Simon, is a 10 year old autistic boy, neither high-functioning on the autism spectrum, nor low. Some doctors think his condition is due to a virus he caught as a baby, some think it's genetic. What they all agree on is that Simon has good days and bad days. And another thing, Simon loves his single mom Sonia and his uncle Jackson, but not more than he loves animals. He loves animals of all kinds: snakes and fishes and cats and frogs. We'll get to all that in time. Let's start the story with the sunny day that Simon and his mom decide to visit Jackson.
Jackson is a monk who lives a very quiet life of prayer and reflection. One day he has a profound transformation, becoming enlightened in the way he most desires. Some do not believe him, not trusting his stories. This is the story of how he deals with these issues of distrust and of his vows and of all the things which disturb his life of quiet. Brother Jackson has been a Brother in the Order of the Trappist Monks for several years. He's built up some friendships (as constrained by the Order) and is attracted to a nurse in the local town who he sees when a medical condition flairs up. He's prayed and studied hard, but still has worried if this is his true calling. He seeks enlightenment but at what cost?
Sonia and Simon arrive at the Abbey. Jackson and his Abbott greet them in the parking lot. Jackson asks his Abbott's permission to walk the grounds of the Abbey, with its beautiful gardens. The permission is granted but the Abbott insists that he obey the rules of the garden. As they start on their walk, Sonia asks if she can run an errand to the local town for some meds for the boy, noting that the boy is often very hard to shop with. So Jackson and Simon, who seems very well-behaved this day, walk alone. Jackson knows Simon loves animals passionately. He knows Simon's favorite TV shows and movies are about animals, his favorite food is animal crackers, he has a chess set with animals for the pieces, and so on. They pass a fenced in enclosure with a very beautiful tree. A number of animals live in the tree - birds, squirrels, etc - which Simon is fascinated by. Jackson knows, based on his Abbott's warnings, not to enter the enclosure, so tries to move the boy along. Jackson tries to interest the boy in other aspects of the gardens, the beautiful flowers, and those sorts of things.
It seems the boy is interested and Jackson waxes poetically about how nature is a reflection and illustration of God's wonderful creations. But when Jackson turns around, he discovers Simon has disappeared. Jackson panics a bit and discretely calls for him, but soon finds him in the "forbidden tree." Strangely, while helping Simon down Jackson notices that the boy seems less antsy, more serene. When he places the boy down at the base of the tree, he notices Simon has a stone in his hand. Taking it from him, Jackson asks "Where did you get this?"
Simon simply points up to the mystical tree, and Jackson looks at the stone, noticing the change in how it makes him feel as he holds it in his hand. Jackson also now feels more serene and somehow very different, holding the stone. He looks at the boy wondering, and Simon smiles at him enigmatically. Jackson decides to present the stone to the Abbott. When he does, later that day, the Abbott asks him to place it in a box, and does not wish to touch it. The Abbott explains that the "magic" (his words) stone was blessed by the mystic saint who founded the Abbey many years ago. It was not to be touched again. In that one instance, both Jackson and Simon were transformed. They gained some sort of supernatural ability on what they were most passionate about - animals for Simon and "human enlightenment", or whatever you want to call it, for Jackson.
Later that day, Simon and his mother Sonia leave the Abbey and return home to Louisiana. The next morning, Simon wanders off into a nearby swamp and disappears. Sonia is beside herself and calls the police. Twenty-four hours later, man-hunt is undertaken to find him. The missing boy has hit the local news and then the national news. The governor of Louisiana asks the Coast Guard and National Guard to help. The send in choppers with heat-detecting scopes. In a matter of hours, they've tracked what they think is the boy in the swamp. The news anchors rejoice at the news. A Coast Guard CommTech says she thinks she sees large swamp gators surrounding the boy. Forces are placed on high alert to save the boy.
The choppers and speedboats race to the scene where the boy was spotted, back to the CommTech who slowly realizes something. Though no one seems to listen she tries to tell everyone the gators surrounding the boy were facing away from Simon. The CommTech tells her superiors they're protecting him. As the boats and choppers arrive, the gators slip away, allowing the rescuers to approach and "save" him. On landing, EMTs surround the boy, checking his vitals, looking for medical issues. There were none, Simon just wants animal crackers. His favorite.
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