On a flight to her hometown a young lady sat with a Doberman pinscher. No one thought it was odd that there was a dog on the plane. The dog was reading a newspaper and paid little attention to the young lady on his left. The young lady's name was Dana. She was about ten years old. Long blonde hair, a white shirt, purple sweatpants, and sneakers. She was quiet and disconnected from everyone on the plane. In her mind, Mr. Doberman and herself were the only ones onboard. Everyone else was unimportant or non-existent. Dana was completely engrossed in her own thoughts while she stared out the window. Just sitting in a chair waiting for the ride to be over. Having a powerful imagination was a benefit in this kind of situation.
Dana watched the clouds fly by like waves in an open sea. In the distance she saw whales and dolphins that jumped out of the clouds and back in. She counted them in her head. One, two, three, four whales. Six dolphins. They were jumping for joy she thought. She did not stop to think about the absurdity of sky whales. She just enjoyed the view. Suddenly one of the whales jumped out of the clouds nearby. Its huge body blocked out the sun cast a shadow over the entire plane. It crashed back to the clouds and splashed water all over the side of the plane. Water even splashed up on Dana's window. She reached out and touched the glass.
She closed her eyes and imagined herself on the outside the window looking in. She saw herself in the plane through the window. She moved back away from the aircraft. But as she did, she saw it is no plane at all. It was a bird. A massive bird with black tipped wings and a huge beak. She recognized it as a giant pelican. A giant pelican that had windows, and passengers inside of it. A passenger pelican. The bird flapped its massive wings as it shook off the water from the splashing whales.
This out of body moment only lasted for a minute for Dana. As the pelican shook off the water, the passenger compartment jumped a bit. Dana was pulled from her imagination back in her seat. She held onto the arm rests of her seat. The Doberman noticed this but said nothing. He was an older dog, so he was seasoned. Either he had been on this flight before, or nothing really bothered him. Without looking at him she asked, "Where are we going?" Mr. Doberman looked at her with confusion, he opens his mouth to speak but before he could she asked again, "Are we going home?"
A quick silence floated over them. Mr. Doberman had the middle seat while she had the window seat. The flight had only been going for over 30 minutes and the Doberman adjusted himself in his seat. Not from physical discomfort but from discomfort in the question. Mr. Doberman opened his mouth to speak but did not. Dana could tell he was having a hard time thinking of an answer. Mr. Doberman finally found the words. He said, "In a way, yes. We are going to your hometown. But not your home." Then he sarcastically added, "What would you do if you were home right now?" She thought for a second but just shrugged back at him. Mr. Doberman looked back to his paper and said, "Relax kiddo, we will be there soon." He looked at his watch. "We should be landing in a few minutes."
Dana raised an eyebrow at him. It is so unusual to see a dog wearing a watch. Come to think of it, Dana could not remember dog's being allowed on planes. Come to think of it, the last time she checked pelicans were not used as travel birds. Her memory was all fuzzy. How did she get on this pelican in the first place? Why was she going with this dog anyways? She thought to herself, Mom said if you ever have any questions don't be afraid to ask. Dana thought carefully for the right question to ask. Finally, when she was ready asked, "When…"
Mr. Doberman cut her off before she could say another word, "Listen kid, when we land, we have to take care of business. When that is all said and done with, we will find you a place to stay. Stop worrying, and for god's sake stop talking." Dana did not respond. At this point Dana realized Mr. Doberman wasn't the talkative type. Maybe his owner was the grumpy type. Does Mr. Doberman have an owner? Dana had so many questions but chose not to ask them.
They sat in an uncomfortable silence for a while. Dana looked at him out of the corner of her eye. He seemed very uncomfortable about her questions. Why? What does he know? Dana continued to think about Mr. Doberman as she looked out the window. Once again, she could see the ocean life playing in the clouds. She counted the dolphins again. She was easily distracted by the sight, but Dana snapped back to the conversation they just had. She wasn't going to get lost in her imagination anymore. Dana was going to get some answers from this dog. She looked back to Mr. Doberman she asked, "When you said, we will find you a place to stay, does that mean YOU are going to take care of me?"
A wave of frustration washed over Mr. Doberman face. He turned his head slowly and said, "No. Why would I want to take care of you? You ask too many questions kid." Mr. Doberman put his paw on his chest and said, "I have a job, you know. I can't watch every kid I meet day in and day out. All I have to do is get you from point A to point B. And all YOU have to do is sit there and enjoy the ride. Can you do that for me? Can we sit in peace for this 30-minute plane ride?" Mr. Doberman didn't wait for a response. He looked back to his paper pretended Dana wasn't there.
