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ysabetwordsmithThis poem is spillover from the July 6, 2021 Poetry Fishbowl. It was inspired by a prompt from dialecticdreamer. It also fills the "Gingerbread House Day - December 12" square in my 7-1-21 card for the Winterfest in July Bingo. This poem has been sponsored by a pool with fuzzyred. It belongs to the Broken Angels thread of the Polychrome Heroics series. It is the second in a triptych, between "The Deepest Mutuality and the Most Painful Estrangement" and "Maturity to Outgrow Them."
"A Spirit of Openness and Reconciliation"
[Evening of Monday, April 4, 2016]
After supper, Boss Blaster drove
Cas over to Crystal Wisdom.
"Wow," said Boss Blaster.
"That place is really purple."
"Yeah, it's supposed to represent
wisdom, enlightenment, and spirituality,"
said Cas. "I think that it just looks like
an overgrown dollhouse, though."
Boss Blaster chuckled at that.
The three-story Victorian house had
bright purple gingerbread, turquoise trim,
and intricate fixtures. "You have a point."
Inside was just as garish as outside.
The front room had purple walls
crammed with cases and shelves
holding all kinds of oils and herbs,
and it positively reeked of incense.
Some weird, tinkly music played and
a cloud of pale blue smoke billowed
from a burner, making the boss cough.
"Try to stay out of the smoke, and
only breathe through your mouth,"
Cas muttered. "It helps ... a little."
The next room had a whole wall
devoted to "angelology," which
made Cas wince away from it.
"Are you okay?" said Boss Blaster.
"If you're uncomfortable, we can go."
"I'm fine, more or less," said Cas. "It's
just ... I keep almost seeing things in here.
Aidan thought I might be more sensitive if I
wasn't always clamped down so hard."
"Yeah, that can happen if folks
don't like their superpowers,"
Boss Blaster said. "Some stuff
won't turn off, but some will."
"For the longest time, I thought
it was all bunk, because Mom and
her friends were such flakes, but
now I don't know," Cas said.
"If like ten percent of this shit
is real, how am I supposed
to know which ten percent?"
Boss Blaster looked around
at the jumble of garish junk.
"I have no idea," he confessed.
"Let's just keep on checking."
"Yeah, all right," Cas said.
One case held handmade soaps
and other natural cleansers that
Boss Blaster thought might be
useful, but Cas was moving on.
The room after that was purple
on one wall and vivid yellow on
the others, lined with bookcases.
A half-finished niche that might
have been a closet or a pantry
held magical fantasy clothes.
Another door led to a dottie,
purple with crystal candles and
a picture of a crystalline rock.
A half-open door read, Break Room.
Peeking inside, Boss Blaster saw
that the house's kitchen had been
converted to a staff room. It had
purple cabinets, oatmeal walls,
and a battered dinette set.
A screen door let out on
the side porch, which had
a fairy garden display set up
with tiny gingerbread houses
and a garden of mosses.
Here the displays were
done in cheerful greens and
blues or soothing browns, with
racks of doll-sized outdoor furniture
and a table of miniature potted plants.
Boss Blaster looked at the rows
of little chairs and pergolas
and a Victorian village.
"I don't get it," he said.
"Wouldn't part of the fun
come from making things
out of twisted wire and twigs
and dainty gingerbread siding?"
"It would for me," Cas agreed.
"Then again, maybe some people
who aren't good at making things
still want to grow a fairy garden,
and might like to buy decorations."
"Good point," said Boss Blaster.
"Well, there's nobody out here.
We may as well go back in."
Inside the store, they found
a sign by the stairs that read,
Upstairs: Business Office
and Owner's Apartment
Downstairs: Healing Room,
Meditation Room, and
Private Work Room.
"Do you think we should
go check?" said Boss Blaster.
"No, some of the private stuff
is really private," Cas said.
"I don't hear anyone on
this floor," said the Boss.
"Are you sure she's working?"
"Shoot," Cas said. "I thought
Freesia would be here, but it's
almost closing time -- maybe she
flaked and went home early."
"Well, we'll try the main floor
again," Boss Blaster said.
Then a tall blonde woman
came down the stairs.
