A Love so Great

A Love So Great

 part 1 of 3

September 2010
 by Tiffany

            Little 4 year old Chin Yo lifted her eyes to the face of the giant of a man that loomed in the doorway.  This man, whose name was Father Nathan, had an almost kind face.  This face, that would bring back warm memories and love in the future, now only struck fear in the little heart of Chin.

               She looked down at her toes, then once again met Father Nathan’s gaze with her big brown eyes.

              “Hello, little girl. What is your name?”  The man asked in a soft, mellow voice.

               “Chin Yo?”  The little girl ventured back.

               “Well, what a wonderful name! I’m Father Nathan,” he informed Chin.

               “Papa? But you’re not Papa! He died!”  Chin sniffled, bravely fighting back the tears that welled up. Father Nathan knelt down beside the sobbing child and comforted her.

               “It’s okay Chin.  I’m here to take care of you now.”  With a sudden impulse Chin threw her little arms around the priest's neck. 

            “Now you can come with me and everything will be all right!" the priest soothed. "Come on.”

            Chin followed obediently out the door and took one last look at the house that had been her home.  Although Chin had been very sad, there was a certain excitement that came with going to new places that was irresistible and soon took effect on little Chin.

               The train that she boarded was a great wonder to her, and poor Father Nathan had the hardest time keeping her sitting down.  When the whistle blew and they got off the train, Chin was sorry to leave the great “Running houses” as she called it.  But the town they soon entered (it seemed like a city to her) was so interesting with its shops and strange buildings that she soon forgot completely about the train ride.

               The streets were lined with houses and stores, some were very tall, others only one story high, but to Chin they all were very tall. The two entered a very large building with a high wall surrounding it.  Following Father Nathan, Chin began walking through a large courtyard with a drab fountain sputtering in the middle.  Beyond the fountain Chin noticed some ladies dressed in black as if they had just come from a funeral.  She wondered if they were going to her parents' funeral.  She inquired about this and Father Nathan absent-mindedly answered,

               “Why, yes, of course Chin.”

              A small squeal of delight escaped Chin and she happily skipped along, thinking that life here might not be so bad if these people had known her parents and loved them too.  They didn’t seem very sad, but well… Chin dismissed it from her mind and looked at the surroundings as they passed the veiled ladies.  They climbed a steep stairway at the top of which was a door.  Father Nathan unlocked this and they entered.  Chin thought it was a lovely room with two windows, a large bed in the corner, and a smaller one next to it.  To this smaller bed, Chin ran and buried her face in the covers with pleasure.

               “Is this my bed?” Chin inquired in her small voice.

               “Yes, that’s your bed, right next to mine.” Pure joy shone from Chin's face.  Her sorrows were forgotten.  She was a completely different person than the woebegone child that had stood in the little room when the two had first met.

              That night lightning flashed and thunder rolled.  Father Nathan was sleeping peacefully next to the small bed that was supposed to contain Chin.  But she was not there.  Something tugged at Father Nathan’s pillow.  He rolled over, opened his eyes, and saw Chin’s frightened face.

               “What is it Chin?” he murmured sleepily.

               “Can I come and snuggle in with you?”  Chin’s timid voice and trembling body were too irresistible, so Father Nathan drew back the covers and waited for Chin to climb in.  Within minutes after Chin was safely under the covers, she was soundly sleeping, her little body rising and falling in peaceful slumber.

-   -   -

            Chin was five years old now, old enough to get Father Nathan's and her own food from the shopkeeper down the street.  She was sitting on the stool intently listening to one of the shopkeeper, Mr. Lawrel’s numerous stories.

               “And they lived happily ever after.  Oh, and here's your food, little Chin.”  Mr. Lawrel reminded her, handing her the food while stroking her head lovingly.  “And how is Ol’ Nathan doing, is he taking care of you well?”

               “Why, yes!  Of course, why wouldn’t he be?” Chin answered confidently.

               “Well him being single an’ all.  And I don’t think he really loves you!  I mean, think about it, how much time does he spend with you?”

               “Well, not that much, but....”

               “See? He just makes you get his lunch and clean up his room. Whereas here you would get a mother and you wouldn't have to work those little legs of yours so much. But anyway I'm using up your time. You'd better get along to your Father Nathan."  Mr. Lawrel said the last sentence in a mocking tone that made Chin think a bit.

               Soon afterward Chin entered the small room that had been her home for more than a year.  She handed Father Nathan his food, sat down on his creaky bed, and ate her own in silence.  Does he really love me?