After that outburst, Dana didn't want to ask any more questions. But she had one more. And it was important. For a moment Dana thought of her parents. Then she asked, "Will my parents… be there?"
This question froze Mr. Doberman in his tracks. He looked at Dana then pulled a piece of paper out of his vest pocket. The paper was wrinkled and clearly not very well taken care of. He read it for a few seconds as Dana waited for an answer. Finally, Mr. Doberman nodded and said, "That makes sense, your file says you have memory problems. Is that right?"
Dana didn't know what to say to that question. What do you say to that? So, she just said, "Not that I know of."
Then Mr. Doberman smirked and finished by saying, "Sure your parents will be there. Everything is going to be fine. And we will all have ice-cream afterwards, okay?" Mr. Doberman's sarcastic words were felt. Dana could tell sarcasm when she heard it. Why would he even bring up ice-cream if there wasn't going to be any? He was just being cruel at this point.
Anger at this point, Dana glared at him. Mr. Doberman wasn't the dog she thought he was. He wasn't a good boy at all. His owner probably disowned him for being a bad dog. She couldn't tolerate him anymore. After a few seconds she said, "I don't want to be here anymore. I don't need you to take care of me."
"Too bad, you are stuck here with me." Mr. Doberman voice changed with his increased angry. He became louder and showed more teeth as he spoke.
Dana pushed him again, "I can sit here by myself, and I can take care of myself. You don't have to be here if you don't want to be."
"I don't. You know what the funniest part about this is? I volunteered for this job. They said it was a free ride there and back, all you have to do is enjoy the view and watch the kid. What a joke that was. They didn't say I had to play twenty questions or anything like that. I should have let my partner do it. She loves kids."
"I can take care of myself."
"You can't even tie your own shoes. How could you take care of yourself?"
"I can take care of myself!" Dana finally shouted. Listening to them argue several passengers started to look back to see what was going on. Mr. Doberman ignored them completely. Dana finished by saying, "I want to go home. If you can't take me then I will do it myself."
Finally, Mr. Doberman's face lightened. He even smiled a bit as he said, "You can't drive. Even if you could, you don't have a car. You can't ride a bus without money. You can't rent a hotel room or even buy a sandwich without money. BUT YEAH, sure you can take care of yourself, kid. Go over to the money tree and grab some cash and take care of yourself. I'm all for it. Knock yourself out." With that he started reading his paper again. His comment only angered Dana more. In her mind she was old enough to handle herself. Mr. Doberman was a bad dog. Dana returned to watching the clouds outside. She imagined a world where she wasn't in this chair, and she wasn't forced to talk to this angry dog. She imagined a world where she was free to do as she wanted. She could go home to her parents and her warm bed. But as of right now, Mr. Doberman wouldn't allow any of that. Her mind quickly shifted. Instead of thoughts of what she would do if she was free, she thought of ways to free herself of Mr. Doberman. Escape became the new plan.
Dana thought about her grand escape. Dogs are fast. She could not outrun him. She could distract him with a bone. No, that only works in tv shows. She stared at the seat in front of her. Thinking. Plotting. Suddenly someone started to speak. Dana looked out the window and saw the Pelican turns its long neck around. The giant bird peered into the passenger windows. "We will be landing in a few minutes. Return to your seats." With that he turned his head forward to continue his flight.
Dana was shocked by the Pelican's long beak. How could he talk with such a big mouth? How could he talk with all these people and animals inside of him? Dana's questions continued as the Pelican slowly descended through the clouds. Dana could no longer see the whales. The clouds broke to show the quilted blanket below. Each square was a bustling piece of a huge blanket. The blanket of the world. As they got closer to the ground Dana could see ants carrying food back to their homes. Colorful ants. Ants with wheels and headlights. She thought, what a magical world she was traveling to. Too bad she couldn't explore it.
Lower and lower the pelican flew until it landed in a nearby forest with a big thud. Even though the pelican was still moving everyone start to stand up. The people and animals started to collect their things and funnel toward the front. Dana began to get up too, but Mr. Doberman stopped her. He said one word, "Wait." Dana sat back down and watched as the everyone else moved away from them. It was unsettling. Dana looked at Mr. Doberman then back to the conga line of people leaving. Mr. Doberman watched too. Then he finally spoke, "I don't like crowds."
