Jessica Patru - Her Long Poem

Photo: D.R. Wagner

Agartha
By Jessica Patru

There exists a far-away land
A place where giants scour the mainland
And where fairies dash from one magical blossom to another
A place where the sun shines brighter and brighter
And where Jill and Todd have found themselves

Now as to how Jill and Todd got there and then as to how they got back is a much longer story
Some people say that they swam there like a John Dory
But others still say that they never got to that place where the sun never sets
But Jill and Todd have seen it all, and they know that what they saw were outlets
To a world so magical, and so delightful.

It all started when they opened the book that was lying in the attic nook
Now this wasn’t just any ordinary book
This book was bound with thick brown leather
And no writing was left in it by the unknown author
Just a few sketches of mythical creatures
The book contained sketches of furry creatures
Sketches of warriors, sketches of fire breathers
Sketches of giant creatures and sketches of tiny creatures

Jill and Todd wondered what all of these sketches meant
They were about to find out what they all represent
When all of a sudden their mother called from downstairs:
“Jill, Todd….dessert is ready! I made éclairs!”

But before Jill or Todd could say anything,
They were sucked into the pages
The only thing left behind were gold sprinkles
Remnants of the world they were about to encounter.

Through a tunnel of wind they went,
One moment they descent, and the next moment they ascent,
Until they were dropped onto a carpet of green
And into a tale they could never have foreseen.

A whole new world lay beyond them and they were shook
Because those same creatures they saw on the pages of that book
Were now right in front of their eyes
They couldn’t believe their eyes!
They saw giants and trolls
Green goblins, glowing pixies, and big tadpoles
Armored half men and half horse
Furry giants, tiny elves, and flying pigs of course
Everything imaginable and much more



Then they saw the wooden gate,
Entwined with roses and queen anne’s lace.
Jill and Todd looked at each other, and with a smile
They entered that wooden gate and found themselves by a woodpile
Where a gnome by the name of Elkor was chopping wood.

Now Elkor was not used to seeing humans,
Just as Jill and Todd were not used to seeing gnomes.
So Elkor screamed a little, did a little jump, and made a run for it.
“Wait, wait!” Jill and Todd called out. “Please don’t split!”

Elkor wouldn’t stop, so Jill and Todd followed him.
They followed him into a forest of giant mushrooms and it became dim.
Soon Jill and Todd couldn’t see anything anymore and they began to whimper
Elkor at this moment could sense their tears and couldn’t stay away any longer.
He went back to them and asked, “What are you two doing here?”
Jill answered “We don’t really know? We were looking at a book in cheer
And the next thing we knew, we were here!”
Todd jumped in asking “Mr. can you please tell us where are we?”
“My name is not Mr. It’s Elkor, and you have stepped into the Kingdom of Agartha.”

“Agartha!”
“Yes, Agartha!”
Elkor didn’t know what to do with the two of them.
He did not want to condemn
Because he knew that it wasn’t their fault.
Yes, Elkor knew. He knew the book was missing from the vault.
It was missing ever since he had been to THEIR world.

‘How foolish he had been to leave it there!’ he thought
He knew that the only hope they had of ever getting home was for him to sought
Out the other book that has been lost since anybody can remember.
As you can imagine, this was going to be a hard task for Elkor.
But he knew it was their only chance
And so he informed them and with a quick glance,
They were ready to hunt out the book.

Elkor lead Jill and Todd back through the wooden gate,
Where three fairies were dancing in delight.
Fairies have a unique ability to sense worries,
And when they do, they can’t help but to appease
And do their best to help out even if they are few.
“What can we do to help? Please tell us. Oh please do!”
Elkor explained their situation and the fairies hue
Grew stronger, for this is what happens when fairies feel they can help.

“Follow us,” they all said in beautiful harmony.
So that is exactly what Elkor, Jill, and Todd did.
They followed the three fairies to a lake as blue as the sky amid
A field of golden daffodils that shone on the lake with a golden hue.
A boat was waiting for them on the shoreline, actually more like a canoe.
The fairies told Elkor what they would have to do and sent them off with an adieu.


They sailed for what seemed like eternity in the human world,
But really was only about an hour or so in Agartha, when all of a sudden they were whirled
Off onto a land as desolate and dry as a human desert.
With a crash, their canoe came to a screeching halt, their attention divert
And so they did not notice the dragon heading their way.
In Agartha, gnomes and dragons do not mix well together, or at least that is what they say.

Now, every dragon shares a special bond with a fire breather.
A fire breather is a half-dragon, half-human creature
And it just so happens that since Jill and Todd are human,
The fire breather also has a bond with them. He is also their watchman.

And so just as the dragon, whose name was Drakon, was about to exhibit destruction,
The fire breather named Landon halted Drakon just in time, acting as their guardsman.
Elkor jumped a little, as he always does when he is scared.
Landon asked them if there is any way he could help because he cared.
“We need to find a book.”
“What kind of a book?”
Elkor whispered in Landon’s ear “the human book.”
At those words Landon lit up.

He knew where it was.
In fact, he knew exactly where is was,
And he could get it except for the fact that they were outlaws.
Long story short, their only hope was to hunt it out themselves.
Landon asked them if they were brave enough to get their selves
To that cave just beyond that hill.
Once there, they would encounter the humped back witch named Millville.

Landon ensured them that Millville would not be a problem,
As for the journey there, that would be a much greater problem.
But Jill and Todd had no other choice, and as for Elkor, he felt obligated to help them.
So they started off on the journey to that cave where Millville lives, hoping for no mayhem.

On the way, they passed unicorns in the valley of rainbows,
Mermaids in Merlagoon, elves playing banjos.
They battled enormous ogres, and men made of mud in Hockomock swamp,
They destroyed poisonous swamp frogs with a big stomp,
They then rampaged the land of bubblegum filled with gumdrops.
The only reason for this was because it was necessary to get to the cave where Millville lived.



Now they came to the stream of tears where nymphs play all day long,
But the nymphs wouldn’t let them pass until they sang the long song
The one that never ends because it’s such a long song.
And so they had no other choice but to start singing:
“I see the water, the shimmering water, the water of no ageing…..”
When the nymphs were satisfied, they let Elkor, Jill and Todd go.
They hiked on, until they could see that cave upon that hill and where they could hear their echoes.

Trenching up that hill, they finally came to the entrance of the cave.
Millville sensed they were coming and welcomed them into her enclave.
Elkor didn’t even have to explain what they wanted; she already knew.
She informed them of the how-to,
And then directed them to where the book was hidden.
The book was in the shadow woods, concealed by thorn bushes that were forbidden,
Forbidden to the touch for if anyone dared to touch it, they would diffuse into empty space.
But Millville knew how to surpass this problem; she had special gloves that could encase
Any type of skin and protect it from the danger of the forbidden thorns.

And so Elkor, Jill, and Todd put on the shielding gloves,
Trekked to the shadow woods, and headed for the thorn bushes surrounded by foxgloves.
Once there, and with Millville’s advice, they found the book.
Elkor opened the book, and with a farewell, a thank you from Jill and Todd, and a quick look,
Jill and Todd disappeared, with only silver sprinkles left behind, and Elkor of course.
No matter what they had gone through on their wild adventures, there was no remorse.

Within what seemed like the blink of an eye,
They were suddenly back into their attic on a summer’s eve in July.
They once again heard their mother calling from downstairs:
“Jill, Todd….dessert is ready! I made éclairs!”
And this time Jill and Todd made a run for it.