Fletcher the Kangaroo: Life and Death - Chapter Twenty Three
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“And how about you, Fletcher? You said you would perhaps like to become a teacher.”
“I think so.”
“Good. So, there are a few options for you as well. You may choose to work with very young kangaroos.”
“Do you mean joeys?”
“No, not joeys. These kangaroos have only recently been created and they haven’t been to earth at all yet. They need to be nurtured and loved. The teachers care for these kangaroos and watch over them as they play together. They learn to express themselves, relate to others and discover their own likes and dislikes. Their personalities are still forming and they can be very sensitive at this time, so they need ongoing support. Part of what the teachers do is create an environment where the young ones can be themselves and explore who they really are. Can you imagine it? It’s like a big nursery with lots of babies and toddlers being cared for by trained teachers. In time, the young kangaroos form groups, a guide is allocated and their journey continues from there.”
“That sounds like a lot of fun. So, I could be a teacher in the nursery, looking after all the little kangaroos?”
“If that’s what you choose.”
Fletcher smiled. He thought of Teresa and how he loved being her big brother. “And what else is there?”
“You could also be a guide. Like me. Once you are trained you would be allocated a group of young kangaroos who are ready to leave the nursery and you would be their teacher.”
“I like the sound of that too.”
“Do you have a preference?” Ariana asked.
Fletcher was torn. He didn’t want to make the wrong decision. Speaking honestly he said, “Not yet. I’m not sure what type of teacher I’d like to be.”
“Then you may visit two classes. I think Amanda’s class will be good for you to see and perhaps Jeremiah’s. I will make the arrangements and take you both to visit the classes that I have suggested.”
Some time passed before Ariana came back to Fletcher. “If we go now, you will be able to sit in on Amanda’s class. She is training some kangaroos to work in the nursery.”
Fletcher followed Ariana out of the pod and into the corridor of light. It was sky-blue—one of the brightest shades Fletcher had seen. Usually it was a soft pastel shade but this blue shone clearly, glowing against the background of darkness. They spiralled upwards, passing hundreds of pods. When the time was right, Ariana quickly darted off to the right with Fletcher keeping up, close behind.
He looked around and saw that the environment had completely changed. The coloured light has disappeared and he was surrounded by lush green growth: ferns, lilies and gigantic trees that stretched up higher than he could see. It was a rainforest. The plants were covered in dew and he could hear the sound of running water. Ariana hopped along an earthy path that went lower and lower and at the bottom, beside a flowing stream, sat four kangaroos.
One of them stood up and held out her paws in a welcoming gesture. “Ariana,” she smiled. “Welcome. And this must be Fletcher.”
“Hello,” Fletcher said.
“Fletcher, this is Amanda. She is facilitating this class.”
Amanda patted Fletcher on the back. “And here we have Bethany, Courtney and William.”
The three kangaroos who were still seated smiled and waved.
Amanda hopped back a little to give Fletcher some more space. “You’re very welcome to join us. This is a new class and, as you can see, it’s quite small. We have plenty of room for more members.”
Ariana looked at Fletcher. “You’ll be OK here. Stay as long as you like and, when you’re ready, return to our pod. You won’t have any issues finding your way.”
Fletcher loved the surroundings. He would be very happy here. “No problem,” he said.
“I’ll be going then. Thanks Amanda. I’ll see you again before long.”
“Bye bye,” Amanda replied. She hopped back to where the group was sitting and encouraged Fletcher to join them. “Make yourself at home, darl. Everyone’s very lovely here, I promise.”
Fletcher sat down. He felt very welcome. Amanda had a warm, maternal air about her.
“This is our little group and we’re learning to become carers, or nursery workers if you like. Perhaps you could all introduce yourselves.”
One of the female kangaroos spoke first. She was tall and had a very pretty face. “I’m Courtney. I’ve always wanted to work with young kangaroos. In my lifetimes on earth I was always happiest when I had joeys of my own, or even younger brothers and sisters to look after, so I know without any doubt that I want to work in the nursery.”
