Previous Challenge Entry (Level 1 – Beginner)
Topic: Hard and Soft (04/23/09)
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TITLE: Safe in the Arms | Previous Challenge Entry
By Anita Ellis
04/27/09 -
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It wasn’t true, what he said. Well, not entirely true. I did try to steal the fruit, but that overfed shopkeeper spotted my scrawny little hand darting out from under the table, and before I knew it, he was calling for reinforcements. I scrambled to get away, but lost my footing on the loose dirt on the street. A sweaty, pudgy hand grabbed my ankle like a vise, dragging my wriggling form roughly onto the hard stones of the road. I cried out in pain as something sharp ripped into the flesh of my right shoulder, but that only seemed to prompt the shopkeeper to pull harder. If it was not for the growing assembly of locals trying to catch a glimpse of a passerby, my captor might not have been jostled violently, causing him to momentarily loosen his grip on my foot. My few years of living on the street had sharpened my reflexes. I took advantage of the merchant’s distraction and fled, losing myself in the crowd.
I was headed out of town, not by choice. The number of people in the streets had multiplied, moving as one large mass toward the lake. At first, I knew nothing but the torsos and limbs of the bodies smothering me in the growing mob. Soon, however, the claustrophobic crush eased, as some people headed toward the shore, others to better vantage points on the hillside. I slipped through the people in front of me to dart into a hiding spot in the shrubbery ahead.
Had he not been standing in a boat on the edge of the lake, I would not have noticed him at all. His looks were certainly unremarkable. His clothes were dusty, his features average. He looked tired, and thin. Even his voice did not hint at the power of his words. If I had seen him again in the street, I might not have recognized him. But once the Healer started speaking, a hush descended upon the crowd. Although well-hidden in the bush, I could feel his gaze, direct but gentle, penetrate that hard shell that had formed around my heart. I was spellbound, unaware that I had somehow moved from the relative safety of the shrub, to stand at the water’s edge.
He stopped speaking to the crowd, his gentle smile spread from his lips to his eyes as they gazed deep into mine, then swept over my injuries. He beckoned me to him. I hesitated. Most of my encounters with adults recently had done more harm than good. But something in his tone, his eyes, his manner compelled me to trust. The water splashed, refreshing, around my ankles as I drew near. I shut my eyes tightly, braced for pain, as he placed his rough, calloused hand ever so gently on my shoulder. Focused as I was on that, I thought at first I had only imagined his whispered words in my ear. My eyes flew open with surprise, then wonder. He knew what I did, what I was, where I was from, and still he forgave me, loved and accepted me. As the warmth of his love and acceptance began to soften my heart, I realized my shoulder no longer throbbed. My skin was whole and soft, no mark to be seen! Overwhelmed by joy, I flew into the Healer's arms. I no longer needed to run. I had come home.
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