The Scientist: and the inexorable tragedy of time

January 1898.

Friend, I write to you a story in a desperate effort to, somehow, suffice for your absence. I write with the blind and forlorn hope that you shall read this.

Hope is blind, friend. And as I have learned, so too is science.

Dr. Haines was born as just Marshall, Marshall Haines, in an isolated farmland in Tennessee, where the weather was humid and the produce was wheat, year round. His father passed only months before his birth. What was left of his father were only stories and experiences of his drunkenness in the village. His mother was rather reserved in this matter; the villagers, however, were not nearly as benign. Most outspoken of whom, was his uncle, who openly shunned his mother for marrying such a pathetic human. His mother? She was silent. It was a result of this that he was forced to pursue unconventional hobbies to keep his mind occupied. His village, though many a miles away from civilization, was regularly visited by nomads of New England, who wandered in attempt to acquire some inspiration for their poetry. Along with the nomads came their 'newfangled' ideas.

While on his walks on the outskirts one day, one nomad called on him. He poured water on water and lit it on fire. Work of magic, his then-naive mind said. Work of curiosity, the nomad replied. He handed him a book, claiming it to be the source of the magic. The same nomad visited once every other month and brought, intentionally, books and instruments for him and, unintentionally, hope. The nomad gave him a gold plated watch, told him to keep it safe. Said to him that in the pursuit of answers and contentment, time was his only enemy.

Each day, he read and each night, he attempted. From that day forth, his world ceased to exist in the fields of dull crops and predictable tomorrows; his world existed in variables, where every action let to even more inquiry. Friend, it appeared that his gratification was derived from the result, regardless of what it was, and everything he attempted yielded a result.

At age fifteen, his mother passed. A mere five attended the funeral, only four shed tears. After which, the only thing holding him back was the family tradition of self inflicted misery ― a disease which hadn't afflicted him, yet.

He left his village in pursuit of answers. The Nomad had told him of the Northeastern cities, and that was where he set his sights. With the gold plated watch in one hand and blind ambition and hope in the other, he boarded the train. His north star which led him to Boston, where he studied and learnt. He reached New England two weeks after he left. New England's capital, Boston, was where his ambition led him. The blinding neon lights, the booms and busts of stocks, the arduous pursuit of self actualization by it's residents, all of which made Marshall feel home.

Friend, he attempted to run away from his past. His zeal could never have been reconciled with the people of his birthplace. He ran and was one of the very fortunate few that got away.

It was in Boston where he was offered a profession and new life by the Science Association; it was in Boston where Marshall became Dr. Haines in 1890. It was in Boston when he published his pioneering work in biological chemistry in 1892. It was in Boston where he was renowned as the 'Scientist from the South'. It was in Boston that his ambition led to his paramount success. It was in Boston where he felt content in the world of numbers and variables. And it was in Boston, where he one fortunate day met a young lady named Helena in the spring of 1894.

She was a product of the city culture, and the only daughter of the chair of the Association. Only the chair trusted Dr. Haines with the sole purpose of educating Helena. Her elegant simplicity was the among first things he noticed. How instead of anticipating a result, she anticipated a process. Her father pointed towards numbers, but she ran towards life. Her heart harkened for a response. Her smile radiated hope to even those who had been forsaken by their lord. It was her love for outdoors that led Dr. Haines to take his classes to the parks. She brought her kittens along with her. Helena was so meticulously simple that not even a single formula could've explained her unparalleled love of life.