nothing else.
Only then do you see the raven feather floating as if suspended in a place beyond time and space.
Take one last breath and take it.
There is a flash of moonlight and you find yourself lying atop the great raven.
Its great wings pump powerfully as it sails above the clouds.
The moonlight is like liquid here draping over all that it touches.
As you begin to come back to reality you see your fist clenching something so tightly you can't open it at first.
It is a black raven feather just like in the dream you had.
You begin to panic as your brain processes this.
You are riding atop a giant raven?
With a panic you try to sit up but this loosens your grip and when the raven turns its head you cry out and slide to the side.
For a moment your vision is blurred as you fly through a cloud and then you are falling.
Down,
Down you fall.
The shape of your body silhouetted against the bright white of the moon.
It is dizzying as you tumble over and over through the sky and you barely have time to register that this marks your inevitable doom.
And then you land on a soft cushion of feathers as the raven sweeps gracefully underneath you and you land on its back once again.
This time you don't move and accept the gift.
At least you are dry.
The cadence of the ravens beating wings is actually quite soothing and you find yourself hypnotized by the night air.
It's unclear how far you travel but the raven is a creature of the spirit and at some point you wonder if you crossed into a different realm.
Eventually the raven turns its head as if to give warning and then dives below the clouds.
Your world goes white for a moment as you descend and then you are clear of the clouds.
Beneath you the world is alien.
You are far from home.
Great red jungle covers the ground beneath you until giving way to black rock.
The landscape gets bleaker and bleaker as you approach what you assume to be your final destination.
It is a great mountain that you take to be a volcano given what looks like black lava rock that lines its sides.
You are still high enough that the summit lies directly ahead of you.
As you get close you realize that there is an entrance of sorts at the summit.
At first it looks like a dark ominous corner created by the shape of the rock but then you realize it is no corner but an entrance to a great cave.
The entrance is shockingly large and as the raven flies into it you are but a speck on a much grander canvas.
Into the dark you fly.
Soon you pass over a great cavern.
Below you you see four golden doors but you fly past these.
Eventually you reach a wide open area centered around a black pit descending down into the mountain.
The raven circles once and then dives straight into the black abyss.
It is so dark that if not for the sinking feeling in your stomach you would be unable to tell which direction you travel.
Deeper and deeper you fly.
Strange noises echo in the darkness.
Voices of loved ones long lost.
Images flash in your head despite being unable to see.
Faces.
Animals.
Spirits.
This is truly a place between worlds.
Eventually there is a light which turns into an exit and you are suddenly no longer flying down but up out of the ground.
At what point did it switch?
You find yourself in a desert with gray skies and the light here is strange.
It's not just the sky.
Everything is gray like a shadow.
The raven lands and waits expectantly taking the hint you dismount.
Gravel and sand crunch beneath your feet.
The raven flutters its wings in cause.
Silence.
It turns to you and speaks for the first time.
What is my name?
Again you have no answer.
The raven looks you over then with a flap of its wings it is gone and you find yourself alone in this strange underworld.
Time passes.
You're not sure if it's the place but you swear every time you look the sun is in a different position and not always on the same arc leaving you unsure of how long you've been down here.
At some point you find a large boulder and sit.
Sitting is where you do your best thinking.
Why did the lion and the raven ask for their names?
How are you supposed to know?
You throw your hands up and shout at the sky.
What is the name of the raven?
To your complete shock a voice answers.
That is a powerful question.
You jump off the rock and spin around.
An animal stands behind you looking at you inquisitively.
It stands there sure as day but your eyes somehow slide off of it like it's there but not there.
Will you tell me the name you ask?
The animal sighs.
Always so impatient for answers you are not ready for.
What is this place?
You know.
The spirit world.
As you speak you realize your words ring true.
You have a feather.
You look down.
There still clutched in your hand is a black raven feather.
The one you stole in your dream.
Do you know what to do with that?
The animal asks.
You shake your head.
What is my name?
I don't know.
You don't know much.
You laugh.
No,
You definitely don't.
