Chris Lewis
101 Stadium Dr.
Chapel Hill, NC 27514
Talisman
Garnet first lays eyes on the talisman of the deepest blue hue, and her heart flutters.
She remembers a time when blue did not seem so vast, so ubiquitous, and so powerful. Those were the days before she would wake from nightmares of a falling sky, and towering, destructive ocean waves. She saw better days then, the days when she braved nature’s welcoming light and its masking darkness. She lived cheerily, breathed naturally, sung freely, and danced gracefully to the tune of the blue hummingbirds.
The convergence of two once trusted entities of nature overwhelmed her. She prayed and shouted to the gods above, yet her calls went unanswered. The nightmares grew worse as the weeks dragged on. Then, Garnet cries, and the blue hummingbirds cry, and the blue fishes cry. The sea and sky, they laugh. Nature’s power humors them; they feel as though they are finally in control.
Garnet sees these things, and she shrinks. Her new home is within a blue bubble, no longer surrounded by irrational fears. She looks around her new home and finally laughs, because the convergence of destructive blue can no longer harm her. In her new home, she envisions herself wrapped in a cloth of the deepest blue hue, living cheerily, breathing naturally, singing freely, and dancing gracefully to blue hummingbird tunes once again.
In her new home, Garnet decides to write a poem about her grandmother’s blue talisman. She writes about the three shades of green striking through the middle of the round stone, the way it sparkles brightly in the noonday, the way it reflects in her eyes when she looks closely in the mirror. Garnet notices all these things and smiles, because she thinks about the smiles of her grandmother. The talisman of the deepest blue hue brings Garnet happiness at long last.
Life in Garnet’s blue bubble becomes stressful. She does not wrap herself in the blue cloth, or live as cheerily, breathe as naturally, sing as freely, or dance as gracefully as she once did. The only thing bringing her happiness these days is her grandmother’s talisman. She holds it tightly with her as she sleeps.
Garnet sleeps in her new home, and dreams again of a falling sky and large, rapid tsunamis towering above her. Her world becomes surrounded by blue; blue reclaims its power over the fearful Garnet. As she slumbers, the omnipotent sea and sky destroy the land. The sea and sky both laugh, because they know they finally have control again.
Garnet cries and prays again to the gods above.
Why do I dream of the sky falling, and the sea rising, and the destruction of my land? She cries out.
She explores her new home in the morning, and is surrounded again by irrational fears. She now fears the blue hummingbirds, the blue sky, and her blue bubble.
Everything blue is evil to Garnet, except her grandmother’s blue talisman that shines brightly in the noonday.
She walks along the road to the nearby forest of green. She holds the blue talisman tightly in her hands. She once again lives cheerily, breathes naturally, sings freely, and dances gracefully to the shining light of the blue talisman. She walks through the forest of green, picking one flower of different colors, except blue. The color remains evil to Garnet, who wishes to forget the nightmares of converging blue disasters.
Once Garnet reaches a safe, secluded spot in the forest, she stops for a nap while still holding her grandmother’s talisman. She dreams of the destructive sea and sky, and she wakes up shouting.
Why am I still dreaming of falling sky and the rising seas, and the destruction of land?
After a moment of prayer to the gods above, she looks into her hand at her grandmother’s precious stone. She throws the stone into the forest of green.
Garnet no longer lays eyes on the talisman of the deepest blue hue, and her heart is at ease.