Not to mention,
there had been more strange occurrences in our town. Two more college students
had been taken to the hospital, but lucky for them Jessica had paid them a
discreet visit and shared her Essence. I regretted taking so long in making my
decision to become an Amethyst, because maybe I could have learned something
from her sooner. At least I was here now, one hundred percent dedicated. And
Jessica was still willing to teach me. In order to have a chance though, time
was of the essence – literally. I’d been trying for hours but hadn’t sensed a
thing.
“Weeks, months,
years…that’s too long. I need this to happen today,” I said, releasing a
monster sigh. “Are you sure about my Essence?” I asked dejectedly.
She shook her
head and smiled. “Positive! You’re perfect Amethyst material.” Leaning back,
she added, “Accepting yourself as more than just a physical being is hard, but
this self-doubt stuff will destroy your chances of success. Take a couple deep
breaths and chill.”
I swallowed hard
and nodded. Several times I’d been on the verge of telling her about my
premonitions. I wanted to know if she thought I could heal myself after the
cougar attack. But it was the strangest thing; every time I opened my mouth, I
had to close it again, because a sudden wave of apprehension tore through my
body. It was like some inner instinct prevented me from telling her about my
ability. I figured I just needed more time.
She cleared her
throat. “I wish I could say I know how you feel, but I don’t. Since the day I
was born my mother was there to guide me every step of the way. I had
explanations even before I had questions. She taught me how to focus, how to
share my Essence, and how to heal others with it.” She paused, tucking her hair
behind her ears. “Lexi, your gift has always been a part of you too; you just
didn’t know it. I promise you can do this.”
Plucking a
handful of grass, I threw it into the air and watched the pieces flutter onto
my lap and over the blanket. “So the only thing delaying my becoming an
Amethyst is awareness of my own Essence?”
She nodded,
wrapping her arms around her legs she rocked back and forth. “Yes. You need to
sense it within yourself. For example, you don’t always think about your heart
beat, but right now if you concentrate, can you feel it beating in your chest?”
I closed my eyes
and blocked out the noises around me. “Yes, I suppose so.”
“Okay good. Now
you need to focus on becoming aware of everything your body is doing:
swallowing, breathing, blinking…” she stopped
herself. “Sorry, you know how easily I get carried away.”
“And once I gain
this insight into my own Essence, I’ll be able to heal people like you do?” I
said my tone skeptical.
“Of course!” She
sat straight up and clapped her hands together. “Once you understand how it
feels and how it flows, not only will you be able to sense Essence in others,
you’ll also be able to direct yours and heal them. Not to mention heal
yourself, if need be. You’ll never get sick anymore either. You’ll feel so absolutely,
amazingly incredible. But,” she frowned, “self-awareness, the first step, is by
far the trickiest.”
“Hmm,” I mused,
excited to hear I could heal myself if need be. “Well, how long did it take
you? Or were you born aware?” I asked critically.
She laughed
good-naturedly. “Oh, I wish. I mean, my mother told me I had it, but…” she
leaned closer and whispered, “I hate to admit this, but it took me a long, long
time.”
“How long?”
“Well, I’m sure
it won’t take you that long…”
“Jessica, quit
stalling.”
“A year,” she
admitted meekly.
“What? A year?”
I gnawed on my lower lip. I knew I had to get this figured out sooner than
that. I had probably three months – tops. A ball of anxiety rolled around in
the pit of my stomach. “And you think I’m going to grasp my own Essence in a
few weeks when I’ve gone 18 years and never known it was there in the first
place?” I asked incredulously. Panic caused the hairs on my arms to stand on
end. “You’re insane!”
“No. No, I’m
not.” She looked at my wide-eyed. “I have complete faith in my teaching
abilities and in your Essence.” Silence ensued. Then she giggled and pointed at
two kids who were tackling a huge granite boulder like it was a mountain. The
boulder was cut and polished at the top, creating a flat edge perfect for sliding
down.
