Last Week's Festival

Green Glow

Leigh woke up at exactly six o'clock in the morning. She puts on her gardening boots and a white dress to water the plants in the early light. Today is the first day of her vacation. The watering can gives out a bit of water droplets, just right for the plants and succulents to drink. She thinks there is something about the lemon drops in the corner, there in the center of Grandma's flower arrangement. She thinks Grandma's landscaping skills are getting better everyday. She continues watering the plants.

By the time she reaches the lemon drop plant, she remembers a time in her life when she went to a cousin's birthday party. She has a theory about plants: they all give off a certain aura and atmosphere. She thinks the lemon drop plant is like an evening lantern in July. Christmas lanterns glow with sadness inappropriately, but lemon drops and cherry plants are not as harsh. She picks off a lemon and takes it home with her.

Her Father is just about ready to head to town for work. He has no idea about Leigh's quitting school. Leigh explains that she's already on summer vacation as she's just graduated. Father tips his hat and leaves with the morning carriage. His associate, Mr. Veerly is also inside. The coachman is Rodrigo Innocent, the son of local soupmakers Maryana and Roland Innocent. They have a soup shop down the road. 

As Leigh watches her Father coach away, she tries taking out a leaf of fax paper and writes anything she can think of. She doesn't know what to write about, but tries to write anything from her own imagination. 

She writes the following words, "House milk coffee is served. Do you have a tip, Chuck? I don't, Ron. So what brings you to these parts on a Christmas evening? It's not that I didn't bring my little bro and little sis any gifts, I just felt like going out and doing something out of the ordinary. 

I get 'ya, Chuck. You're not spending the Christmas evening with family. You instead chose to go out and have a good time. Or some time for yourself, for that matter. Chuck furrows his brow and remarks, "Yes. I suppose so." 

Ron sits at Chuck's table and asks him if he's seen the black lamplighters passing by. Ron replies No. Chuck goes on deeply about the GGG sect and where they've been these recent years. He notes that the government hasn't been around to telling them yet about the modern world. They're trying to catch them unaware and see what they've really got in mind. It's like a test of character.

Chuck passively listens. He relates some of Ron's anecdotes about the GGG to microfilms he viewed in his college days. Somehow it reminded him of feminist rally movements and the Tea Party. He doesn't have much to say, but Ron remarks that if they could actually tell their left hand from their right, they might get told that they're not so different from a bunch of revolutionaries."

Leigh punctuates her writing. Placing the leaf of fax paper in a leather folder, she takes out another leaf of paper and quickly sketches the scene in the window. She colors the scene with several greens (a set of colored pencils passed on by her grandfather). Leigh notes two garbage men fighting over something, standing straight in the middle of the window scene. She sketches from memory.

Lastly, she stamps the time as 10:41 in the morning. Sliding the drawing in the leather folder, she heads down to help her grandmother with the housechores.