Wednesday, January 8, 2014

The obscure adventure of Claire Flynn



Good evening, dear reader. It was not long, or at least I hope it wasn’t since the last time we had our little chat. Thank you for still being there, for still taking the time to find yourself in front of that screen of yours. I will never forget it; in fact, I want to share a little secret with you this time.

Pay close attention, what I am about to tell you is a very powerful but very short story about a remarkable girl who thought for one instant that she could escape from it. You know, after twenty nine confessions, I still find it very hard not to be crystal clear with you about what’s happening out there.

Let me try one more time.

Claire Flynn is a very curious young lady who enjoys her mother’s company, she sees her mom as an example and that’s an obvious fact. Try for one instant to think about Claire not as a hero or as a genius but as a normal girl, in fact, imagine she is a very tiny particle of your own self.

Claire wakes up every morning of her life looking at the ceiling imagining every single little thing that happens above it, beyond the limits of that old three stories building, beyond the sky, beyond the very stars… she has this remarkable imagination, I mean, she is six years old.

What were you doing when you were six?

Well, she creates worlds of what her mother has called “the impossible” she was born with eyes of amazement and surprise. You may find my language a little bit evasive, forgive me, it is a code after all, do not forget it.

Claire has of course asked herself what makes her a girl… fair question, don’t you think? She wonders why she gets to play with those stupid blond dolls instead of being able to go and play with some hot wheels or knights in armor. This is but one of millions of unanswered question she had since that life changing day, the day she learned how to take a bath without her mom’s help.

She would stay still for hours just feeling the water all over her, feeling how it decreased its temperature systematically until her whole body started to shiver. The water was just the beginning, she cared for ceiling more than anything, because that was her ultimate canvas, it made her fill like a goddess of some sort, like a passionate artist out of control, like the best detective like, like the worst of them villains. Her unlimited galaxy waited every afternoon right above her head, between the water and the stars, there it waited, to crash and collide with her thoughts, it was… a perfect feeling.

But that morning– which I curse and blame – changed it all, forever…

She had had a long vacation and that was weird, she wasn’t used to be for such long periods of time at home, her idea was that some big change was coming, but to be honest with you, she had no clue.  That morning she approached the bathroom thrilled to her bones, ready to explore, ready to become, and so she did.

The ritual was to clean her body just the way mom taught her to and then to make the connection with the world within the world. She would look at the ceiling and forget about everything else. It was right then, right at the most inconvenient moment. 

The bathroom lights went off.

She was confused. What seconds ago was a clear white portal had turned into a bottomless black pit, unknown, different. Then she panicked.

I imagine you would think that she got scared by the horrible possibility that a ghost of some evil kind was sitting right in front of her, or perhaps you could theorize about a demon trying to posses the little girl’s body. You’re wrong.

She panicked because in that very instant she noticed that she didn’t and couldn’t remember the bathroom in which she had been taking baths since the age of two years old. She noticed that darkness had taken over both her perfect ideal world and the conventional world around her.

Something was terribly wrong.

She closed her eyes and prayed – if that could ever be called a prayer – to be able to remember. I guess you can feel the water dancing in the dark, touching your nude self, I can imagine the horror that she had to bare, feeling lost and caught in the middle of nowhere. Then she opened her eyes.

Nothing had changed, darkness was still there, mocking her, deceiving her poor senses and then the brightest idea of them all came to her mind. She realized that this blackout was a clear message. 

She could not live in both worlds; someone was trying to warn her… Once you get to the world of your own ideas you must leave reality behind you. “It is too dangerous” – she thought. Because living in her dream world meant that she would have to little by little erase the floor under her feet, the walls next to her arms and stay with nothing else but the ceiling above her mid. 

She had to make a choice.  

Knock, knock, knock – someone came to rescue her.

-Mom is that you? – she asked

Yes, sweetheart get ready, today is your first day of elementary school, remember?

The lights came back on.

She stood up, got ready and went to school.

Quite an adventure, don’t you think? There is just one thing that keeps me, you know, a little confused and worried. You don’t have to answer this one, but…


 What were you doing when you were six?




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