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.