"I hope I didn't keep
you waiting," she said.
"How can I help --"
Then she spotted Cas.
"Cassie?" she said,
hurrying toward him.
"Cas, it's so good
to see you again!"
"Uh ... hi, Mom,"
he said, fidgeting.
"Can I help you find
anything?" she said.
"We, uh, actually came
to see you," Cas said. "Boss,
meet my mother, Freesia. Mom,
this is my boss, Mr. Maxwell."
"Pleased to meet you,"
Boss Blaster said smoothly.
"Boss? What kind of work
are you doing?" Freesia said.
"Real estate," said Boss Blaster
as Cas said, "I keep the house
where people do business."
"Oh, that's nice," said Freesia.
"Someone needs to take better care
of this town. Its energy is awful."
Cas winced, but Boss Blaster
could not actually disagree
with Freesia's observation.
Energy or no, Lincoln needed
a lot more help than it had gotten.
"I'm doing what I can to fix things,"
said Boss Blaster. "I try to take
good care of my city and my people."
"Well, that makes one of you,"
Cas muttered. "Not everyone
is that careful. Some conflicts
just aren't so easy to solve."
"Maybe," said Boss Blaster, "but
most human conflicts can be solved
through genuine dialogue conducted with
a spirit of openness and reconciliation."
"Even if it breaks down?" Cas said,
casting a glance at his mother.
"Moments of kindness and
reconciliation are worth having,
even if the parting has to come
sooner or later," Freesia said softly.
"I'd really like to try, if you're willing."
"Is there somewhere we could,
uh, talk?" Cas said. "After work?"
"I was almost ready for closing when
you two came in. There's nobody else
here and nothing scheduled for tonight,"
said Freesia. "I can close now. Do you
want to come over to my apartment?"
"Yeah, I guess that'll do," said Cas.
It only took a few minutes for Freesia
to finish the evening routine. She
turned off the lights, flipped the sign
to Closed, and then locked up.
She gave them both her address
and directions there, along with
her phone number and vdress.
"Just in case we get separated
in traffic," Freesia said, giving
Cas an anxious glance. "It's
only a few blocks from here."
Her car was a classic bug
painted with suns, stars,
candles, and flowers. There
was no possible way to lose it.
Boss Blaster could tell
that she was at least
as nervous as Cas.
Freesia just looked
so young; she was
only twice Cas' age.
"That's no problem,"
Boss Blaster said.
The neighborhood
was old, so some of
its buildings had gone
back and forth between
housing and businesses.
There were big, gnarled trees
probably dating all the way
back to the first houses, and
skinnier trees from later rounds
of city improvement projects.
Freesia pulled her car up to
an old brick apartment building
with rounded Victorian features.
Boss Blaster parked the van
carefully behind her car.
"Are you ready?" he said.
Cas took a deep breath.
"I think that I have to be."
They stepped onto the path.
* * *
Notes:
This poem is long, so its notes appear separately.
dialecticdreamer. It also fills the "Gingerbread House Day - December 12" square in my 7-1-21 card for the Winterfest in July Bingo. This poem has been sponsored by a pool with fuzzyred. It belongs to the Broken Angels thread of the Polychrome Heroics series. It is the second in a triptych, between "The Deepest Mutuality and the Most Painful Estrangement" and "Maturity to Outgrow Them.""A Spirit of Openness and Reconciliation"
[Evening of Monday, April 4, 2016]
After supper, Boss Blaster drove
Cas over to Crystal Wisdom.
"Wow," said Boss Blaster.
"That place is really purple."
"Yeah, it's supposed to represent
wisdom, enlightenment, and spirituality,"
said Cas. "I think that it just looks like
an overgrown dollhouse, though."
Boss Blaster chuckled at that.
The three-story Victorian house had
bright purple gingerbread, turquoise trim,
and intricate fixtures. "You have a point."
Inside was just as garish as outside.
The front room had purple walls
crammed with cases and shelves
holding all kinds of oils and herbs,
and it positively reeked of incense.
Some weird, tinkly music played and
a cloud of pale blue smoke billowed
from a burner, making the boss cough.