Amanda smiled. “Thanks Courtney. Now William. Could you tell Fletcher a little about yourself?”
The male kangaroo sat up a little straighter. “Hi Fletcher. Nice to meet you. This is only my second time here but I’m enjoying it very much. I want to work with young kangaroos and help provide a loving and safe environment for them to grow up in.”
Fletcher liked William’s formal way of speaking and he imagined that the two of them would get along very well.
“And your turn, Bethany. Just a few words so Fletcher knows a little bit about you.”
Bethany was petite—she didn’t look much older than a joey herself. “Hi Fletcher,” she said in a soft voice. “I’m Bethany. Like Courtney, I’ve always loved joeys in my lifetimes and I want to work with young kangaroos in this world. I want to teach them games and encourage them to have as much fun as they can.”
Amanda spread her paws out wide in front of her. “Thank you, my darlings. So Fletcher, that’s who we are. Can you tell us a little about yourself and what you might be looking for?”
“I’m Fletcher and I’ve recently decided that I want to be a teacher. I’ve really just come along to find out more about what you do. I’m not sure yet what type of teacher I’d like to be, but it’s clear from what you have all said that working with young kangaroos would be a wonderful thing to do.”
“It is, it is,” Amanda smiled. “I spend most of my time in the nursery and there’s nothing more precious that seeing a newly-formed baby and watching him or her grow into a beautiful little kangaroo. From there, when they’re bigger, of course they have to leave us, but we look after them while they’re little.
“And they are so much fun. But being a carer is about more than just fun. We watch over them, talk to them, answer their questions, love them…. ”
Fletcher noticed that Amanda’s eyes had drifted upwards; she was clearly picturing being in the nursery.
“We are like their parents. They are so sensitive and they need to be cherished. Yes, that’s what we do. For the time they are with us, we cherish them.”
“I don’t mean to be disrespectful,” Fletcher said, “but that sounds pretty easy. Why do we need to come to a specialist class to look after the young kangaroos?”
“In this class you will learn to look more deeply inside yourselves, to find your own vulnerabilities so you can care for the young ones with gentleness. We aim to break down any walls we may have built inside ourselves so that we can get in touch with the very essence of who we are. In that state, we can then build a stronger bond with the young kangaroos.”
“Crikey,” Fletcher said under his breath. Out loud he said, “That’s different to what I expected but it sounds great. Is it OK if I take some time to think about it?”
“Of course it is, darl. You take all the time you need. Just let the gorgeous Ariana know and we might see you back here again soon.”
***
Back in the tunnel of light, Fletcher zoomed towards his group’s pod. Just for the fun of it, he went faster and faster. He watched the coloured light change from peachy orange into magenta. Arriving at his destination, he hopped easily through the wall and stopped to take in the view.
The sunlight glowed in a muted way, reminding him of evenings back on earth just before the sun was due to set. Of course there was no day or night here but the appearance of light at this moment reminded him of the day ending and the night beckoning.
“Fletcher!” Silkie called. “Come over here!”
He saw Silkie down by the water’s edge, waving to him and urging him to come and join her. He hopped slowly towards the water, not feeling any need to hurry.
She hugged him and looked into his eyes. “How did you go? What was it like?”
They sat side by side on the water’s edge and Fletcher told Silkie about his visit to Amanda’s class. “It was amazing. Amanda talked about working with the young kangaroos and surrounding them with love. The way I imagine it, I think it would be like having lots and lots of joeys—like a big family. Only there would also be many teachers working together to look after them.”
Silkie laughed. “I can just see their little faces gazing up at you. You would be great at that, Fletch. Do you think you want to do it?”
“I’d like to, yes. I think I would really love it. But I also want to find out more about becoming a guide like Ariana. I have a feeling I would enjoy that too.”
