Taking slow and steady steps she feels her way to her seat, at the back of the classroom, and sits down quietly. She rests her stick against the side of her desk and leans back in her chair. As the teacher makes an entrance kids walk by her waving their hands in front of her face, to see if she notices them. She does, of course, but it doesn’t seem that way. She can feel the soft breeze that their hands make in front of her pale cheeks, and sense their mocking intentions but she doesn’t do anything. The teacher calls the class to attention with the clapping of her hands. The noises of scuffling feet and shifting desks fill the air. She walks down each row, placing a different image on each desk. The children look from side to side to see how their friends react. The teacher walks to the front of the room picks up something and returns to the back row.
“Elara?”
All of the class turns their heads to the back corner, to get a glimpse of what is going on.
“Yes, Miss Levine.” Her voice seems to echo in the stiff silence that fills the room.
“I have placed an object on your desk please do not touch it until I instruct you to.”
“Yes, Miss Levine,” she replies in the same echoing tone.
“Very well,” Ms. Levine walks to the front of the room and writes on the chalkboard in a long old-fashioned script. “Students, I would like you to take a look at the things that I have placed on your desk. Your class assignment is to write a short composition that relates to the item I have given you. This is to test your creativity so don’t hold back at all! Any questions?”
The class is silent until a short girl with long blonde pigtails raises her hand. Ms. Levine walks closer to the girl and nods in her direction.
“Ms. Levine I am perfectly capable of completing this assignment but I really do worry, will she?” She turns around and points at Elara. All the heads turn to look directly at the back left corner of the classroom. And muffled giggles are heard throughout the room.
“Now, Jenny, you know better than to pick on people with handicaps.” Ms. Levine says after clicking her tongue in disappointment.
“Yes, but you must understand that being blind does not allow her to complete many assignments that we are given in class. And I find that unfair.”
Ms. Levine smoothes out her long, black skirt and walks over to Jenny’s desk. “I suggest that you get to work Jenny because thanks to your input the assignment is now 20 pages long instead of 10. And the rest of you! Get to work!”
The classroom is filled with a series of loud groans as the kids take out sheets of paper and begin to write. Elara begins to touch the object placed in front of her on the desk. Soft brown wood covers the outside of the box-like figure; its dainty designs are a pleasure to her fingertips. She recognizes a square shaped pattern that continues around the edges of the box. Each square in this pattern was of a different size and in a different place. The classroom slowly becomes silent as the children write fiercely. But just in time to end their enjoyment the school bell rings.
“Students, this assignment is to be continued, over the weekend for homework, you are dismissed.”
All of the kids get up and leave the classroom one after another, leaving Elara still in the back of the room trying to fend for herself. She picks up the box and her typing pad in one arm and feels around for her stick.
“You should be more careful where you put this next time, Elara.” Her teacher places the handle in her hand.
Recognizing the voice of her teacher she replies, “Yes Miss Levine.”
She taps her way towards the door, avoiding all the desks and chairs but barely missing the globe at the front of the room. In an impatient voice Ms. Levine exclaims, “Elara, that box is very important to me, so please don’t break it!”
“Yes Miss Levine.”
She feels her way to her locker and takes out her soft, woolen coat. She set down her things and puts it on. All the kids down the hall stare at her. She could sense their eyes searching her, and tracking her every move but she remained calm. She picks up her things, closes her locker and walks down the main steps of the school. Her driver was waiting for her outside, and he rushes out to help her into the car. She sits down on the leather seat, and places her books down next to her.
“Ms. Elara, I have to make a stop for gas so we might be a while getting home, you may want to let your step mom know.”
“Sure Markus.”
She picks up her phone and types up a message for her Stepmom. Markus turns the corner and stops at the gas station he got out of the car and paid a man at the counter. Elara, feels around the back seat of the car for the box. She finds it and drags it onto her lap. For some reason, it seemed to be heavier than it was before, but Elara ignored it. She felt again, around the soft wooden edges of the box, and suddenly something magical happened.
***
Where am I? She thought. She was standing in the middle of a barren field with small patches of green grass, there was a small brick house off to the side. She opened her eyes, and she could see, just like that, she could see! She brought her hands up to her pale cheeks and touched her eyes, the same eyes that her doctors had said would never see, were doing just that! She walked over to the small house and looked inside the glass window. Suddenly, a scream echoed throughout the field.
“Hello?” She called, but no one answered.