When enough of the passengers were near the front, the Pelican made an announcement, "Sorry for the rough landing, folks. I think someone kicked me in the ribs. I am old and these wings aren't what they used to be." Several of the passengers laughed at this comment. The Pelican leaned forward and to the left. His head was at such an angle that Dana could see his beak from the window. With a deep breath he opened his mouth wide and stuck his tongue out. The long tongue stretched down to the ground creating a ramp. One by one all the passengers walked down the tongue to the ground.
Dana saw this and made a strange face, "Eww, gross." She looked at Mr. Doberman to see his reaction but he didn't show any. Dana continued by saying, "Are we going to walk down that? His tongue is probably rough and slimy."
Mr. Doberman looked over to acknowledge her and said, "What are you babbling about? This is standard plane exiting procedure. They do it, we will do it. This is how things are done."
Dana shook her head, "Everyone will have slimy shoes for the rest of the day."
Mr. Doberman stood up and said, "Slimy shoes? You're not making any sense. I am only going to say this one more time until I become unreasonable. Stay with me. You always follow me 3 to 4 feet behind me. Don't look around and get distracted. Got it?"
Dana nodded and said, "Sure."
Mr. Doberman didn't like that answer, "Sure isn't good enough. We are not going to have you running all over the place like before. I don't want to have to carry you in there like a lost puppy. I'll do it. I don't want to, but I will if I must. So right here, right now, you and me. Like glue. Got it?" Dana nodded again but didn't say anything this time. Mr. Doberman left his newspaper behind as he walked down the aisle. Dana grabbed it knowing that he would miss it. She held it in one hand as she walked down the aisle and out the Pelican's throat. Mr. Doberman walked down the tongue without a second thought. He waited at the ground for Dana to exit. Dana walked slowly down the tongue. Both disgusted and intrigued at the whole situation. Once at the bottom she reached back and touched it. The pelican's tongue wasn't slimy, but it was rough. Very rough, like a cat's tongue.
Mr. Doberman sat down and scratched his ear with his back foot. "Come on, we have 30 minutes. We don't want to be late." Dana did not respond. Her thoughts were on the Pelican and how it would be a horrible job to have feet step on your tongue every day. Mr. Doberman started walking towards a large rock. Dana followed him and looked at the rock. Possibly our destination? She started to over analyze Mr. Doberman. Why was Mr. Doberman so angry all the time? When he runs does he run on four legs or two legs? Why did he wear cloths like a human? Was he cold? It was almost like he was acting human to fit in.
These thoughts were silenced when Dana looked around. All around the open field where they had landed, in every direction, there were more Pelicans. She couldn't count them all. Maybe a hundred of them nested nearby. So many huge birds. It was a sight she had never seen before. Her mind drifted to giant birds laying giant eggs, giant pelican eggs. Do people create giant omelets with these eggs? How many people could be feed by one of these omelets? Suddenly one of the pelicans looked at her. Dana stopped walking. She didn't know what to do. She panicked and looked away. But after a second, she turned back. The Pelican was still watching her. So, she waved at it. Dana thought it was the polite thing to do. However, the pelican didn't say or do anything. It just sat there.
Dana thought maybe the birds were sitting on their nests and would not like to be disturbed. Her thoughts were interrupted by Mr. Doberman. He barked at her, "Hey kid, What happened to 3 feet?" He walked back to her and looked in the same direction, "Who are you waving at?" Dana did not respond. Clearly confused, mr. Doberman asked her, "You know someone over there?"
Dana looked at him and shook her head. "No, I was just looking at the birds."
Mr. Doberman said, "Did you think the bird were going to wave back? Or are you just an avid bird watcher?"
Dana looked at him with frustration again, "You know you don't have to be a jerk ALL the time."
Mr. Doberman wasn't having any of that, he said, "Listen kid, I am responsible for getting you there on time. And with all this dilly dallying you are going to make us late." He took the newspaper out of her hand. He held it in his mouth. Like any dog would. He chewed on it a few times and started to talk again, but with his mouth full of newspaper Dana could not understand a word of it.
Eventually he turned back toward the rock and started walking again. Dana followed him. There was a cave in the side of the rock. A hollow rock? Dana thought. It was such a large rock, the cave inside could be equally as big. Dana shuttered at the idea. Mr. Doberman walked into the cave without hesitation. Despite her own fear Dana did the same.
