B- Part 2 - Story

Please read part 1: B- Part 1

After breakfast, Kairo takes the boys out to the village to collect a little food. I ask Sadie to sit by me and we start to talk. I wonder if my memory is failing, she looks smaller and much younger than last night. Sadie sits with her ankles and knees close together, her long thin arms settle on her knees. She tells me about her family. They are from P-, a town many kilometers away. Her mother, a woman famed for her beauty, suffered from a disease that took away her strength and left her lying in bed, unable to talk or move, waiting for death. There was no other family to help. Years ago, their father told them that he would be away for a while searching for work, but he never returned. Their only other living family was their father's sister who flatly refused to take the children into her small house in addition to her own family. The children had nobody and nothing.

She said that her mother was dying, she said that the people of P- talked of splitting the family apart. They believe that young children should have a stable home, so decided that the two youngest children, Buiy and Fah, should move out of town and live with a rich merchant and his wife who had no children. The people of P- were told that this couple had money, big rooms, even servants who could tame snakes and speak to birds. But, Sadie had heard that the wife was mean, that she would walk about town looking down on the poorer folk. She would step on the toes of beggars and then shout at them for their rudeness. Sadie knew that her brothers would be unhappy there, or worse, would become like the evil rich merchant. She felt that she had to do something.

The elders of the town would visit the dying woman at her bedside, reassuring her that her children would be safely cared for, but when Sadie was alone with her mother, her eyes would look sad. Orphans had no rights in P-, so the town did what they thought would be best, despite protests from Sadie and Heal.

Sadie had known she and her brothers could not stay. While the light was fading in her mother's eyes it grew boldly in Sadie's. For though she was only fifteen, she would sit by her mother and confidently assure her that her brothers would grow to be fine young men. It became a mantra for Sadie and a glimmer of hope for her mother until hope wasn't enough to sustain her strength and life decided to find another body to fill. Sadie saw life leave and float away. She kissed her mother, closed her eyes and called for her brothers. Sadie told them that they were going away, Heal understood but Buiy and Fah were too young to understand. They collected a few items, some clothes, a little food, money their mother kept under the bed and a scarf, which held traces of her smell.

Sadie closed the shutters but left the door open, certain that someone would visit and find their mother. They all knew the roads and paths surrounding P- and with heavy hearts,  found the safest and easiest exit.

Sadie tells me about their journey and how the days turned into weeks. By day they would move from town to village, begging for food and water. Sometimes the would find shelter, other times they would sleep under the stars. Buiy and Fah struggled to keep their strength. Sometimes Heal and Sadie would carry them, praying silently that God and their mother would protect them.

One early afternoon Sadie watched her brother under the shade of a large tree. With their energy gone, they lay down on the the dirt, closed their eyes and drifted into realms of safety, security and peace. She watched their faces relax under the caked dirt on their skin. Their clothes were in tatters, their feet red and swollen and stomachs empty. Sadie had tears in her eyes when she thought of their situation and of their mother dying, at last her resolved wavered. Once the tears formed, she wept silently and furiously. In the burning heat, the tears dried almost instantly. This increased Sadie's frustration as she was so tired. At last she too lay down and slept.

Sadie speaks, 'That afternoon I dreamt of my mother. We were by a river, she was on one side and I was on the other. I tried to get across the river but my mother just kept smiling and nodding her head. This sign was so familiar to me, I knew she was saying no, that she did not want me to cross the river. She pointed left, so I looked and saw a fire built beside the river. My brothers were sitting beside it, feeling the warmth of the flames. They saw me and took my hand, I turned my head and my eyes searched for my mother across the river but she had disappeared. Behind the the fire was a path, further along there was a forest. In this forest there were fruits, animals, plants and lots of trees, the noise was deafening but the pathway was strangely clear. A snake was hanging off one of the branches and as I walked forward its head jerked towards me and bit my forehead, just a nip. The snake looked right into my eyes and then settled itself on the branch. I could feel its eyes watching me as we walked on. I woke up, the heat did not seem too bad. My brothers were still asleep so I gently woke Heal and told him to wait while I explored the next village. He shook his head in agreement and drifted off to sleep.'

She continued, 'I got up, entered the village and heard music. Lots of people of many ages were banging on drums and singing. Some young girls were dancing in a circle, their arms floating in the air, joining hands above the shoulders and then by their waists. Their feet were involved in an intricate pattern that kept in time to the music. Suddenly, a woman dressed in red tiptoed up to the girls and they surrounded her, adjusting her headdress and whispering in her ear. The woman in red kept her eyes lowered at all times but she was the most beautiful person I had ever seen. For a moment, I wanted to be that woman. Her hair was delicately woven with ribbon, her dress looked like it was made from the finest silk with tiny scenes of love embroidered at the hem of her skirt and her beauty overshadowed anyone who went near her. Her skin was smooth, her jewellery and smile gleamed and everyone cast approving glances at her. The smell of food drifted from the surrounding huts and made my stomach growl, it brought me back to reality.

'I walked up to the crowd and spoke to a woman near the musicians. I asked her what was happening and she said that a marriage would be taking place next weekend, today began the festivities. The daughter of the most respectable family in R- had come of age, the marriage between the couple was a love union which meant good fortune for both families.  I asked her how old the woman was and she told me that she and her husband-to-be were thirty, as is the custom of R- and its surrounding towns and villages. I asked if there was any food I could have for my brothers, she said nobody would go hungry that week. The family paid for the whole community to celebrate this joyful occasion. She said that we were welcome to stay in her barn while the festivities were taking place. I thanked this woman for her kindness and promised to return with my brothers.

'I ran back as quickly as I could. My brothers were awake sitting quietly under the tree like tiny Buddhas. We soon left, had our fill of food, talked to the locals and moved into the barn. For the whole week we slept, ate, laughed and washed, the boys looked healthier and I felt sure of my decision to leave P-. On the last night, I spoke to an old woman. I did not tell her too many details of our life but did ask her if she knew someone that could help us. She suggested you.' Sadie looks up at me and I feel a pang of pain within me.

Sadie says, 'You became my guiding light. B- was fifty kilometres further on and the sun seemed to become hotter and brighter the longer we travelled, burning the soil beneath our toes. The woman had told me that you were well known for helping foreigners and that you could help with accommodation, food and water. The afternoons got hotter and the nights, colder. We would huddle together to create some heat but it was no use. We walked faster and faster each day towards your home, hoping that you would help.'

Please read Part 3 here

Other long stories can be found here: Gracie's long stories

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