Buried Beneath Me.
By Alex Marroquin
A cloud of black smoke and fire rise from the piles of burning wood that was once a
luxurious palace of drug lord Gilberto Ramirez. Two trails of blood and footprints run parallel
towards the surrounding jungle. Nydia and Paulo walk slowly into the dark wilderness while
holding hands. Nydia feels a grand sense of accomplishment within herself. She has given to
another poor soul what the insane patient had given her so long ago: a second chance of life, a
clean slate to start fresh again, a life with no more suffering. After walking for about half an
hour of complete silence, the pair walks onto the top of a large cliff. Paulo walks to the edge of
the cliff while the breeze of the night blows past him. He closes his eyes and sits down on the
very edge of the cliff. Nydia stays a few yards behind to observe her liberated soul.
"What will you do now?" Nydia asks.
"I’ve been Gilberto's dog for years," Paulo replies, "I am free now, I can go home to my
family once again." Nydia grows slightly angry at Paulo's response. She thought of it as
foolishness. She felt that he did not feel sympathy for others as Nydia herself had for him.
"I saved you from your evils. Is this not a sign of providence, a sign from God, for you to
aid those that was just like you, and just like me," Nydia says with a cold hiss in her voice.
"Well, I do believe that God had sent you to free me, so that I may see my ailing mother.
But If you are so compassionate about those who suffer, why didn't you spare the lives of the
men back in Gilberto's mansion," Paulo stands and faces his savior, "I saw no sign of divinity
from you."
"Don't forget, you took your part in your own freedom. You were the one who killed
Gilberto. I just got rid of anyone who would be in your way."
"And now, I regret taking his life. He is a crook, but he shouldn’t have died so violently
in my hands. I was blind with anger. I couldn’t control myself." Paulo falls on his knees and
stares at the full moon as if it was a gateway to heaven that he had forsaken. Nydia could not
believe what she just heard. He actually regrets taking his rightful vengeance against Don
Gilberto.
"I really thought I had saved you. Now I don't know what to feel." After hearing rustling
in the trees, Paulo turns around to face Nydia as if she is going to kill him, but upon turning
around, she is no longer there. Nydia has disappeared into the dark jungles to leave Paulo to
make his own decisions.
Nydia runs through thick jungle leaves and branches to escape from the arrogance of her
former companion, or at least that is what she keeps thinking to herself. Soon, her head begins to
ache badly. The inner lust of vengeance that Nydia allowed into her life is loosing its dominance
over her sanity. It seems that a thread of moral consciousness has dug through her mind after
Paulo's lecture of goodness. Nydia falls over onto a small clearing and curls into fetal position.
She thrashes around as old memories of her brutal murders and the insane patient's words of
guidance pulse in her brain. Nydia eventually lies down with arms and legs open on the jungle
clearing. Nydia decides to just endure through the pain and let the flashing memories pass by.
Only a few minutes later, the visions fade and Nydia begins to pass out and fall asleep on the wet
leaves of the jungle floor. The silver moon still shines through the clearing to warm up Nydia
with much needed moon light. Crickets, tropical birds, and bat chirp and echo all across the
nighttime jungle of Dominicana, but not too loud to interrupt Nydia's much needed sleep.
March 28, 1991
Lisoviy Cemetery
Kiev, Ukraine
A calm rain shower covers the Lisoviy Cemetery in Ukraine, but some people can still be
seen walking to the graves of their loved ones. A tall bearded stranger walks through the
entrance gates with a small pot of pink tulips in one hand, and a small picnic basket in the other.
He walks on the concrete path for a few minutes until he turns left and steps onto a smaller dirt
path, where a few smaller graves lay hidden beneath a bunch of thorny bushes. The bearded man
finds the gravestone he seeks and kneels down right in front of it. He wipes off some moss that
grew over the grey tombstone to reveal its markings in Ukrainian writings:
Ira Spasiuk
March 28, 1974 - February 12, 1984.
Loving child, dear friend, Paraplegic, Orphan.
The beard man first places the small pot of pink tulips on top of the grave, and then the picnic
basket. From the basket, he draws out a small chocolate cupcake with a tiny candle on top. He
lights the candle with a lighter from his pocket, even though he knew that it was raining. He
finally takes out a small notecard and begins to write a poem, while quietly speaking to himself,
Ever since you've entered the earth.
Lucifer grabbed your tender spirit
and twisted it.
He has chosen you as the next life to ruin,
to curse you with injury,
to enslave you in fear.
But you always beat him,
proving him wrong with kindness and love.
Your sweetness is as sharp
as the sword of Christ
that brings light to anyone.
You brought me a reason to live and a reason to love.
with you I am not cursed,
and you are not crippled.
I hope your spirit forgives me and loves me just enough
to guide me through my curse
my insanity.
Happy Birthday Ira.
With deepest love and affection, Ernesto Radowitzky Guerrero.
After finishing writing the birthday card, Ernesto wipes the tears the poured down his
cheeks and places the card right besides the grey tombstone just as a light gust of wind blows out
the candle. The rain soon stops and the sun begins to shine its light through the thick leaves and
bushes surrounding the grave, illuminating the once obscured hidden grave of the dead child.
With a smile on his face, Ernesto stands back up and walks onto the dirt trail, and then onto the
main cemented path of the cemetery. Before leaving through the main entrance gates, Ernesto
notices a small boy with his mother paying their respects to a dead loved one nearby. Ernesto
couldn’t help but walk over to the grieving pair and ask about whom they were grieving for. The
mother wipes her sobs and answers in Ukrainian that her other son had passed a few months ago
due to leukemia. The mother and child's old and dirty clothing suggested to Ernesto that they
could not afford any treatment for the ill son. Ernesto reaches into his pocket and takes out two
small pieces of peppermint candy. He gives one of them to the grieving boy, and places the
other one right on top of the dead child's grave. The mother thanks Ernesto for his kindness and
places her gifts to her son who passed away.
Under the new Sunlight, Ernesto calls a taxicab to pick him up right from the cemetery
and take him to the international airport in Kiev. As soon as the taxi arrives, the driver asks
Ernesto about his visit to the cemetery.
"Well, its not like seeing your loved ones buried underneath your feet is at all enjoyable.
Yet it brings comfort to me just to know that she is at peace, " Ernesto answers.
"Did you say what you needed to say?" asked the driver.
"Yes, yes I did."
"Are you sure, because I heard that ghosts can haunt you if you don't pay full respect."
"I don't believe in ghosts. But I believe that death itself can be just as haunting. The fear
of it can consume you until you end up with the rest of the dead."
"So, how about the person you visited?"
"It was a horrible tragedy when I lost her, but at least I know that she won't have to live in
this hell we call earth anymore. No more fears. No more suffering."