I am cold. My body does not shake. My slightly discolored skin, brown with a slight blue tint, turns a little paler with each passing moment. My rigid body sinks into the Earth gently. Grass grows up over my fingers, my skin becomes the soil, the fertilizer, and I return, slowly, to the womb of my green mother. She has given me life and her body to feast and live on, and now it is my sacred duty to return the favor. Chilling showers coat my body in shimmering crystals. Feelings of peace and serenity wash over me. Sprouts of grass pop up onto my face, my body, and drag me further into the Earth. The deep numbness that I’ve succumbed to is replaced suddenly by the weight of the universe. I am one with everything. Sunlight gives me strength and nutrients now. Rain is my main source of hydration. I am nearly free. My body is now undetectable beneath the living green blanket. The universe shifts, and I am thrown into a whole new perspective. A young teen walks slowly up the same hill I climbed sixteen years ago, an aura of nervousness, fear, and excitement surrounds them. I have completed my duty. I have given my life and natural resources back to our green mother. My soul detaches from my body, and I float up high into the sky. The bright blue speckled with white, fluffy clouds surrounds me, takes me into its open arms. The sun’s gentle rays of heat wisp through my soul. I am no longer a single being. I am the Earth, I am free, and I am no longer cold.