Stop and say hello to an angel

One of the greatest delights in my brief career as a journalist was writing for the kids' section of 'The Nation'.  I wrote over fifty articles in my last year at that newspaper.  I have resumed the series, which is now published in www.nightowls.lk.  Scroll down for other articles in this series.

Pic: www.ridethebuses.com

Close your eyes and think of angels and fairies.  What would you imagine?  A delicate, amazingly beautiful creature with the most wonderful smile, with a pair of wings attached to shoulders fluttering around with a wand, right?  Can you see a shimmering light and a halo?  The angel moves. No, no, no.  Floats.  That’s the word.  Or ‘glides’.  There’s music too.  Soft melodies that make you think of mountains rolling down into flower-laden valleys through which streams with crystal clear water flow. 

Open your eyes.  See any angels?  Well, speaking strictly for me, I’ve fervently believed in angels and fairies.  I spent years looking for signs of their passing.  I’ve checked under mushrooms to see if tiny fairies that are supposed to gather under them had left behind a shoe.  I have believed that the intricate pattern of dew on gossamer is a fairy-creation.  When things that cannot but go wrong somehow come right I’ve wondered if it is the work of angels.  

I still believe in angels and in fact I’ve seen millions of them.  They sometimes float around, they wear dresses of different colours and dance with the wind. They breathe in and out, they sing with the wind, they never complain however harsh they are treated by us (in our ignorance) or by the elements.  The just give and give and give. 

You’ve seen them too, I am sure, but maybe you haven’t recognized them to be the angels that they are.  This is because they are nothing like the pictures of angels you’ve seen in books or on the internet or in movies.  And they are right before your eyes -- that’s the strangest thing.

Leaves.  What do you know about them apart from the fact that they come in different colors and shapes?  Well, scientists will tell you that they are like little green chemical factories which use the energy of sunlight to convert carbon dioxide and water into compounds such as sugars and of course oxygen, the stuff you and I breathe and cannot live without.  That’s like a fairytale isn’t it?  The truth is, it is positively angelic of these little green things we see all the time but don’t even bother to acknowledge. 

Every leaf of every tree, bush, fern or houseplant you’ve ever seen has produced lots and lots of oxygen.  Indeed, even the grass on which you walk is an oxygen factory.  Yes, it’s an oxygen factory that you’ve stepped on.   It’s a whole host of angels that the gardener just mowed down.  But don’t feel bad.  They are angels.  It is not easy to get rid of them simply because they are made of love, they allow us to breathe even if we want to pour concrete over them. 

You don’t have to, but next time you walk, remember angels.  The next time you look around you, feel blessed.

Other articles in this series

Three-wheelers are tortoises and hedges are sentinels

Besties are butterflies

I don't have anything to wear! Un-cluttering is an art

It begins with the first soiled spoon

You have loads of time, you know

A puddle is a canvas Venus-Serena tied at love-all
Some jokes are not funny
There's an ant story waiting for you
And you can be a rainbow-maker
Trees are noble teachers
On cloudless nights the moon is a hole
Gulp down those hurtful words
A question is a boat, a jet, a space-ship or a heart
Quotes can take you far but they can also stop you
No one is weak
The fisherman in a black shirt
Let's celebrate Nelli and Nelliness
Ready for time travel?
Puddles look back at you, did you know?
What's the view like from your door?
The world is rearranged by silhouettes
How would you paint the sky?
It is cool to slosh around
You can compose your own music
Pebbles are amazing things
You can fly if you want to
The happiest days of our lives
So what do you want to do with the rain?
Still looking for that secret passage?
Maybe we should respect the dust we walk on
Numbers are beautiful 
There are libraries everywhere 
Collect something crazy
Fragments speak of a thousand stories 
The games you can and cannot play with rice
The magic of the road less-traveled
Have you ever thought of forgiving?
Wallflowers are pretty, aren't they?
What kind of friend do you want to be? 
Noticed the countless butterflies around you?
It's great to chase rainbows
In praise of 'lesser' creatures 
A mango is a book did you know?
Expressions are interesting things
How many pairs of eyes do you need?
So no one likes you?
There is magic in faraway lights
The thambilil-seller of Giriulla
When people won't listen, things will
Lessons of the seven-times table