A Rock, A Tree, A Cloud

This is the story from Carson McCullers  http://homepage.ntu.edu.tw/~karchung/A_Tree.pdf

A Tree. A Rock. A Cloud.

by Carson McCullers  (1917-1967) 

It is worth the read.

I adapted/interpreted the story for a young client in foster care because of a previous abusive environment.

A Rock, A Tree, A Cloud

I knew this person who wanted to be close, but was afraid.  She decided to practice on something safe.  Now you may think this a strange story.

This person decided to love a rock.  That is right - a rock.   It was big.  It did not change and it did not move.  It did not go away.  With practice, she learned to love this rock.  Now some people try to love a piece of clay because you can shape clay anyway you want.  But she learned that when you love something and are close to it, it has its own shape naturally.  You don't try to really change it.

Well, after loving the rock, she decided to love a tree.  A big tree.  This grows slowly.  This tree changes slowly.  It doesn't go away.  Now some people who are aftaid to get close, try to get a whole forest to love them.  But she learned that this was using the trees and not really love.  So she let this tree grow just as slowly as she could. The tree stayed and grew.

Well, after loving a rock and a tree, she decided to love a cloud.  A cloud?  Yes, a cloud.  She was ready to get close to something that did change.  Something that did go away.  She was a little nervous but she had the strength inside to do this.

Now some people would put this cloud in a bottle, so it would not go away.  So it would not change.  But she learned that if you put a cloud in a bottle it has no shape at all.  She learned it was best to be herself.  Love, like a cloud had to finded its own shape/.

Well, after loving a rock, a tree, and a cloud, she knew she was ready to get close to a person.  Sometimes a person needs to change. And sometimes a person needs to go away. The feeling of love doesn't have to go away.  A puppy becomes a dog.  A kitten becomes a cat.  A girl becomes a woman.  She learned all this.  She knew all this.  So she was ready to love to a person.  Just like you.