An astonishing excursion

An astonishing excursion

By Sheyla Laplante

Shellie, thirty years old French Canadian woman studying business online and working part-time as a server in a local pub, originally from Quebec, and resident of British Columbia for the past ten years, knew the area well and loved to explore it. After hearing of this wonderful place called Bannock point she decided to go check it out one day. On her birthday, at the end of June, she decided to take some alone time in the forest. After a two-hour drive from Castlegar, Shellie made it to the parking lot, excited to go unwind, she hiked down to the beach. On her way down, she noticed something uncommon, a gigantic feathery heart, approximately thirty feet away from the trail suspended between the pine trees. She decided to go take a closer look at this unusual flying object. She discovered on the back of the heart a note saying “If you need me you will find me, I may seem forgotten and without value, but you should know better than to judge a book by its cover.” After reading this intriguing note, she finds her way back to the trail and continues descending towards the water.

Once at the beach, she stared aimlessly at the glassy lake, reflecting the mountains across the lake, water so still, you could see yourself in it. Shellie wondered the meaning of the heart she encountered on her way down, why a heart, why feathers, and what did the note mean. After an hour, she looks around and sees a path in the forest. Maybe this path could bring sense to this mystery. After walking for a few minutes, she reached a bay and decided to go walk on the rocks by the water. On her way back to the trail, she looks to her left to look at the view one more time before heading back, she sees a small black leathered bound notebook with a feather as a bookmark, she immediately remembered the note, “if you need me you will find me, I may seem forgotten and without value, but you should know better than to judge a book by its cover.” The book was meticulously squeezed in the crack of a rock, high enough that she had to climb to get it. Shellie, fearless and confident in her abilities while convinced of the significance of this little book, climbed the fifteen feet wall with no ropes or mats to catch her, she grabbed this mysterious book, threw it on the rock below her, and jumped in the water.

Now soaked from the impromptu swim, she goes back to the beach to warm up and dry off. Once comfortably installed, she opens the book on the page with the feather. One question was on that page, “what would you do with twenty thousand dollars?” For a while she pondered, she could go on a trip, buy a car, visit family in Quebec, or put a down payment on a house. When turning the page, she saw once again only one question. ”you have found me, now what?” Slightly disappointed and intrigued, she turns to the next page and sees a treasure map with the heart she found earlier pictured on the map and six scattered hearts with three of those hearts crossed off. Shellie then understood this was a map of the Bannock point area. She looked all across the map to see if she could find a point marking a treasure and wondered what all those hearts meant, she decided to turn the page and try to find some explanation. The next page had a list of treasures that could be found in those hearts' locations, not mentioning which heart contained which prize, Shellie, found the mystery very amusing. She then turned the page to find a list of names and the prizes they found, they ranged from five dollars to one thousand dollars, which immediately generated a lot of interest within Shellie. Before going heart hunting, she decided to see if there was more information. After reading the comments of other heart hunters, she turns the last page and read the rules; you can only claim one prize, you must write your name in the book and what prize you have found, you must hide the book in another location of your choosing but keep in mind it needs to be accessible and slightly hidden, the last rule was to cross off the heart you have found, she then understood why a few hearts had “x” on them. Excited about her adventure, she decided to start her quest at the feathery heart and go to the closest available heart. Reaching the majestic feathery heart, she notices a pile of turned dirt. Intrigued by this pile of dirt, she got to work and started to dig.

After an hour of digging, she finally hears the hollow knock signaling a chest or a box, in a hurry; Shellie shuffled the dirt around the wooden box to lift it out. The mysterious box was made of branches and hemp thread, lined with a black garbage bag. Inside that box was a vacuumed sealed bag filled with money and a piece of paper. Shellie just jumps of surprise and happiness, jumping up and down in the hole she just finished digging, she starts counting the money and realizes she found twenty thousand dollars. Shellie ecstatic from her find sits down in shock and puts the money into her backpack, and reads the note. ”Congratulation on your findings! This prize comes with responsibilities, you must pay it forward one day, and you must follow the book’s directives.” Shellie stunted, put the dirt back into the hole, and left on a search for a great hiding place for the little black notebook. On her way down, she thought about putting the little black notebook into the wooden box and climbing the box in a tree. She thought the feather stuck on a branch box would intrigue people.

Satisfied with her hiding place, she heads back to her car in complete contentment, baffled by the generosity of the person responsible for this incredible treasure hunt, determined to pay it forward one day, she contemplated all the ways she could use that money, she quickly remembered her mother always talking about a trip with her daughter, investing in her future like buying a house or starting her own company, Pondering all the possibilities, she joyfully drove back to Castlegar with certainty that her life would greatly improve from now on.