SOAR

The simple sounds people make, during their day to day lives, tell a tale. Each sound speaks volumes about the activities people are performing; it reflects their mood, their state of mind, and even their relationship towards one another. And so, the story being told about a family of three—a Father, a Mother, and their young daughter—is indicative to what is heard at that moment: the humming of a running engine on cruise control; the jostling and clunking noises made by a vehicle as it speeds down a road; and wind whistling through a partly open car window. Beyond those common occurances, there is only a deafening silence.

A little girl sits quietly in the back seat of a moving car. She watches the images fly by outside her car window. A storm is coming. The little girl felt it in her bones. It was going to be a bad one; she knew. Her tiny eyes frantically scan the outside of her window searching for something to calm her mounting fears. All she could see is a deep dark forest. A blue sky is overhead. The little girl keeps searching; her mind wants to escape. In that very moment, a fawn bursts from the bushes. The young girl gasps as she looks out at the fawn. The young deer stands on wobbly feet by the side of the road on the edge of the forest. The fawn stares out at the little girl. Their eyes meet. In that instance, their lives connect. The little girl is taken away from the back seat of her car. In a flash, another world appears before her eyes.

As a fawn, she happily grazes in the forest beside her family. The forest is peaceful and calm. She loved these quiet moments. It was the only time she ever felt safe.

High above, an ominous presence begins to rear its ugly head. The once clear blue sky is slowly marred by a looming grey horizon. Storm clouds appear (muttering-groaning) imposing their ire upon an unsuspecting forest. All the forest creatures look up at the darkening sky in dismay. On cue, a harsh wind displays its might by bashing the trees with its fury. She quickly makes her way towards her gentle family, when a lightning bolt sends a large tree crashing down before her. She cries out for her family to rescue her, but the angry wind and brooding sky muffle her plea. Another tree crashes beside her. She bolts. Her wobbly legs take her deeper into the menacing forest as she tries to escape the deafening storm. She dodges falling trees and angry wind as she desperately searches for a way out of the madness.

At last she sees her reprieve. At a distance a crack of light breaks through the blackened veil of the malevolent woodlands. She runs towards the light as quickly as her tiny legs can take her. The pulsating tempest continues to pursue her as she flees. It quickly gains ground with each passing moment. As a last ditch effort, she jumps head first into the light. With that one faithful leap, she transports herself away from the dark forest, away from the living nightmare, into the world of man. Her sensitive hooves don’t like the feel of the hard road beneath her. But the unconformable feeling is short lived as she remembers the raging storm lurking dangerously close. She could feel it all around her threatening to take her into its cruel embrace.

A car zooms by her. She sees a little girl sitting in the back seat of the speeding car. The little girl looks out at her, curiously. Within that instance, their lives intertwine into a shared consciousness, until a loud, piercing voice roars waking the little girl from her reverie.

The car swerves as the little girl’s father yells out at her mother. The mother throws back insult after insult as they begin their exchange of verbal assaults. The father’s face turns red with rage. His knuckles grow white as he clutches onto the steering wheel. They both scream simultaneously: words of venom; words of hatred. The little girl looks out helplessly at her parents. Tears well-up in her eyes. The father slams his fist down onto the dash board of the car. The mother hurls her purse at his face. The little girl cries out. Her sobs of anguish silence her parents. The couple grudgingly look away from one another—each stewing in the caldron of their own self-imposed misery. The little girl shrinks away from her parents, trembling uncontrollably.

An uncomfortable stillness settled over the family, for the stench from of the foul words still lingered in the air. The little girl knew that it was only the calm before a storm. A volcano still grumbles beneath the surface threatening to explode at any given moment. She is thankful for the silence, however, thankful for the peace. The little girl wipes her eyes and chokes back her tears. The images outside her window offered her a safe haven she has come to rely upon. Her eyes search once more. She looks out at the ever changing landscape before her.

A bird flies overhead. It appears as a tiny spec in the sky. The little girl cranes her head. She focuses her eyes to see as far as they could. At last she saw it in all its glory—an eagle. Its wings spread out wide as it dominates the sky with its presence. She smiles as she looks up at the majestic creature. The eagle is so high up, above all others. Nothing could ever touch it. Nothing could ever harm it. Her mind takes over pulling her away from her reality.

A tiny car drives down a windy road beneath her. She could feel her wings cupping the air as the cool wind hits her face. The dark forest stretches on as far as the eyes can see. A bright open sky is above her. She flaps her powerful wings achieving greater heights. The distant horizon beacons her with the promise of new adventures, new possibilities. She flaps her wings once more creating a distance between herself and the hateful world beneath her. The sky is now her domain: her sanctuary, her realm of wonder and imagination. It allowed her the opportunity to leave her worries behind, far, far away.