2.10 Whew I have been busy. Time to play catch up. I feel like life has finally settled down, but we will see how long it lasts. Am I right? Artist: Kinga Britschgi.
The Hole Between Worlds
Anabeth had heard rumors all her life that there was a hole between night and day and she was going to find it. She desperately wanted to know what day looked like. What did the stars and the moon look like in the daytime? The oldest living woman had told Anabeth when she was eight about how she had gone to see the hole when she had been a young woman; how she crossed the sea on a ship until she reached unfamiliar land. Then she traveled across a field for several days until a bright light caught her eye, brighter than the full moon, and when she reached it, wonders beyond imagination had filled her sight. The old woman never spoke about what she saw on the other side, she would just sigh and gaze across the sea, her eyes distant.
“Why did you come back, Lady Roballo?” Anabeth had asked.
Lady Roballo said nothing for several minutes and just when Anabeth thought she had fallen asleep and got up to leave, the old lady whispered, “A fish cannot fly, no matter how much it wishes to. Oh, child, you are so young. You don’t know what it what it means to leave behind everything you know and start over somewhere else, how scary it can be, how small it makes you feel. But, perhaps...Perhaps that can be to your advantage. I visited the hole too late, Anabeth. I had already replaced the ability to simply be in the present with the adult fear of the future. But it is like I always say: regrets are like rocks in your shoes.”
Anabeth tiptoed out of Lady Roballo’s house and ran to her house, her head filled with thoughts of the hole. Ever since then, Anabeth had begged and begged her parents to take her to see the hole. They refused, but after years of constant begging they finally came up with the idea that Anabeth save up all her money and go when she turned eighteen. Although worried about whether she would be too old by then, Anabeth agreed and worked hard to save enough money to board a ship and buy supplies. Finally, the day arrived when she had earned enough. She found a boat that would take her and filled it with supplies for the long journey. Then she said goodbye to her parents and departed.
Apart from the rocking of the boat and the reflections of the the stars and moon on the ocean, the boat ride to the other land had been uneventful. She found the field easily beyond the first hill and followed it with her lantern to guide her. Anabeth thought about Lady Roballo often, even after she was gone. She was, after all, the woman who had lit a spark inside Anabeth about the hole that had grown into a bright flame. Anabeth smiled at the thought of that gentle, thoughtful woman. At the moment she was making her way across the meadow, the tiny flowers barely visible. Anabeth was gazing at the stars, finding constellations and naming new ones.
She crested a hill and something bright hit her eyes. She looked down and barely a mile or two away, positioned on a hill, was a white light that looked like a large doorway. Her breath caught in her throat and she froze for a moment. Then the excitement and anticipation inside her built and she took off running. When she got to the bottom of the hill, she dropped her lantern and climbed using her hands. She got to the top and stopped, the light from the hole barely touching her. Moving slowly, her eyes wide, she gazed at the giant keyhole that opened up into a colored sky. Oranges, blues, and yellows beckoned her and the sight of the bright green grass with tiny yellow flowers made her smile. Laughing, she walked forward and each step brought her closer to a dream that had filled her for ten years. The first thing she noticed was that there were no stars in the sky. What has happened to them? She wondered. The next thing she noticed was that the moon was much brighter than their moon, even when it was full. It is so warm, she thought, like a great fire. She opened up her face and felt it sink into her skin. She remembered that the old woman had called it the sun and that it wasn’t the moon at all. It was the only thing she would tell her about day and that was after many weeks of wheedling. Anabeth shook her head in wonder. The sun cast the most beautiful colors across the sky and clouds. As a gentle breeze swept across her, ruffling her dress, she noticed that it was the same shade as the sky. Then she realized that her shadow stretched behind her and waved at it. Turning back to the bright and wondrous scene, Anabeth stood at the threshold between day and night and felt as if she were flying.
No comments:
Post a Comment