"Try to stay out of the smoke, and
only breathe through your mouth,"
Cas muttered. "It helps ... a little."
The next room had a whole wall
devoted to "angelology," which
made Cas wince away from it.
"Are you okay?" said Boss Blaster.
"If you're uncomfortable, we can go."
"I'm fine, more or less," said Cas. "It's
just ... I keep almost seeing things in here.
Aidan thought I might be more sensitive if I
wasn't always clamped down so hard."
"Yeah, that can happen if folks
don't like their superpowers,"
Boss Blaster said. "Some stuff
won't turn off, but some will."
"For the longest time, I thought
it was all bunk, because Mom and
her friends were such flakes, but
now I don't know," Cas said.
"If like ten percent of this shit
is real, how am I supposed
to know which ten percent?"
Boss Blaster looked around
at the jumble of garish junk.
"I have no idea," he confessed.
"Let's just keep on checking."
"Yeah, all right," Cas said.
One case held handmade soaps
and other natural cleansers that
Boss Blaster thought might be
useful, but Cas was moving on.
The room after that was purple
on one wall and vivid yellow on
the others, lined with bookcases.
A half-finished niche that might
have been a closet or a pantry
held magical fantasy clothes.
Another door led to a dottie,
purple with crystal candles and
a picture of a crystalline rock.
A half-open door read, Break Room.
Peeking inside, Boss Blaster saw
that the house's kitchen had been
converted to a staff room. It had
purple cabinets, oatmeal walls,
and a battered dinette set.
A screen door let out on
the side porch, which had
a fairy garden display set up
with tiny gingerbread houses
and a garden of mosses.
Here the displays were
done in cheerful greens and
blues or soothing browns, with
racks of doll-sized outdoor furniture
and a table of miniature potted plants.
Boss Blaster looked at the rows
of little chairs and pergolas
and a Victorian village.
"I don't get it," he said.
"Wouldn't part of the fun
come from making things
out of twisted wire and twigs
and dainty gingerbread siding?"
"It would for me," Cas agreed.
"Then again, maybe some people
who aren't good at making things
still want to grow a fairy garden,
and might like to buy decorations."
"Good point," said Boss Blaster.
"Well, there's nobody out here.
We may as well go back in."
Inside the store, they found
a sign by the stairs that read,
Upstairs: Business Office
and Owner's Apartment
Downstairs: Healing Room,
Meditation Room, and
Private Work Room.
"Do you think we should
go check?" said Boss Blaster.
"No, some of the private stuff
is really private," Cas said.
"I don't hear anyone on
this floor," said the Boss.
"Are you sure she's working?"
"Shoot," Cas said. "I thought
Freesia would be here, but it's
almost closing time -- maybe she
flaked and went home early."
"Well, we'll try the main floor
again," Boss Blaster said.
Then a tall blonde woman
came down the stairs.
"I hope I didn't keep
you waiting," she said.
"How can I help --"
Then she spotted Cas.
"Cassie?" she said,
hurrying toward him.
"Cas, it's so good
to see you again!"
"Uh ... hi, Mom,"
he said, fidgeting.
"Can I help you find
anything?" she said.
"We, uh, actually came
to see you," Cas said. "Boss,
meet my mother, Freesia. Mom,
this is my boss, Mr. Maxwell."
"Pleased to meet you,"
Boss Blaster said smoothly.
"Boss? What kind of work
are you doing?" Freesia said.
"Real estate," said Boss Blaster
as Cas said, "I keep the house
where people do business."
"Oh, that's nice," said Freesia.
"Someone needs to take better care
of this town. Its energy is awful."
Cas winced, but Boss Blaster
could not actually disagree
with Freesia's observation.
Energy or no, Lincoln needed
a lot more help than it had gotten.
"I'm doing what I can to fix things,"
said Boss Blaster. "I try to take
good care of my city and my people."
"Well, that makes one of you,"
Cas muttered. "Not everyone
is that careful. Some conflicts
just aren't so easy to solve."
"Maybe," said Boss Blaster, "but
most human conflicts can be solved
through genuine dialogue conducted with
a spirit of openness and reconciliation."
"Even if it breaks down?" Cas said,
casting a glance at his mother.
