Archive for the 'Nina Munteanu' Category
The Arc of Time is a new take on an ancient tale and is dedicated to Lari Davidson. Lari accepted The Arc of Time for publication in Ultra! published by Aardworlf Publishing. This was to be the Premiere Issue of a benefit magazine for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Unfortunately, just shy of having it all ready to go to final print, Lari passed away suddenly. The magazine never went to print. If you download and read The Arc of Time, please consider making a donation to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in memory of Lari Davidson’s marvelous efforts.
I gaze out the window of my new apartment and wonder if the trees will ever turn. Or will the leaves just wither, brown and drop to the ground in anonymous heaps? My mind strays home to Quebec, a landscape where the recurrence of change lies under the sway of cold and drought, blossom and seed. Where the wind is like a fist. I used to watch it snatch the leaves and scatter flaming colours across the road. They soared like flocks of exotic birds, vaulting to a chorus of a chaotic harmony. I’d kick the leaf piles along the roadside and watch the wind beguile the odd leaf to a solo performance. But I’ve chosen to pursue my studies here, in Vancouver, where the Olympian conifers defy the seasons and command passive subjugation on an unmoving stage. Here nature has no clock. She stands still. Glancing at my watch, I grab my jacket and head for the university. The old cafe that I pass every day looks inviting. Longing for coffee, I enter. The dirty windows barely let in enough light to see. I smell lemon wood polish, cooking grease and old furniture. Johnny Lang drawls: “Lie to me and tell me everything’s all right. . . .” A smile tugs at my lips. This isn’t Starbucks. As I approach the service counter, I glimpse a young bearded man seated at a table. He’s wearing the same checkered shirt he wore during registration day when we shared a conversation while waiting in line. Does he remember me? I order a coffee then fumble with the milk and sugar. Carefully balancing the mug, I wander to a table close to his, wanting to share his company but not wanting to impose. He sprawls, reading a ragged paperback held in one hand and stroking his beverage with the other. As I stand poised at the chair, I catch him looking in my direction with a shy but inviting smile. He puts down the book. When our eyes meet, his smile broadens and he says in a pleasant tenor voice, “Hi.” I smile back, remembering the deep stare of those feral eyes. “Hi.” My hand grips the chair back haltingly. Sensing my indecision, he stutters, “W-would you care to join me?” “Okay,” I respond, feeling my cheeks warm under his guileless gaze. I contrast his awkward invitation to the boisterous charm of Eric, my ex-boyfriend back east, and find this young man’s unassuming coyness refreshing. As I take the seat across from him, he adds, “You’re Sarah, aren’t you?” “Yes.” I can’t remember his name. “Jim,” he reminds me. “Come to this hole often?” “First time,” I admit with a nervous smile. “Ah, that explains why you ordered the coffee,” he says, leaning back in his chair and scratching his beard. I notice he’s drinking apple juice and grin. “That bad, eh?” I sip the coffee and sadly agree. Definitely not Starbucks! “You’re studying to be a botanist, aren’t you? ”I nod, stunned that he remembers my area of specialization. I can’t remember his. “Maybe you can trace its origin,” he says with a crooked smile. His eyes sparkle with amusement. “Or maybe just use it in my chemistry class!” I laugh and lean back. “How do you like Vancouver? Pretty mild, isn’t it.” I shuffle my feet and lean forward, thinking of the eastern winds. “A little too mild maybe. I’m from Quebec where the seasons blow in and out. Land of the blizzards, you know. Seems like Vancouver only experiences two seasons: wet and wetter.” I’m relieved that he laughs. It makes his eyes wrinkle and his tanned face look like leather. I notice that the colour of his eyes match his shirt. He’d blend into the forest easily. “I know what you mean,” he agrees. “I’m from BC’s interior mountains. We get blizzards too. Since moving to the coast I’ve had to look for the seasons too.” His chestnut eyes draw me in. “Here, Mother Nature’s a subtle matter. You need to sniff her out.” The clock chimes the hour and he looks up. “Oops! I’m late for class.” He stands up. “Nice talking with you, Sarah. Maybe I’ll see you here again.” “Sure,” I say. “But I think I’ll order a tea next time.” “Good idea! Bye.” “Bye.” I watch him dart out with a wave. As I stroll toward the campus for my first class, an earthy perfume enfolds me in a heady embrace and I stop to take it in. Inhaling deeply, I distinguish a chorus of autumn scents from the heavy musk of decaying vegetation to the sharpness of the earth itself. I could grow to like it.
~ The End ~
Nina Munteanu hosts a wildly popular blog called The Alien Next Door where she magically juggles being a scientist and a story teller. An environmental consultant by trade, Nina is also a published science fiction author whose new book, Darwin’s Paradox, is scheduled for world-wide release November 1, 2007. Published by: Dragon Moon Press. Available at: Amazon.com and Amazon.ca.