Eyes of the Ocean

Carly pulled a chair in from the kitchen and set it next to the bed. She carefully took out all the supplies she thought she would need: a notebook, pen, pencil, tape recorder, extra cassette tapes. She thought she was going to get an interview, but it seemed that all she was going to get was silence.

"Um…Hi." She mumbled. "I'm Carly, your great-granddaughter."

No response.

"You see, I have this senior history project due, we need to interview someone who has experienced something that could be considered a critical point in history. I think my dad believed that you would be able to help me, but I can see you obviously don't want to be bothered."

Leah's eyes slowly shifted to Carly's face. Stunned, Carly allowed her notebook and writing utensils to fall from her lap. She quickly bent over to retrieve them.

"You know what, I'm sorry for even coming here and disturbing you, you obviously want your rest. So, I'll just wait in the living room…"

Carly's ramblings came to a halt as she felt one small hand upon her cheek. Her face turned to look at her great-grandmother. Brown eyes bore into her blue ones as another hand crept to her other cheek. Her great-grandmothers hands seemed as cold as an iceberg. The hands lifted her face slightly, and moved her face from side to side. Leah's lips parted and a small breath of air escaped.

"You have the eyes of the ocean." Leah whispered, "You have his eyes."

Carly was completely flabbergasted. Did her great-grandmother really just speak? After eighteen years of silence, Carly was shocked that she had heard her first words. Leah's gentle hands retreated from Carly's face.

"Please dear," She breathed. "Go into my closet, fetch me my box."

Leah's eyes once again gazed out the window. Carly jumped to her feet and made her way to the closet. She slid open the door and dropped to her knees. She crawled inside to search for the box. She could not find one. She went back to her chair and picked it up, setting it outside the closet opening. Carly surprised herself, she did not realize how determined she would be to achieve her great-grandmother's quest. She searched along the shelves of the closest, looking desperately for some kind of box. Just when she was about to give up, she saw it, hidden in the back corner.

Carly reached as far as she could and gripped the worn box. She carefully climbed down, and moved her chair back by the side of the bed. She placed the box onto her great-grandmother's lap and removed the cover.

"Place it here." Leah whispered, motioning to the other side of the bed.

Carly gently retrieved the items from the box. There were crumbled and faded papers she put on the nightstand. She also picked up and worn and torn brown sweater. The sweater seemed much too big for her great-grandmother. It also smelled of mildew and had a few holes; nevertheless, she placed it by her great-grandmother's side. Finally, there was a small bag within the box.

"Open it." Leah softly commanded.

Carly pulled open the strings and opened her palm. As she tipped the bag, a small silver ring tied to a worn string fell out. She gazed at the ring with intense curiosity. She then noticed her great-grandmother's open palm. She placed the necklace into her hand and watched as it slowly gripped the necklace. Leah closed her eyes, and she gave a soft cry of relief. When she opened her eyes again, they seemed to fill with a newfound emotion. A small, simple smile played upon her lips, and her shaky voice spoke with a little more strength.

"Thank you dear. I had begun to believe that I had lost this. So, my dear Carly, it is a pleasure to finally meet you, and your father is right. I can be of help to you."

"They told me that you have seen many things. Anything that you are willing to share, I would be open to hearing." Carly spoke eagerly.

Leah made a noise, which almost sounded like a laugh.

"My dear, I have seen many things. I have seen wars, I have seen peace, I have seen despair, I have seen depression, I have seen many joys, I have seen many miracles, and I have also seen death." She took a shaky pause. "My dear Carly, I have a very personal story that I would love to share with you, if you are open to hear it."

"Yes, of course!" Carly excitedly replied. She quickly slipped the cassette tape into the recorder.

"How old are you my dear?"

"I'm eighteen."

"Ah, I see. My story takes place when I was your age as well. Many unexpected things happened when I was eighteen." Leah knew that the story she was about to share with her great-granddaughter would be the first time she ever told someone what happened when she was eighteen. She knew that some parts of her story she would have to keep to herself. Even though she knew some things would remain quiet, she knew she could not prevent those memories from returning to her. With a small breath, Leah closed her eyes, and the memories quickly returned to her, as she begun to tell her tale.