Kudzu: A Short Story

I dreamed that while I was walking, I found a kaleidoscope. It was old and a little rusty, but I picked it up and dusted it off. Wanting to see if it still worked, I put it to my eye to look through it. I expected to see the pretty colored-glass from childhood, but instead, I saw images of disasters and terrible scenes.

One image seen: Kudzu, a prolific and invasive vine common in the southern U.S. and eastern Asia, grew like wildfire. It spread over a food crop and completely blocked out all light in what seemed to take only a few moments. I felt as if the Kudzu covered me as well. I couldn’t breathe or move as the heavy vines pressed over me, pinning me to the earth.

I wanted to leave the dream; I was frightened and my heart raced. I felt

Even though they spoke another language I easily understood them. They had trusted a new chemical herbicide that was supposed to enhance the hardiness of their crops. Instead, it had the opposite effect. It enabled the Kudzu weeds to grow, and in effect, to annihilate their hard work. In order to stop the growth from spreading to neighboring fields, the entire region had to be burned. I felt the overwhelming sadness as well as the financial burden the disheartened farmers would face as they realized they’d lost an entire season. They were worried that the catastrophe might affect the next season’s crops as well. The weight of their fear was heavy on me.

My heart began to race again as the emotional burden of the farmers ached within my being. I gasped and sat up in bed fully awake. The dream was over, but it wasn’t finished with

I picked up the kaleidoscope once more, took deep breaths, and tried it again. Each time, I saw an amazing and frightening vision of the future. I used those images as Mike’s visions in the first book, Kaleidoscope. I attempted to see the images on my own, but I could not. I had to look through the kaleidoscope in order to see them.

That one dream was the beginning of The Vision Chronicles 8-book series which I began to write the next day. In Kaleidoscope, the first book, Mike Lewis narrates his fantastical story in journal style. Mike has been so busy trying to feel normal that he suppressed his sixth sense and psychic abilities at an early age. Because his gift was treasured, an interested party sent a gifted emissary to reactivate Mike’s ability with a tap to his brow or third eye. Still, Mike refused to accept it. As a result, his gift was broken and twisted like the images in the kaleidoscope.

The Vision Chronicles details Mike’s personal growth as he discovers that he is not a freak; he is a valued friend and family member. Each book title indicates that with his acceptance, Mike’s ability evolves and the images become clearer: Spyglass, Window’s Pane, Windows All Around, Open Spaces, Stream of Light, Lamp’s Light, and Clear