She looked down and realized that the door had been left open, and walked in. The wooden floor boards had big cracks in between them and through those cracks you could see the ground that lay beneath it. There was a winding staircase to the left and a dimly lit hall to the right. The scream was heard again coming from upstairs. Curious to see what it was she started to climb up the stairs. Muffled noises were and brief talking was heard, she slowly reached the top of the stairs and walked down the hall. At the end, there was a door left slightly open. She heard the scream again coming from the room up ahead. She cautiously stepped closer and closer towards the door and finally walked in. There were four people in the room, a small girl was squirming on the bed and a tall man who seemed to be a doctor held her still. There was a couple holding hands who were knelt beside the bed.
“I’m afraid that she’s blind, she won’t ever be able to see,” said the tall man.
The woman began to cry a waterfall of tears that came rushing down the sides of her cheeks.
“But that doesn’t explain why she doesn’t respond when we speak to her,” her father remarked.
“I left out a part……….. In addition to her having lost her eyesight, she has also lost her ability to hear.”
Her mother’s sobs became louder and her father placed a caring hand on her back. Elara gasped, and they all looked around carefully, trying to find the source of the sound. But still could not find her. So they can hear me but not see me, she thought. Knowing that, she held her breath to not draw any attention to herself before they went back to their business.
“ Then we will need you to send a telegram to her school principal telling them why she cannot attend school anymore.”
“Of course Mr. Levine, is there anything else I may assist you with?”
“No Dr. Jeffrey, that will be all.” With that the doctor packed up his things and left the room. If his name is Mr. Levine then he must be Ms. Levine’s father, she thought to herself. Then who is the girl laying in bed? Out of the corner of her eye she caught a small blonde curl leave the edge of the doorway she followed the curl and entered the room next door to the one that she had been in before.
The room was pink and small red roses decorated the walls, there was a small girl with blonde curls who was sitting on the window ledge. She was wearing a white dress with small pink flowers, she looked out onto the barren field and without turning around she spoke:
“Who are you and where did you come from?”
Realizing that the girl was talking to her, Elara slowly backed away.
“I know you’re here so don’t try and hide from me.”
She turned around and faced Elara, looking her straight in the eyes.
“Um, Hi my name is Elara, I’m from Boston, Massachusetts the year 2010.”
“What do you mean 2010? This is 1965! How did you even get here?”
“I don’t know, first thing I was in my car then I touched this box my teacher gave me and here I am.”
“What did the box look like?”
“I wouldn’t know, I’m blind it’s just that here in your time I can see.”
“That’s strange, but anyway the box must have been something from this time, or you wouldn’t have traveled all the way here.”
“All I know is that it had a square design all over it,” Elara bowed her head disappointed. She was never going to get out of here with no information. The girl walked over to her dresser and took down a box with blue and white squares. With the box in hand she walked over to her bed and motioned for Elara to sit down next to her.
“Sit down, this box is my sister’s, the day before she got really sick she gave it to me, I think this is the box your teacher gave you.”
Elara couldn’t believe her eyes. The box looked almost exactly as she had imagined it. She gladly took the box from the girl’s giving arms. Curious to find out more Elara spoke: “What’s your name?”
“It’s Elena, Elena Levine.”
That means that she’s Ms. Levine! Her face lit up with excitement she had finally found something familiar in this strange place.
“What’s wrong?”
“Oh nothing I’m sorry, I just thought of something funny.”
From outside the room someone called “Elena it’s time for supper!”
She replied “Yes mother! I’m Coming!” She quickly walked over and closed the door, she turned around and said, “It was nice meeting you but you better leave now!”
“Yeah….you’re right,” She picked up the box and closed her eyes to think of an escape plan. But before she knew it she was back……………………..
***
Markus had just finished filling up gas and closed the door, she couldn’t see anymore but she didn’t miss it all. After all, even one chance to see again was all she had ever wished for. He turned around to look at her,
“What’s got you so smiley?” He asked with a touch of humor in his voice.
“Nothing, it’s just that I finally figured out what to write my story about.”
They drove off as Elara hurriedly tried to get her story on paper, making sure that she didn’t miss a single detail of her strange encounter with Ms. Levine from another time. As for, Elena back in 1965, she was still wondering why the little girl was sent to meet her and what other strange powers this box held inside. Little did she know that their paths would cross again in 20 years on the first day of school. On that day the box would regain its power and once again it would be able to give each of its owners a small sight of time.
Shreeja Patel
Age 13, Grade 8
Hunter College High School
Gold Key