Summer of Promises

Chapter 3

The turbulence of the plane gave me an uneasy feeling. Fiddling with the envelope, I kept on debating when the perfect time to read it would be. The second one contained my ticket, money, and a list of items to bring with me, which included 3 weeks of clothes, my camera, and my guitar. The plane fell silent, as most of the passengers were sleeping. The only sounds made were the light snores of the people around me. I switched on the little light that was above me, and carefully opened the last envelope.

“See. It wasn’t that bad, was it? I really hope you like the first class seat you are sitting in. Now to business. I am assuming that you still have a few hours until you land in England. Seeing as you are probably wondering where you will be staying, I have a very close friend who works at the airport.

When you arrive, you will need to go to the customer service desk and ask for Alex Robinson. Tell Alex that Beatrice sent you, and he will know what to do from then. I know you have many, many questions. Your mind never does stop thinking. But don’t worry, this isn’t the last of these envelopes. Actually, there are very more to come. This is the start of your summer.

With your mind wandering, maybe I should tell you a little story. Did I ever tell you of the time that your mother broke her leg? It all started the summer when I turned 12. Your mother and I used to always be mischievous, believe it or not. We would always go on little adventures, and 'solve' mystery’s. One day, we went for a walk down the street, and I saw this old man. This man always sat in his front yard and painted. Some days, I would sit with him and watch him. His strokes always were so elegant, and he could make anything look beautiful.

This morning was different though. He didn’t have the usual brightness in his eyes. I went up to him, while your mom trailed behind, and asked him what was wrong. His dog ran away was the only thing that he said. I looked at his canvas, and it was still as white as it had been when he bought it from the store. I decided that I wanted to help this man, wanted to bring him what seemed to be his motivation, back. Your mother and I went on an adventure, and walked through the woods, around the town, when we finally found his dog. Your mother was running to grab him, and she tripped and twisted her leg.

I brought her back to the house, and the dog followed. Mom freaked out and left for the hospital, leaving me at the house. I brought back the mans dog, and he didn’t say anything. The only thing I noticed was the tear that fell out of his eye. He then told me that this was the dog his wife got him, just before she passed away. Like she had known that he would need someone with him because soon she wouldn’t be. The dog was the reason his paintings turned out so beautiful, he said. The presence of his wife was always with him when the dog was around, and her presence showed beauty for him to paint. He told me how because of her, he could show the beauty to the world.

Your mom breaking her leg wasn’t the important part of the story. The important part of the story is that if you look close enough, you can see beauty in everything. And with a little push, you can show the world your beauty.”

I wasn’t quite sure what my aunt meant with that, but I knew she had meant something important with it. That night I fell asleep, halfway to a different country, thinking about what it meant to show the world your beauty, and how I could do just that.