“I see. Do you want to know where I’ve been?”
“Of course. What have you been doing?” Fletcher could see by the look on Silkie’s face that she was excited about something.
“I’ve been to visit a class too.”
“What? Really? I didn’t know you were going so soon.”
“Me either, but as soon as Ariana returned from dropping you off, she took me to observe a class as well.”
Fletcher tried to remember what Ariana had said earlier. “Was it…. was it Oliver’s?”
“Yes! I visited Oliver’s class. There were four kangaroos in the class already. I loved it Fletch—I really did. I want to join their class as soon as I can.”
Fletcher smiled. “I’m so happy for you. Tell me about it.”
“OK. So, they’re learning how to help kangaroos who have just returned back here from life on earth. Some kangaroos are fine but others need a lot of care and healing, particularly if they have had a traumatic life. And that’s where we step in.”
“What do you do?”
“I don’t know that much about it yet but Oliver said that all kangaroos are first met by their guide. That’s important because they need to see a familiar face.”
“I didn’t know who Ariana was straight away when I returned, but it all came back to me pretty quickly.”
“And that’s normal,” Silkie explained. “Once kangaroos have been met by their guide, they can be taken straight to a healing place.”
“What’s that like?” Fletcher asked.
“Its appearance is different every time, depending on what the individual kangaroo needs. Some prefer empty fields, some like water features, it really doesn’t matter. All of that can be easily changed. But it is a special place where healers gather to treat the kangaroo.”
“Do you know how they are treated?”
“Not really. Not yet. But Oliver said that in our studies we will have to revisit any traumatic times from our past and look at different ways in which those situations could have been dealt with so that we have a range of techniques to practise and use.”
“In a way,” Fletcher said, “that sounds like what we do all the time. We’re always talking about ways we can learn to handle grief better.”
Silkie nodded. “Yes, it’s similar, but in this class we pick situations that are particularly difficult—the most challenging experiences we have ever had.”
Fletcher shuddered. “It sounds heavy going.”
“It will be hard work but so worthwhile. I can’t wait to begin.”
“Do you think you will join Oliver’s class?”
“I told him I wanted to and it’s all been arranged. I’ll be going there from now on.”
“That’s terrific, Silkie. I’m really happy for you.”
Fletcher heard the sound of laughter behind him, so he turned to see what was going on. Rachel, Laura and Daniel were hopping down the slope towards the water.
“Come on Daniel,” Rachel said in a playful, teasing tone. “Hurry up or we’ll get there before you even start.”
“Look who’s talking!” Daniel quipped. He sped up and overtook the two females. “Come on you two, we don’t have all day.”
Laura hopped as fast as she could. “We do, actually. We’re infinite beings, remember? We’ve got as long as we like.”
***
In a shady spot on the rocks, Fletcher lay down and rested. He looked out over the water, slowly gathering his thoughts. He thought of the snippets of advice he had gathered recently about grief: acceptance, different ways he could react, different personality traits he could try and imagining himself in the role of another kangaroo. It would take a while, but he would spend all the time he needed trying these out in the context of his most recent lifetime. He knew that Silkie would help him if he needed her. For that matter, any of the kangaroos in his group would be willing to help.
He saw a figure moving in the distance. From the body shape, he knew it was Ivan—tall, broad-shouldered and an overall muscular build. He watched as Ivan found a place to settle. He didn’t lay down as Fletcher had, but he sat up straight, keeping very still.
Fletcher wondered what Ivan was doing. He clearly wasn’t going to sleep, so Fletcher decided it would be OK to approach him and have a chat. He scrambled down the rocks and hopped across the patchy grass, parallel to the water’s edge. He spoke out loud from a short distance away, taking care not to startle him.
“Hey there, Ivan. What are you up to?”
“Hi Fletch. I’m sitting here contemplating things. I’ve just been talking to Ariana and she has given me plenty to think about.”
