Inhaling the sweet aroma of buttery brandonian glazing cream, John polished his old armor, a massive ceramic suit, with strokes quick and sharp, metal as mirror, a mediation in the movement. Plot, he pondered, was always something added, something extra. Greatness knew neither plot nor plan, transcending mind and eye alike as ethereal doves escaping the bounds of the profane. Whipping cloth faster and faster, gleam met nitided gleam and what was dull shone clear. Memory of armor danced with memory of mind and confidence grew neither in past nor future, impostures the pair, but in the eternal fount of this exact moment.
"Daddy," asked Ariel, standing behind him, "what are you doing?"
John smiled. He knew of no armor to protect the soul from the heart of a little girl whose words could harm or heal as sharply as any scalpel his surgeon's hands had held. "I'm trying to think of a way to say how much I love you." John spoke, as he always did, as if speaking to an adult, not a child.
"You're leaving aren't you?"
"My heart isn't going anywhere and my body will be back before you know it."
"Daddy?"
"Yes?"
"Hug me."
John wrapped his arms around her shoulders as a mature tree might embrace a sapling, his arms as branches, his hands as leaves, his torso as warm and solid as a southern oak in the afternoon sun. Ariel closed her eyes and whispered, "I made something for you. Emy helped me."
John pulled his head back, his eyes looking soft as down. Ariel beamed more than smiled as her hands reached into her pocket. "Close your eyes." He did. "Now hold your hands out." As if about to receive communion, John extended his hands with elbows bent, fingers curled as cup. Gently, she placed her creation upon his leathery pad as one would lay a ribbon across a rare parchment. "Okay. Open your eyes."
With eyes wide, John held the bracelet to the light as if a prized catch before the camera. "I don't think I've ever seen anything so beautiful."
"You know what it is?"
"The most gorgeous bracelet I've ever received."
"Close. Guess again."
"Mmmm, I'd say it's a magical bracelet."
With an indignant look and her hands on her hips, she shouted, "Who told you?"
"A whisper in my ear and a look in your eye. Now tell me about this magical bracelet."
For the next hour Ariel weaved a tale of magic and wonder with no detail not embellished. The bracelet would be his shield. A shield made from love and that love would protect him no matter where he went. When she finished John looked with glassy eyes, put the bracelet on his wrist and said the three words she was longing to hear from her father. "I love you."
16 comments:
To have a magic bracelet. If only. Through the eyes of a child.
Ariel lives in a magical world. Only thing I don't know is, how much is magic and how much is a wisdom beyond my understanding. ;-)
Always nice to see you stopping by Deb. Hope you are Mark are enjoying a peaceful weekend.
The power of belief and of comfort, this reminds me a little of Miladysa's chapter about her great grandmother and her reassuring words to her grandson, that they would meet again. Ariel is the magic, pure and strong and open and loving, and partly due to Kyra one imagines that she has grown from the experience of losing her mother, that she is able to let him go, understand that he will return and give him such a gift, of love and reassurance before he goes, reassurance also that she will be okay. The imagery here is you at your best. My favourite part of the whole chapter, though it is bursting with goodness, is the part where you use the tree metaphor to describe their embrace, the trunk standing in the afternoon sun, utterly, butterly beautiful and warm as the sun. You are the magic.
Sweetest, the magic of Ariel, in my mind happened when Kyra took her to see her mom. In that moment, Ariel experienced an "experience" beyond the touch of hand, so to speak, which is to say, for that little girl, she had her buddha moment. :-)
She really does believe that anything is possible. How could a six year old not after the trip to Cait and then what happened other night on stage, singing to her mother and her mother waring Kyra and responding. Ariel is Magic and Magic is Ariel, and unto the crew of Bravo a light shines that even makes Kyra smile. :-)
As for the metaphor, I might need to do audio to really bring to life everything I saw in that embrace that is only implied with the few words I used. Thanks for noticing. :-)
Audio, yes please, video too, been too long, have missed you. :-)
Wonderful post!
I am always touched by Ariel.
It was so easy to imagine my youngest daughter and my husband as I read this.
Miladysa, that is high praise indeed. You humble me.
Oh... I meant to add to the first fractual reminded me of a Faberge egg :]
I believe in magic in so many, many ways.
There is good magic and there is bad magic and I always love reading about the good kind.
I got all caught up in the magical moment and I forgot to ask where I might be able to procure some of that buttery brandonian glazing cream?
John is a warrior. A man of duty and honor. He sacrifices so much when he leaves that little girl behind. And he meets his responsibilities and does what he has to do. A REAL man. I definitley like John's character, even though his secret attraction, at one time, to Kyra (am I right about this?) once gave me pause.
Not sure how to put into words how I feel about the father/daughter relationship...nostalgic maybe? My father is still alive but I am a grown woman (HAH) and our relationship has changed. I can actually see his faults now instead of having the blind child-like devotion. It has been a (sometimes) unpleasant awakening. I hope that Ariel can maintain a forever faithful love of her Daddy. Very nice chapter Tree - Jen
Strumper, see me after class, and bring your pleated plaid skirt. That butter too, if you got it.
Jen, John is a very good man. The death of Cait, in particular, the way she was murdered, has really changed his behavior since--just not quite the same. But he was the golden boy on Kulmyk. Surgeon, Top of military class, beautiful and loving wife, Ariel, entrusted with the most important missions--John, in short, had it all. Good looking too--George Clooney plays him in the movie. :-D
As for your father, I know what you mean. Only after my father died did my mother tell me things about him that I wish I had knew when I was growing up. Would have helped me understand why he was the way he was at a time that would have been helpful to me.
Jen, thanks for the kind words on this chapter, always appreciated.
Oh, and yes, he did have an attraction to Kyra. Never acted on it, other than one kiss and even that was under the influence of the vial--thanks to Yul's bitterness at the time.
So far, our weekend is fabulous, as is the weather ;-)
Hope you're enjoying your weekend also!!
Deb, the weather this weekend has been superb.
Lovely! Ariel is perhaps her own kind of magic. Often small children are.
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