Inside the cave Mr. Doberman tossed the newspaper into a strange can. Dana looked at the can. It had large letters on it that read, "Portal to Nowhere". Interesting. Portals are real Dana thought. She followed Mr. Doberman as he walked. He walked down one tunnel then another. Ahead the second tunnel opened up to a larger area. This new area must have been the main room of the cave. It was huge and had tons of people and animals walking here and there. Some animals were carrying bags, others were chatting on their way to their destination. Dana marveled at the size of it all. For being a cave, everything was so brightly lit. She thought how is this possible? Are there holes in the top of the cave? Or is it magic? These thoughts filled her head, but she was soon snapped out of it. Mr. Doberman shouted at her, "Dana, come on! You need to stay close to me. You can easily get lost in here."
"Get lost?" Dana accidentally said out loud. What a great idea that was. Dana looked around at all the passing animals and people. I could get lost in this cave. Maybe Mr. Doberman won't find me. She still followed him as he walked. Mr. Doberman was keeping a close eye on here. Soon enough Mr. Doberman found himself face to face with another dog. The new dog was a Golden Retriever standing on two feet and wearing a vest just like Mr. Doberman. They greeted each other but the Golden Retriever was more interested in Dana. She looked down to Dana and barked asking, "You made it. How was the flight?"
Dana did not have the chance to answer, Mr. Doberman responded, "Didn't stay long enough to do anything. Luckily the flight was short. The way all flights should be." Mr. Doberman looked back at Dana and said, "The kid talks too much though." Dana frowned at this. Was he trying to be mean?
The Golden Retriever replied with a smile, "You volunteered for this, remember?"
The two dogs continued their conversation, but Dana wasn't listening to them anymore. She remembered the conversation on the pelican. How Mr. Doberman said she couldn't go home even if she tried. Why was she hanging out with these dogs anyways? Seeing Mr. Doberman distracted by the Golden Retriever, Dana saw the opportunity to prove him wrong. She looked at the surrounding area and saw the massive flow of animals all walking together. Some of them were headed to the Pelicans. While others were possibly headed to the exit. Dana couldn't tell. Some of the animals came close to her as they walked. Some within arm's reach of her.
Several minutes passed. Mr. Doberman and the Golden Retriever were still talking. Too long. It was time to ditch these dogs. Dana waited for Mr. Doberman and his new friend to be distracted. Her heart raced. This was it. When Mr. Doberman was looking away, she said in her head, "NOW". Dana bolted into the crowd of animals. She darted between bags and legs. Where was she going? Even she didn't know. She laughed at the idea of leaving Mr. Doberman behind. The sour look on his face. He was a grouchy dog anyways.
Once Dana was far enough away, she looked back. Nothing. Mr. Doberman was not following her. Or maybe he had not noticed she was gone yet. Dana looked forward. It was too late to turn back now. She had committed to the escape. But where would she go? The exit snapped in her head. She had to find the exit. Someone had to be going that way. Dana looked at the crowd of animals as they walked. Some were headed toward Mr. Doberman. Some were headed away. She stayed with the group that was headed away.
Dana walked within the crowd until she heard someone speak, "Walk quickly boys." Dana looked to the voice and spotted a red-haired squirrel with two human teenage boys walking behind her. First, Dana thought it was odd that a squirrel would have human children. Second, she had a feeling they were going to the exit. Dana ran to catch up with them. Dana closed the gap behind the last child and followed them. This reminded her of a mother duck followed by three little ducklings. But of course, she was a mother squirrel? Do baby squirrels follow their mothers? Dana was thinking about it too much. She needed to focus on blending in.
The red-haired squirrel wheeled her bag behind her. Did the mother squirrel know where she was going? We will find out, Dana thought. The area was pretty crowded so the two boys that followed her made sure to stay close behind as she walked. Dana walked as quickly as possible to keep up. After a few minutes one of the boys looked back at Dana. Busted. Dana just smiled. Without a word the teenage boy looked back to his mother and brother. And after what felt like a long walk, they were at the exit. The mother Squirrel stopped and waved to someone in the distance. Without looking back, she said, "Stay behind me boys." Dana was happy. The Red-haired Squirrel had taken her outside and all without noticing her.
Dana squinted as her eyes adjusted to the bright outdoor sun. Ahead of them was the strangest river. The river was stationary while things flowed down the river. It was an endless flow of colorful fruits, vegetables, and other objects. Large red fire hats, green beans, and bright yellow bananas all flowed down the river. Each had wheels and were being driven by humans and sometimes animals. Dana thought the Pelicans were odd, but this was quite a sight to see.