“Can I ask what? Only if you want to share, that is.”
“Of course. You know how in my last life I lost my wife at a very old age?”
“Yes.”
“Well, I’ve had plenty of lifetimes where I experienced grief as a relatively young kangaroo but this time I was old. So old and tired. I didn’t have the energy to handle strong emotions very well.”
“Go on.”
“As I’ve explained to the group, I took my grief out on my loved ones—my children and grandchildren. I don’t want to do that again. I want to find better ways to process my feelings.”
“Perhaps you can think of what you’ve done in other lifetimes.”
“I’ve thought about that a lot. And yes, I did OK in some of them, but the thing is I was so old this time around. That’s the difference—that’s what I need to figure out. When I’m young I can think more clearly and try different things but the fatigue that came with old age made me feel washed out.”
“And what did Ariana suggest?”
Ivan replied in a good-natured tone. “Not much, actually. Great help she is. She wanted me to figure it out myself. You know, come up with my own ideas.”
“And have you?”
“Not yet.”
“OK, then let me help. Maybe…. maybe, in your old age, you could remember back to how you felt when you were younger.”
“I could. Any other ideas?”
“You had a big family, didn’t you?”
Ivan nodded.
“And you were close to them. So, perhaps you could spend more time interacting with them. You could talk to your grandchildren, play with them and even tell them about all the good memories you have.”
“I didn’t think they would want to listen to a silly old coot like me.”
“But it’s their family history. I’m sure they would be interested. You’re a great storyteller, Ivan. You’re always making jokes and that makes other kangaroos feel good. You can use that to your advantage in life—use it to help yourself feel better too. It might help distract you from your grief.”
“Gee, thanks Fletch. It makes such a difference talking things through. Rather than feeling useless as an old kangaroo, I could talk about old times.”
“Exactly. Talk in your fun, entertaining way. You wouldn’t even have to try hard because it would come naturally. I think all of us need to remember what our strengths are and use them to help us through difficult times.”
“That’s a real help. I’ll give it some more thought and work on it. Thanks again. What’s going on with you?”
Fletcher’s eyes shone with excitement. “I’m not long back from visiting a specialist class.”
Ivan smiled and clapped his paws together. “Really? That’s fantastic. What are you learning?”
“I haven’t decided specifically yet but I want to be a teacher. I visited a class that cares for really young kangaroos. I want to ask about your class. Ariana told me that you’re learning astral design. Can you tell me what that’s about?”
“Sure. I really love it. I’m in Sophia’s class. She’s a very wise kangaroo. She’s so calm, I can’t imagine that anything would ever rattle her. She’s teaching us to create minuscule meteoroids. We have to start small, you know.”
“What are meteoroids?” Fletcher asked.
“Small flecks of space rock. Ours are only a few atoms in size. Once we get the consistency right we’ll be able to make them bigger.”
“And you’ve made some already?”
Ivan laughed. “Not yet, my friend. That will take some time. I’m still learning to get the flow of energy right. It’s all about the combination of light, heat and motion. We’re learning how to generate those.”
“Wow,” Fletcher breathed. “That sounds amazing.”
“It is. It’s hard but I really love it. It’s one thing to work on my own stuff, like grief for now, but it’s such a good feeling to create something that will be a part of existence. I really feel like I’m contributing something important. Well, I hope to in the future at least.”
Fletcher listened as Ivan continued to speak.
“Sophia told us that she gets together with other kangaroos and they recently generated enough energy to create a whole new asteroid. It took a long time but they did it. And she really believes in us. Even when we find it hard, she talks to us, helps us and encourages us.”
“That sounds great. I’m hoping to visit another class soon. I want to find out more about becoming a guide, just like Ariana. I really like the idea of working with young kangaroos but I also want to check out what it’s like to have my own group one day. I might prefer that. I imagine it would be pretty special. So, I’m waiting to hear from Ariana and hopefully I’ll find out more soon.”
