He walked in the door like Janus himself, halo of light, accompanied by an angel. Ariel skipped and danced around him as children free from life's gravity do, her golden hair shimmering (without a light source), her eyes like stars, her smile as sunrise. Confidence, long lost and now returned, emanated from John, as clear to my senses as light to new born eyes. I reminded myself to breath and felt, simultaneously, elation and heartrending bottomless destitute sadness. His eyes, like gimlets, bore into my heart and his hand, upon my head, felt as a cradle made to catch the swoon. Speechless, I watched, a patient (secretly) glad to be ill, lost in the moment of what could never be, swimming, straining against tide, sinking deeper, engulfed by a force preternatural.
His smell, so close, was no smell and every smell, my memory working to reference, searching for what did not exist. As a palm before hurricane, I bent, stubborn, resisting, angry, holding on, fighting. He braced my weight on his arm, my waist spooning into his, lips separated by inches, anticipation, closer. I resisted. Then he spoke and as a finger in the bubble, the magic was gone. We were but two umbrellas one late afternoon.
Soundtrack: Dar Williams' The Beauty of the Rain
10 comments:
I am finally catching up after 2 weeks of sporadic internet availability and what a beautiful place to rest and catch up!
ed notes:
(1) the last line of this chapter is taken almost verbatim from Dar Williams' song The Beauty of the Rain. Credit where credit is due.
(2) The image used is, by design, very similar to the one used for the chapter Grace and Beauty, where John and Kyra experience, albeit under the influence of the vial, their first real romantic interlude.
(3) Likewise, maintaining symmetry, the idea of a finger popping a bubble parallels what happened in the chapter The Kiss.
Hey Dana, welcome back. Nice to see you again. Make yourself at home. Coffee or tea? :-)
Firstly, it was very nice to see this image make it into the story, to see which chapter it came to belong to. Chances are you could say more, but I like how this image could represent the visual of those two umbrellas close together, or how it could be Kyra and John, red for passion, circling each other, but never joining.
Secondly, very nice it was too to see John restored, partially or temporarily of not so much consequence in the moment, to observe him through Kyra's eyes as he is here, appearing to her as he was on days gone by when Cait was merely at home, Ariel's presence, when she was not there previously, coupled with her joyfulness seems to corroborate, in their arrival together, that a corner has been turned, that with something to focus on, something for which he is needed, he has risen. I'm reminded of the chapter that was called Pisces, though I must admit, I could not recount the events of it very precisely, remembering more the mood of it, the bitter-sweetness of desiring something that will never come to be, knowing it, and accepting and appreciating both sides of that knowledge. Not stolen moments, that description doesn't seem quite right, but letting it sit for a while, the if only. I think of the Chapel too and of Connections, of Em's letters, to put it in simple, unpolished terms, with limited choice, with Papa in her background, with her own uniqueness, twice she has to more or lesser extent fallen for someone who will not be hers, Ariel in tow only deepens that knowledge. So much to say to this, between the amount, dinner and the girls, I've lost my train several times already, but it is thoroughly endearing to see her this way, as when she was influenced by the vial, here too there are circumstances and we see her more vulnerable, less in command, more susceptible to the attraction that she feels for John, and if not more susceptible, just more travelled within the thoughts and emotions. The cradle of his hand, the spooning of her waist into his, the elation and the sadness pooling to one, the secret gladness and the resistance, bless her heart, such a wonderful character, so lovable for all her facets, in this one character we have seen so much, Kieran, Calfuray, Papa, Von, her parents, this chapter reminds of every part of Kyra that we have seen, like listening to a favourite song and being particularly touched by one line over another on this occasion, where the next time it will be something else. Very much like the tie-back to The Kiss, how the 'bubble' bursts and there is a point that they never get past, and the sense that that is as it should be. This is a lovely piece of writing, I've not done it justice, the words, but more than that the multitude of images that flood upon reading, of present and past, of dreams and reality, of how every decision though it may have endless options in theory is made based on who we are, limiting our choices. To sum up, Kyra feels close.
May be back.
It is both wonderful and strange how your characters reside within, how clear their essences have shined from the beginning, how close they seem, closer than we get to most people in life, the way you write of their hearts goes straight to the reader, so it feels to me in any case, misjudgements are made of course, wrong guesses, projection even, but given that development of the characters, their actions, their words, their thoughts, given that as I have said many times though I've not the evidence to put forward it feels right and true and natural and perfect, that it could not have been any other way given who they are, it has to be true, the idea that they are known, not in detail, but in essence, if that makes sense. Explaining it well is something else entirely, but how clear her heart seems to be in this chapter, the spoken, the suggested and the unspoken. Enchanted and awed, now and always, by how you convey the emotion felt, On Bended Knee to cite a great instance separate from Kyra, Future Credits is another, The Cup a third, Von's recent visit to the Chapel, dozens upon dozens more, the Story as a whole, the characters as individuals and the relationships between them. The love of the Story is in the writing, in the art of course, but most of all, or encompassing those are the characters, the love of your characters, and how you have created so many complete, intricate, varying and at the same time similar, familiar, real, full-bodied and infinitely lovable, even Taboodja is appealing in some way, characters, how this fact does not alter regardless of sex, age, time. It's a wonder, awing, where is it seen, this extensiveness, this magnitude. In books and films, we fall at times, greatly if we are lucky, for those depicted within, but where is the book or film that does this with so many, so completely, so eternally. Day of repeats as I recite a favourite thought, something that brings joy and a smile as well as the above-mentioned awe and wonder, years from now, I know it as much as I know anything, I will still carry Kyra in my heart, Von, Rog, Yul, Trev,[etc] also, like memories lived, I'll remember Von's face as he sat listening to Zoe, I'll remember when Yul told Rog of her sister, of every interaction between Papa and Kyra, the snoot evenings, Trev and Em's love affair, Rog and Yul, I'll remember the children, Emily, Ariel, Kyra, If I don't mind, it don't matter, the kissing of the lantern, be very quiet, soul shine, pockets of grey, karaoke nights and eighth glasses, Cait's death, the image of Mairi cradling Trev and these, random, are just the tip of the iceberg so to speak of the hundreds of memories that come when one thinks of the story. Whatever happens from this moment forward, whatever tomorrow brings, on every step, on the last almost 3 years of steps, there's been more love in my heart for I have loved these characters and they have touched me, with their hearts, with their words and actions, with their love of one another, with their strength and their beauty a countless number of times. And all of that, all that extra life, all those cherished memories I have because you are writing, because you share your writing and these characters that you have created, and I thank you, and I wish, have from the beginning, do constantly, that everyone might know your writing and have that joy, the love and to see just how exquisite a writer you are, language at it's best.
May be back.:-)
Sweetest, I'm simply awed at these two comments. You have no idea how much they mean. Thank you.
Now, here is what I find interesting. My own view is that the characters need more 'rounding' more depth. I still feel as if I've hardly scratched the surface of bringing them to life, of crafting the prose such to make them come to life. I rack my brain and have for some time, on just how to do better at making the characters more real. Give me more time. I think it's going to happen. I will get better.
Beautiful imagery in this piece. Glad to see your muse is back.
Cléa, I'm glad to see her back too. :-)
Do you know I hadn't put these two together yet? I knew John carried a torch for Kyra but I didn't know that they had chemistry.
And there was ALL kinds of chemistry happening in this chapter.
The rotten bubble bursting finger. Be it word or deed, why does the bubble have to burst?
Jen
Jen, you might want to check out the chapters "Grace and Beauty" and "The Kiss." Those two will shed a little light on the chemistry. :-)
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