Dana noticed the Red-haired Squirrel waving her hand frantically. After a few seconds a Yellow Banana stopped in front of her. She pulled down a peel of the banana as she said, "Hop in boys." The two children quickly jumped into the banana as the Red-haired Squirrel put her bag in the back. Dana stood there wondering if she should get in too. She had followed them this far, maybe they would let her ride with them?
After a few seconds the Red-haired Squirrel came back to the side and finally noticed Dana standing there. They exchanged looks for a second then the Red-haired Squirrel asked in bewilderment, "Do I know you?" Dana did not speak. The Red-haired Squirrel looked around and asked, "Where are your parents?" Dana realized this was a bad idea. The Red-haired Squirrel was going to blow her cover. Or even worse, maybe the Red-haired Squirrel would tell Mr. Doberman where she was. Dana's panic mode was activated again. The Red-haired Squirrel asked another question, "Do you speak English little girl?"
Dana knew if she answered any of her questions honestly, and she would be seeing Mr. Doberman again. Finally, Dana spoke, "No." However she immediately regretted her answer. How could she understand the question if he did NOT speak English?
The Red-haired Squirrel questioned her further, "You don't speak English? Well, we had better take you inside to find someone that can help us." She grabbed Dana shirt to lead her inside. Dana looked to her left and saw the open forest. A forest full of things needing to be explored. But right now, she needed to distract the Red-haired Squirrel. She could not go back inside. That was one step further away from freedom. Just like she did with Mr. Doberman. Dana needed another escape plan. But the Red-haired Squirrel was physically holding her. Dana realized it was too late for a plan, it's time to move! Dana pulled herself away from the Red-haired Squirrel's hand and ran to the left toward the open forest. She didn't look back to see the Red-haired Squirrel's reaction. All she heard was, "Hey, where are you going?!" But Dana did not stop. Freedom was inches away and that was her only goal. Nothing was going to stop her. Squirrels and dogs won't tell me what to do. That was the only logic she could put behind it.
Dana ran through the trees aimlessly. She ran as far as she could. Until she was out of breath and her legs burned. Dana took cover behind a tree leaning against it. After a few breathes she looked back, half expecting to see someone on her tail. But there was nothing. Breathing hard she took a moment to catch her breath. The tree she was leaning on was cold. The bark looked rough but felt smooth on her skin. Dana quickly realized not everything is what it seems in this place.
Upon further inspection Dana looked around at the forest. It was by far the largest forest she had ever seem. Most of the tree were over 50 feet thick and grew straight up as far as the eyes could see. Much bigger than any tree she had ever seen. The branches were large enough to block out the sun in most parts. The smaller trees had vines stretched from one to another. This was not a forest. It was a jungle. Animals walked here and there around the trees. The jungle floor was absolutely bustling with life. It was beautiful to look at Dana found herself getting lost in the sights.
Human sized otters playing basketball. They didn't pay any mind to Dana as she walked by. Each otter was wearing cloths. Shorts, shirts, and everything else. She watched them play for a while but kept moving.
A bit further down the river she saw a human sized frog wearing blue jeans and a sweater. He was walking his little dog on a leash. Dana stepped out of their way as they passed. The little dog tried to smell Dana's shoes for a second, but the Frog quickly pulled his leash and said, "Stop it Max." The little dog returned to walking by the river as the Frog smiled at Dana and said, "Sorry." Dana just smiled back and kept walking. When the Frog and his dog were far enough away, she continued her journey.
Suddenly, a human sized goose came out of a hole in the nearby tree. He was carrying a bag of some kind as he walked. He was clearly in a hurry, the goose walked over to an egg sitting near the river. With one hand he opened a hole in the egg and climbed in. The shell slammed shut and with a little roar the egg grew wheels and floated down the river. Within seconds he was gone. Dana couldn't get enough of this new jungle world she was in. Absolutely fascinating.
After soaking in the wonders of the jungle Dana's thoughts soon returned to the problems at hand. Where exactly was she? Where was I staying before this? And more importantly, what kind of jungle did Mr. Doberman bring her to? Did he ever say why, where, or anything of that nature? Dana thought about it for a while, but she couldn't remember.
No, it doesn't matter, she thought. All that matters is staying away from Mr. Doberman. If that means running away forever, then that is what she will do. Eventually, Dana will search the jungle to find someone how can help her find her home and her parents. Thoughts of her parents filled her with happiness. She remembered their faces. That joy quickly turned to pain. Dana shook her head and cast aside the painful thoughts. She was in a new place now. A jungle of endless possibilities. There was no reason to be upset with the past.
Dana looked around soaking in the beautiful green trees. This was the path forward. The path to happiness. Where would she explore first?