My entire life had literally come down to this moment. I felt the examiners eyes follow my every movement. I was certain they could see the slight shaking of my hands. I turned to face them. The light of the setting sun illuminated their faces, their robes flapped weakly in the breeze.
Tension flared inside me briefly, but I shoved it out of my mind as I tried to relax. I bowed to the examiners.
"You may begin when you are ready," the lead examiner said. I turned to face the edge of the cliff. A series of narrow wooden planks led to a small column several meters away from the cliff. Two other columns seperated the cliff from the far column.
I glanced off to the side. A large group of people had come to watch the trials. I tried to look for my parents, but the group was too large and too far to distinguish any face. I turned back to the planks. Did they suddenly become longer and narrower? I felt fearful, but I knew not why. I took my first step.
Wind blasted into me from below, as the air flew up the cliff in a fury. I felt my robes flying everywhere, making it hard to stay balanced. I felt the board vibrate terribly, my eyes went wide as I felt it give a little. I took another step and then another.
I felt the wood starting to give more. I didn't even think, I just ran. The board split in half just as I jumped for the first column. I landed on my belly. Below me, the wood splintered against the rocks. A shiver radiated through my loins as I felt myself despairing. That board was my only chance at getting back. I turned back to glance at the examiners to see if they were getting a replacement board. They hadn't moved, they just stared at me. I felt panic stirring inside of me. I was all alone and no one was going to help me.
It hit me very suddenly. "They want you to finish the test," a voice said inside me. I turned to look at the second column. It was about 10 meters away. I took a step onto the plank. The wind rushed up to meet me again. This time though, I was prepared. I stood and walked. One step, two, four steps. Then I came to a stop. A large gap seperated two of the boards. It was at least 66 centimeters across. I looked down at the waves and I froze. It was a small gap, less than a stride, but I would have to stretch my leg an awful long time.
I looked at the sun. It was slowly descending. I didn't have much time. I looked at the gap, then the board. It might kill me, but it would be doing something.
"Screw it all," I declared, I stretched my leg out over the other board, and leaned forward. I crossed the gap with surprising ease. I turned to make sure I had crossed the gap. It was still there, looking like nothing. I also looked back at the examiners, but a fresh breeze hammered me. I walked the rest of the way to the second column.
The skys had darkened since I had started the test. I had barely started walking towards the final column when the full force of a storm hit me. Sheets of rain hit me at gale force speeds. I got down to my hands and knees and crawled. My over-robe flew off, leaving me exposed to the rain. The wind shrieked past my ears as the sea crashed louder and louder against the final column.
I crawled the entire way to the third column, it was significantly wider and taller that the others. A granite rock face ascended up 10 meters. Rain poured down it. I looked up towards the top. I had come this far and I couldn't turn back now. I moved my hand against the rock and felt a handhold. I grabbed it and pulled myself up. My legs flailed about, until they found a foothold. I examined the rock now. It was fairly flat, but there were bulges I could take advantage of. I began to climb up, slowly.
Rain made the rock slippery, while wind conspired to keep me off balance, as I got closer to the top. I was about halfway up when a handhold gave way. I slipped and began to fall. I slid down the rock, scraping my right arm and legs badly. I whimpered in pain before looking at the rock in anger. I started up again, but slipped immediately. Blood trickled slowly down my arm. I calmed myself, one couldn't climb a rock like this quickly. I slowly and carefully began climbing.
I climbed past my first handhold, upward towards my nasty slip. I pushed up farther. The path got easier, footholds and handholds become more apparent. I crawled onto the top, weary from the ascent. I saw a small plaque to my right, but the rain prevented me from reading it. I walked closer and read it.
"Don't search for yourself in others, search for others in yourself," the inscription read. I remembered the quote, vaguely.
"Don't search for yourself in others, search for others in yourself," I repeated to myself. I suddenly remembered the rest.
"Once you have found others in yourself, remove them from yourself, and then you will see yourself," I said triumphantly.
I stayed the night on the rock. I had thought of my life, analyzed it several times over, but I felt no change. I fell asleep, despite the storm. I dreamed a long dream that night. I saw many things, but I felt no change, until I felt another presence. It had come lightly, almost by accident, but in that one instant, everything changed. This presence was my true love, the presence was nothing short of holy. At that moment a light had emerged inside of me, one that nothing could stop. Love exploded into existance, filling a space that had been empty. It erupted inside me with the power of a thousand suns, pouring out of me like a cup being overfilled.
At that moment, all the lessons from my life unified into one single purpose.
When I woke up the next morning, it was calm and quiet. I climbed down the granite, walked back across the gap, and walked across a new plank. The examiners met me.
"Did you pass?" the Lead Examiner asked.
