Saturday morning passed quickly as Daniel did some chores around the home. Ruby had him make his bed, take out trash and put the dry dishes away while Rachel helped him. Daniel began to feel a little less abandoned. Between feeling dumped into an unfamiliar environment – America – and losing his parents and his sight, he'd felt as though he were totally isolated from anyone else and that he'd never fit in.
The family went for a picnic at the local park and Daniel finally learned what it was - food eaten outside. His family did that all the time on digs. Nothing so special about that. George and the girls tried to play Frisbee with him but it was much harder for him to hear a Frisbee coming than a bouncing ball, so he gave up and just sat at the picnic table with Ruby, listening intently to the sounds surrounding him. The resounding laughter of children at play filled him with frustration. He'd never be able to run and play in a park. He could only see what was within six inches away from his face.
Late that afternoon, Ruby called Daniel into the living room and asked him to sit on the couch next to her.
"Daniel, in a few minutes we're going over to my sister Barbara's house for dinner. She and her husband are expecting their first baby in about a month, and that's exciting, but the main reason I want you to get to know her is that she's also blind. She bounced off a trampoline and hit her head when she was fourteen and has been totally blind since. She can't even see light, shadowy shapes or things extremely close like you can."
Ruby slipped her arm around his shoulders. "She's a professor of Classical Literature at Columbia University and I thought that since your parents were archeologists, you two might have some interests in common. You'll also get to meet her seeing-eye dog, Chester."
Daniel nodded.
The family walked two blocks to Aunt Barbara's. Daniel concentrated on the traffic as they went. He was easily able to distinguish between the sounds of cars and trucks; could tell when they sped up, slowed down and stopped. He knew when he turned a corner and the feel of the neighborhood changed. They were passing small stores now rather than houses. There was more foot traffic and he could hear bells jingle when a door opened or closed. Occasionally he got a strong whiff of pickles or pizza when a door opened. George, who'd been holding his hand, stopped him once when a Cocker Spaniel came bounding in front of him for a sniff of the kids, hopeful that some petting would be his reward. Daniel and the girls knelt down and patted the friendly dog until she responded to a shrill whistle and bounced off.
When they reached their destination, he heard a dog behind the door give one short bark, alerting his master that someone was at the door. The door swung open and Daniel caught the sound of a feminine voice welcoming them.
"Hey, everyone! Come on in. James is in the kitchen finishing up dinner." She led them into the living room where George introduced Daniel.
"Barbara, I'd like you to meet our newest family member, Daniel. Daniel this is Barbara, Ruby's sister." George took Daniel's right hand and guided it to Barbara's extended hand so they could shake in greeting.
"So, Daniel, I understand you grew up in Egypt?"
Daniel nodded, but then Barbara couldn't see that.
She hesitated before continuing, "I'd sure love to hear about that. I don't know if you know, but I teach Classical Literature at the university here. I've never been to Egypt, but I'll bet you could describe it to me and I'd be able to see what you saw."
Daniel nodded.
Ruby recognized that Daniel wasn't going to say anything so she changed the subject. "I think the girls would love to introduce Daniel to Chester. Can they go into the backyard until dinner's ready?"
"Of course. Chester!" The large German Shepherd immediately came to his mistress, sat on his haunches, tail quivering with anticipation.
"Chester, backyard," Ruby commanded and he obeyed.
Rachel took Daniel's hand and led him into the yard. Daniel had very limited exposure to dogs. Most of the dogs in Egypt were strays, scrawny and timid. There was usually one or two on the digs, but they were trained guard dogs and not child friendly. Chester allowed Daniel to run his hands over his muzzle, down his neck, over his back to his tail. Finally, Daniel buried his head in the German Shepherd's neck and reveled in his texture and warmth. By this time, Julie had found an old tennis ball and the kids began a game of fetch with Chester.
"Barbara, I forgot to tell you that Daniel hasn't spoken since the accident, six months ago. The psychologist told us he may speak at any time or he may never speak again." Ruby sat on the couch next to George. "We are optimistic that bringing him into a 'normal' family might help. I know it's only been one day, but I'd really hoped that meeting you might spark some sign of interest in him."
