Like Moss on the Moon
"I think we have to let him know," said Vladis.
"So, you want to let him tell the world that we were goddesses," said Ingunn.
"What could it hurt?" said Vladis. "I mean, who would believe him? Right, I know, there are humans who will believe anything. But even if they did, five minutes later something else comes along and they forget."
They had stopped for lunch along the Eldhraun lava field. It looked otherworldly and that suited the two of them fine.
"So much romance about trees," said Vladis. "Trees and goddesses and peace. Peace that goes on forever till the volcano blows."
"There was a human, Pliny the Elder, who turned back from being rescued just so he could watch Vesuvius erupt. Of course after that he was only a statue," said Ingunn.
They were fond of holding hands, even while eating their sandwiches. It struck them as a very human thing to do. And of course it often led to making love, of which they were even more fond, because humans used all of their bodies whereas deities did it only with their eyes.
"The moss is nice," said Vladis. "Let's have moss in our garden. So much dying has to be done. Then moss comes and softens the blow."
"So it does," agreed Ingunn. "All right then. We'll have moss. And when Trouble comes around again, we'll let him know. At least he'll know that he was right. That's got to be some sort of comfort. Like moss."
"Just like moss," agreed Vladis. "Like moss on the moon."
21 December 2022
Texas Jim
Eldhraun, Iceland
www.granitecoast.ca