A Forest Tale

Once upon a time, in a Forest not so far away, Bill the Eagle had a dream. He dreamed an idea so big, so fantastic, and so dazzling, he knew it would transform life in the Forest. It would forever change how animals conducted their daily lives: how they communicated with each other and how they gathered and consumed information. He tossed and turned in his bed, ideas and concepts cascading through his mind like a waterfall, the dream coursing its way through his subconscious before finally waking him at sunrise, filled with the anticipation of a new day of discovery.

Later that morning, Bill toyed with his breakfast as he tried to make sense of his incredible dream. He smiled, marveling that no one had done anything like this before. What would it mean to even consider starting up such a project? He glanced at Penny, his wife, as she moved about the kitchen quietly, still too sleepy for conversation. If he took a chance and followed this entrepreneurial dream, Penny, too, would be taking flight in unfamiliar territory, into spaces they hadn’t navigated together before. How would she feel about it? What if he faltered, and his idea failed? He was staring at his breakfast bowl when Penny finally spoke.

“Hey,” she said. “What’s up with you this morning?” Penny was a hawk from the West Side of the Forest, keen-eyed and splendid. Not too much escaped her observation. “You were so restless last night, Bill. I don’t think you ever had your head under your wing for more than a minute before you were up and pacing again. I hardly got a wink of sleep myself,” she added, sitting down beside him.

Bill hesitated. “I’m a little preoccupied with work just now. I’m working on the Bright Orange Carrot account, and things have been hectic since Bob left.” He put his head to one side and eyed Penny. It was strange to hide something as important as this from her but it didn’t feel like the right time yet to talk about it. The idea was too scattered, too fledgling. A shiver rippled under his feathers as the excitement of his dream came back to him. He stood up quickly, flexing his wings in a stretch. “I’ve got to get in a little early today, what with Bob gone. I’ll take my breakfast with me, Babe, if you don’t mind.” Bill gave Penny a quick nuzzle with his beak and within moments he was far from home and back in his dream.

The flight to the office was serene. Bill soared on several updrafts, enjoying the warmth of the mid-summer sun. The offices of Field and Plow, the firm where he had worked for nearly five years, were close to home, in the same part of the Forest. The Forest was divided into four areas—North, South, East, and West—each with its own locally elected council and mayor.

The offices of Field and Plow occupied two floors in a building at the corner of Poplar and Stream. Poplar Street was home to an array of businesses—banks, hair salons, clothing stores, construction companies, insurance agents. All the animals in the Forest worked a six-day week, Monday through Saturday, and rested on the seventh with their families and friends. Most businesses operated from sun-up to sundown.

Field and Plow’s business was brokering vegetables. The busiest seasons were summer and fall, when the main harvesting was done. Most planting was done in spring. In winter they’d sell off any inventories that had been built up by the farmers. In winter, demand always exceeded supply, so prices were higher during those months, a good thing for the firm, because the higher prices made up for the lower sales volumes. Bill’s job was to find buyers for the crops produced by the firm’s clients. Field and Plow’s fee for this service was five percent of whatever the veggies eventually sold for.

Bill landed gently on the steps of the Field and Plow offices. He opened the door, said good morning to the receptionist, a burly porcupine named Mrs. Dumple, marked himself “In” on the pine board that hung in the lobby, and headed up the narrow stairs to his second-floor office.

Bill’s desk was still strewn with papers from Saturday. For a week straight he’d been working on a major deal with Mr. Big of the Bright Orange Carrot Farm. They were the biggest carrot producers in the East, and bringing them on board would be something to boast about.

At that moment, Bill’s idea came back to him in a wave of emotion. The excitement of it all was invigorating, made him feel there was something bigger out there, a New World to conquer. As well, he could sense that if this were successful, it would bring him great wealth, something he wanted. At least, he thought he did.

Bill smiled as he walked over to his office door and slowly eased it shut. It was time to flesh out his idea.

***

An hour later Bill had reached fever pitch, scribbling notes on parchment, trying to recapture the ideas that had rushed through his mind in his dream the night before. Then a loud rap at his door interrupted him.

“Be right with you!” Bill called, flustered. He quickly pushed his pages of notes into a rough pile and stuffed it into a desk drawer. He looked up just as the door was opening.

Mr. Jacob—a large moose and Bill’s boss—filled the doorway. “Bill, my son, I want you to meet someone,” said the moose, ducking to enter the room, awkwardly turning his head to get his antlers in.

Bill regained his composure and got up and moved toward Mr. Jacob.

Then out from between the moose’s legs stepped a crow.

“Hi,” the crow said, hopping onto Bill’s desk. “My name’s Mary. I’m Bob’s replacement. I’ll be next door to you,” Mary indicated with a nod of her head, before extending her wing in greeting.

Bill watched as Mary made herself comfortable on his desk. Something had caught her eye and she was scratching at it with her claw.

When he saw the parchment, a cold sweat broke out under his feathers. He had left out the first page of his notes. It named his idea in big bold letters, “The NET,” and underneath was written “Connecting the Forest.”

“Bill? You okay, son?” Mr. Jacob moved closer, adjusting his thick glasses to get a better look at the eagle, who was swaying a little before him. Bill looked at Mary. She was now holding the paper in one claw and had cocked her head to look at him too. Then something happened that gave Bill an eerie feeling all over. She rolled her eyes back in her head, and in that instant, though he could hardly say why, Bill sensed danger.

It was over in a flash. Mary smiled, released the paper, and turned to Mr. Jacob. “I’m so excited about the opportunity you’ve given me here, Mr. Jacob,” she said. “I’m sure that Bill and I will work well together.”

“Bill has been here for five years now. He can show you the ropes. Bob is a hard act to follow, but I’m confident you’ll be up to the challenge.” Mr. Jacob began to lumber toward the door. He turned back for a moment before angling his antlers around the doorframe again. “Bill, I’m confident you can get Mary up to speed in no time.”

“It’ll be my pleasure to show Mary around. You can count on me, sir.”