Window Seat

Part 3 of a story of a woman writing in a cafe

Dear Diary

I write of a little girl name me

of great big hounds having a little bit of Tea

I was 13 and was just having fun

when the hounds took off with me and run

I miss mama and wish she would come-

Tears stains the pages as if they could purge this hurt from my soul.

I wipe them from my sight, because no one can know,

He beat me when I cried

He beat me ‘til I fell asleep drifting away to a memory deep inside.

I breathe out the past and breathe in today

Sampling the countless herbal tea’s of a carefree cafe

My nose chases white peppermint, as we hide from oolong

Sunday morning shined down on ginger roots tea song

The radio plays “Summer Breeze” just to make me feel fine,

As it blows through the jasmine in my mind

I smile to myself, my place of peace was so kind

Living up to its name the cafe was truly a space to unwind

The wind-chime sounded as the door quietly opened

I look up from coziness to see a man see me unbroken

A breeze blew in from the open door

And it seemed we both were frozen in time forevermore

I never saw this man in my life, yet he seems so familiar

His scars say he fights, yet he has no aggression, so peculiar

His skin is dark like coffee, his eyes shifts in the light

Rolling from a deep dark brown to a rich caramel sight

He looks like child who has seen magic for the first time

Yet he does not trust it, afraid to unwind

I think back to when that magic was stolen from me

As the pain, anger, and fear start to well up in Tea

“Get it together girl, He not going to hurt you like the other”

As I look into his eyes, I see his truth as it lay deep undercover

He is like me yet nothing at all like Tea

I wonder of what is reflected in this souls mirrored tree

I see a wounded animal poured into a cracked mug of coffee brown skin

Afraid to love or be loved or even know his kin

I know that pain well. I’ve been in that hell

The wind shut the door behind him as if every ancestor said through will,

“Stop letting the cold in! You don’t pay the bills!”

The sudden slam of the door shook us from our trance

No longer were we interested in our curious dance

He turns away, caught off guard and embarrassed as well

“Great, a guy who handles his emotions like he’s twelve”

I watch him from the just beyond the edge of my perception

as we slide into our roles and play the age old game of deception

He goes to the owner and asks for some tea

And for a moment my heart stopped, I thought he meant me

I go back to my journal, as I should be back to my writings

Instead of hoping this man comes with happiness and good tidings

I track his footsteps, as I become increasingly aware

He is coming here, and no longer is over there

My heart starts racing, is there anyone around?

Maybe it was a trick, maybe he is the hound!

My thoughts get shorter as fear takes hold

How will I escape from horrors untold?

The steps stop as I slowly look up

Coffee brown skin cradles a cup

Will I meet my end in this place

I look up and see his face

His gentle smile

I knew then, I was going to be here awhile.

We spoke, with just a few words

You would think it was a flirt, but there were things unheard

He spoke of his pain

How after that rain he was never the same

I spoke of mine

And how some days were fine

Silence passed by

As we chased the sunrise trying to touch the sky

Two little kids hoping to collide

With peace that can only be found deep inside

So I closed my eyes

And I let my soul be the guide

Tea stood there, looking at a stranger

He was ten feet tall, looking quite the danger

It was the hound to get her!, but something had changed

A coffee brown boy was beside her, looking a little estranged

He took her hand and said “we must run

I know men like this, and trust me they’re no fun”

They dip and dive, jump and fly

Until they reached the center of self, and Tea starts to cry

It was her home, the afternoon she was taken

She could not bare to return back here or risk breaking

She could hear her mother singing as she cooked

It was like a happily ever after at the end of a book

The boy held her hand and told her of a plan

“This is your forest, a world to yourself

Where you could fit an entire mountain neatly on a shelf

The hound is truly a bad man indeed

But what he needs to succeed is for you to believe

For in this land he can hurt you if you will it

That also means you can focus and deal with it”

The hound found us!, he shifted into many forms

He was a preacher, a teacher, hiding in the college dorm

His face seemed so trusting, so friendly and sincere

Then it would shift into a scowl, complimented with a sneer

He became a drunk father, trying to get near

In one hand was a belt, in the other was a beer

He then became Coffee, the man right outside

That's when Tea realized that the hound had lied

Tea stood tall, and let the fear fall free

and declared “this is my temple, this is all of me

You will not harm me, nor come here any more

Get back in your cage, to be locked up forevermore”

The hound shrank back slightly, changing form again

This time it shifted into its true form, the man who caused the rain

It was her neighbor, the one who took her on this journey

And left her in the woods to be found and put on a gurney

The sight of him caused Tea such incredible pain

That she couldn’t look at him, reminded of the shame

The little boy squeezed her hand, telling her she can do it

Honestly that was the only thing helping her through it

The skies darken and tears began to fall

and turned into a storm, that threaten to consume all

She let the pain flow and it washed over the land like a flood

and swept away the hound without spilling a drop of blood

In time her sky cleared, and the pain ran its course

She defeated the hound, without an ounce of remorse

She looked up feeling the Sunday morning sunshine

and looked over at the boy, who was weathered but just fine

She wanted to say thank you, but something caught her eye

The memory of her home was looking quite alive

Her mother called her as supper was nearly done

Tea couldn't believe it, and almost took off in a run

She turn to say thank you, because her mama raised her well

He smiled big and said your welcome, “I’m glad your free from that jail.

You should go eat dinner before it gets cold,

I think you will find its good food for the soul”

Tea ran up to the fence then paused again

Then ran back to the boy and grabbed his hand

and she ran back nearly dragging him again

In her excitement she forgot to tell him the plan

“Mama!” Tea shouted as her mother turned to look

She looked exactly the same as the day Tea was took

“Oh where have you been!”,said mama “I see you brought a friend

Well pull up a chair, I'm ready to feed ten!”

I opened up my eyes, tears flowing free

It felt so good just to be me

I looked down at my hand that was holding Coffee

He was quietly waiting, not wanting to bother me

I let go and again we were released

He said he was glad I found peace

With that he rose and walked out towards the street

As I sat there watching him walk away from my window seat

I wanted to say more but it was best to let it be

The owner smiled and said he’s comes on Wednesdays at three

Author's Note

Thoughts? Would this be considered "Mature"? The intent was to try to tell a difficult story to youth who could be considered too young to need to know about but not too young to experience it.

Reviews

[Sho Aishe]

This is really good. I enjoyed reading it.

[Wonderin Jones]

Thanks! I hoped it would be well received.