"Now, honey, you knew he wasn't likely to make a break-through that quickly." George slipped his hand into hers and gave a slight squeeze. "That boy just left the hospital a couple of weeks ago."
He turned to Barbara, "They told us that when he saw the chain break, he tried to rush in and save his parents, but he got hit in the head by the corner of the cover stone as it was swinging and that's what caused his blindness. I'm not sure he's accepted their death just yet. He seems to be waiting for them to come back and get him. We were also told that it takes much longer for a child to accept abrupt changes than it does an adult. It may actually be a couple of years before he really understands that his parents aren't coming back."
"I know that when I lost my sight, every morning for months when I woke up I just knew that I'd be able to see my room when I opened my eyes. I cried every day before I accepted that I was permanently blind, and I was quite a bit older than Daniel. All you two can do is love and support him. It's really up to him to do the work." Barbara turned her head as she heard her husband enter the room.
"Dinner's ready! Hope y'all are hungry!" Native New Yorker James imitated George's Texan accent.
Barbara stood and reached for her husband with one hand and wrapped the other around her large belly. She grabbed his hand and placed it on her tummy. "She's dancing again."
"You mean HE'S playing basketball." James grinned at George over his wife's bent head.
"Let's round-up the yun'uns and rustle up some grub." Ruby rolled her eyes and punched George in the arm. She secretly loved it when he exaggerated his Texas accent for fun.
"You know, it's almost impossible for our Eastern ears to understand that foreign language." James grinned at George as he led the group toward the table.
After dinner, Barbara took Daniel into her office. "Daniel, I thought you would like to see some of the artifacts I have. They're Greek and Roman, but you might be able to figure out what they are by touch."
She handed him a piece of carved marble about the size and shape of a large book. He held it carefully and ran his hands over it. He could tell that it was probably a piece of a carved pediment. He could feel the roughened edges where it had broken off from the rest of the carving. The face was flat except for two raised human figures. He thought they were of a man and a woman, judging by the feel of the clothing and hair. The woman was sitting and the man was leaning toward her, his arm reaching out.
He knew more about Egypt, but his parents had taken him over to Greece just a year ago for a vacation. They had wandered through museums and ruins; gone places most tourists couldn't because they had friends working on a dig. He'd learned to differentiate among three main styles of architecture and had come to admire the finely developed style of sculpture. Greek sculpture was more fluid and graceful than the formal, stiff Egyptian he was more familiar with.
He held out the piece to return it to Barbara and little by little realized that she couldn't see his gesture. Since his accident, everyone around him always anticipated his needs and wants. They hadn't expected him to act independently. He wasn't sure what to do next.
Barbara had moved away from Daniel and was seated behind her desk. She hoped that he might call to her when he realized he was stuck in the middle of a strange room.
The marble was too heavy for him to hold securely with just one hand and he was afraid he might drop it and it could break. It was too precious for that. He didn't know where any furniture was, so if he started moving around the room he might bump into something and drop the piece. If he put it on the floor then neither he nor Barbara would be able to see it and they could trip over it. He knew the door was directly behind him, so if he moved very slowly and slid his feet along the hardwood floor, he should be able to find someplace to put it safely down.
He inched one foot forward cautiously. Nothing. Good. He brought the other foot up to meet the first. After a couple of steps, he nudged up against a piece of furniture with his knee. He used his leg to feel around and decided it was a desk. He leaned down a little and found the top surface with his elbows. He moved them around, certain that there was nothing there and set the marble fragment down gently.
Barbara had heard him moving carefully toward her and let out a quiet sigh of failure. She really had hoped that setting him adrift would provoke a word from him.
"Well, Daniel, what did you learn from it? Can you tell what was carved on it?"
Daniel nodded, frustrated with his inability to communicate with her. If only she could see, she'd know what he was saying.
"I have several other pieces, but maybe you can examine those another time." She stood up, reached across the desk, found the marble piece and returned it to its home in on book shelf. "Come on. Let's go get some ice cream. Do you like Heavenly Hash? That's my favorite!"