"Moments of kindness and
reconciliation are worth having,
even if the parting has to come
sooner or later," Freesia said softly.
"I'd really like to try, if you're willing."
"Is there somewhere we could,
uh, talk?" Cas said. "After work?"
"I was almost ready for closing when
you two came in. There's nobody else
here and nothing scheduled for tonight,"
said Freesia. "I can close now. Do you
want to come over to my apartment?"
"Yeah, I guess that'll do," said Cas.
It only took a few minutes for Freesia
to finish the evening routine. She
turned off the lights, flipped the sign
to Closed, and then locked up.
She gave them both her address
and directions there, along with
her phone number and vdress.
"Just in case we get separated
in traffic," Freesia said, giving
Cas an anxious glance. "It's
only a few blocks from here."
Her car was a classic bug
painted with suns, stars,
candles, and flowers. There
was no possible way to lose it.
Boss Blaster could tell
that she was at least
as nervous as Cas.
Freesia just looked
so young; she was
only twice Cas' age.
"That's no problem,"
Boss Blaster said.
The neighborhood
was old, so some of
its buildings had gone
back and forth between
housing and businesses.
There were big, gnarled trees
probably dating all the way
back to the first houses, and
skinnier trees from later rounds
of city improvement projects.
Freesia pulled her car up to
an old brick apartment building
with rounded Victorian features.
Boss Blaster parked the van
carefully behind her car.
"Are you ready?" he said.
Cas took a deep breath.
"I think that I have to be."
They stepped onto the path.
* * *
Notes:
This poem is long, so its notes appear separately.
(no subject)
Date: 2021-10-01 09:54 pm (UTC)Yes ...
Date: 2021-10-01 10:11 pm (UTC)Boss Blaster is excellent support, though.
Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-01 10:02 pm (UTC)Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-01 10:36 pm (UTC)Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-01 10:44 pm (UTC)Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-01 11:00 pm (UTC)Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-01 10:59 pm (UTC)Also, Freesia doesn't know a lot more beyond what she's already shared. She could tell Cas stories about his father, but anything new is, er, mostly the kind of stories a kid does not want to hear about his parents. Nor does she have contact information for her former boyfriend.
Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-01 10:54 pm (UTC)Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-01 11:16 pm (UTC)By the time Hali is in kindergarten, they will BOTH have a handle on the "woo woo" part of their lives.
Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-01 11:35 pm (UTC)I look forward to seeing more of this over time.
>> By the time Hali is in kindergarten, they will BOTH have a handle on the "woo woo" part of their lives. <<
That sounds about right.
I think that the Willow Glen Waldenkinder School would be a good fit for Hali. It's small enough to be well supervised, and the kids tend to behave gently with each other. It's a flexible program, so she can explore whatever interests her. The nature focus promotes a mood of calm interest.
If Hali starts out visiting Ned's house and likes both that environment and his kids, then she's likely to be up for trying Willow Glen once fully potty-trained.
Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-02 02:13 am (UTC)Also TMI problems with the ghosts telling them things they didn't want to know.
Hopefully Cas and Hali will be spare *that*.
Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-02 04:22 am (UTC)Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-02 04:46 pm (UTC)Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-02 05:11 pm (UTC)Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-04 10:24 am (UTC)"Mommy, can you show the lost lady where to go?"
Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-04 10:25 am (UTC)Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-04 10:44 am (UTC)Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-04 03:39 pm (UTC)Of course, I want to see Cas' reaction to the first time that happens!
Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-05 08:27 am (UTC)Well, Hali is outgoing by nature, with a layer of caution from experience that will probably fade more over time. She likes the Finns in general. The first scene I'm thinking of is Simon teaching Dairinne how to fall safely, and asking Cas if Hali would like to play. The wings require slightly different maneuvers, but she absolutely needs to learn not to try catching herself with them against the ground, and how to use them for balance or steering. The latter comes later. The start is aiming to fall forward or sideways, not back, and keep them tucked.
>>Of course, I want to see Cas' reaction to the first time that happens!<<
Half panic and half pride, I expect.
Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-05 02:53 pm (UTC)Re: Cas has come so far!
Date: 2021-10-04 10:47 am (UTC)