Elsa's Gift - Episode 4

Novella Thursdays

Chapter Three

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The sights, smells and sounds that had been with her since before she could remember. The way the sidecar vibrated with the motorcycle it was attached to as the main mode of transportation of her hometown drove her from the bus station to the simple dwelling known as home. This humble carefree environment might as well have been a universe away from the luxuries of the Fujimoto estate, leaving Elsa with the perplexed feeling that no matter how much she might achieve after fighting so hard to escape such harsh conditions she may find no greater peace than when amongst her origins.

Ken was right behind her, being driven in a sidecar of his own due to his size, and when the two motorcycles pulled up to the home of the Velasquez family all came out to greet their beloved Elsa and her foreign companion. Soon thereafter, dinner was served.

‘Is this your first time to eat Filipino food?’ Mark, Elsa’s older brother asked of their guest.

‘Yes. It’s very good.’

The brief exchange gave Elsa’s young niece the courage to ask a question of her own. ‘You eat raw fish?’

Mark began to scold his daughter for asking such a thing, but Ken was happy to answer. ‘No, that’s ok,’ and turned to the curious little girl.

‘Yes, I do. It’s called sushi. The people of Japan eat sushi because it is the closest form to the purity of the providing sea.’

His insightful answer produced a giggle from the young one, followed by a mispronunciation that had them all joining in the laughter. ‘Shushi?’

Later that evening, once Elsa had familiarized Ken with the three basics of Filipino-style bathing, (bucket/scoop/water) she joined her father by his bedside and fascinated him with stories of Japan and a few pictures of some bridges.

That night Tatay had fallen asleep with a smile on his face.

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As mother and daughter prepared breakfast Ken walked into the kitchen, handing Elsa a bottle of water and a single pill wrapped in plastic. Once she took the vitamin Ken headed for the makeshift bathroom, concerned mother asking her youngest about what she had just taken.

‘It’s nothing,’ Elsa replied in Tagalog. ‘Mr. Fujimoto just likes to keep us healthy.’

Maternal instinct was telling the seasoned parent otherwise, but before she could press her daughter on the matter Elsa removed the pot their meal was in from the open flame and sat it to the side.

‘I’ll let them know breakfast is ready.’

Elsa had felt it. The unspoken worry emanating from her mother, but how could she respond? By cluing her in on some of the oddities she had experienced while gone? And run the risk of afflicting the family with another heart attack?

Absolutely not. This opportunity of a lifetime was just that, with Elsa about to prove such as she approached Mark with her hands to her back.

‘Hey brother, breakfast is ready.’

Mark looked up from his woodwork and over to his sister, the memory of their childhood bringing a smile to his face. ‘It’s nice to have you home.’

‘Remember that time you tried to make that electric chisel?’ she asked him.

His reminiscent smile turned into an embarrassing grin.

‘Yeah.’

‘You kept saying how you were going to be able to do twice the work in half the time. But every time you would try to get it to work, either the chisel would break or the engine would burn out.’

Mark nodded, blew the shavings off his carving and went in for a few more strikes with chisel and hammer.

Elsa brought her hands from around her back, revealing