A guy with short
blonde hair walked by, reminding me of Jason. I hadn’t seen him since he’d
abandoned me at lunch, but I’d been contemplating tracking him down at work. A
new thought popped into my head when I remembered the heat that sometimes
emanated from him. “Hey,” I said excitedly, “what does it feel like when you
become aware of, or recognize, another person’s Essence? I mean does it feel
hot or something?”
Jessica looked
at me strangely and then said with a sharp edge in her voice, “Not usually.”
She continued staring me down like she was contemplating what direction she
wanted to go with this discussion. “Lexi, it’s hard to describe. I could try to
give you some sort of analogy, but I don’t know how helpful or accurate it
would be.”
“Great! Go for
it. I’ll take whatever I can get.”
She sighed and
thought about it for a long time. “Okay, imagine it’s a blistering hot summer
day. Lucky for you, you’re hanging out next to a river, so you jump in and cool
down. As the refreshing, cold waters rush around your body, you relax and enjoy
the flowing sensations.” She looked at me and tilted her head.
“Got it,” I said
eagerly.
“When someone’s
Essence is normal, that’s what it feels like.” She rubbed her hands together.
“Satisfying and refreshing.” She paused, so I nodded and motioned for her to
continue. “Now imagine it’s that same hot afternoon, except there is no river.
Your only option is to plunge your feet into a bucket of lukewarm, stagnant
water. No flowing currents.” She crinkled her nose and frowned. “That’s what
it’s like when you touch someone who is hurt or really depleted of Essence; his
or her energy is so low it’s actually distressing to touch them.”
“Oh,” I said
with a frown.
She nodded.
“Now, let me explain how
your
Essence feels.” She reached out and
grabbed my arm. “When I touch you, your Essence rushes, like Niagara Falls.
Unstoppable! What’s amazing is that
yours
makes
me
feel
energized, and I don’t even need energizing. That’s what it’s like.”
“Really?” I said
quietly, and she nodded emphatically.
A loud bark
caused us both to turn around at the same time. A black lab with slobber
dripping from his jowls was bounding straight for us. Every bone in my body
tensed. All I could think about was the Mastiff from the alley. The friendly
lab jumped on Jessica, licking her face. His owner ran over and apologized
profusely, before scolding the dog and leading him back to the boardwalk.
Jessica just
laughed and hollered back, “No worries.”
“Yuck, how can
you be so mellow?”
“Oh, I love
animals. Besides, a little drooling love never hurt anyone,” she said wiping
her face on the edge of the blanket.
An interesting
question popped into my mind. “Jess, do animals have Essence too?”
A funny look
crossed her face, and her jaw locked. “Well, yes, but it’s different from human
Essence.”
“How?”
She bit her lip.
“Oh, I don’t know; it’s savage…more carnal, I guess.”
“Weird,” I said.
“So have you ever healed an animal?”
She gave me a
chilly look and shook her head. “No. We don’t mix human and animal Essence;
that can be very dangerous.” Her forehead creased with worry lines. “We can
talk more about that later, but now you need to focus on human Essence.” Rarely
did she speak in a tone that signaled the conversation was over, but there was
definite finality in her voice now.
I nodded. “Okay,
no biggie. Just curious.” Finding a small pebble next to the blanket, I tossed
it towards the water, but it fell short and bounced across the rocks. “Hey,” I
said excitedly and clasped my knees, “do Amethysts have any other abilities?”
She gave me a
tight-lipped smile. “What would make you ask something like that?”
Again, I
contemplated telling her about my snapshots, but thought better of it when my
skin prickled. I sighed and gazed into the bay. “Oh, I don’t know; it seemed
like a good idea. Characters in books always do.”
She relaxed and
let out a deep breath. Laughing she said, “Lexi, you’re a fiction nut. No, we
don’t have any other abilities. We’re extremely fortunate, though; saving lives
is not a gift to be taken lightly.”
I nodded in
agreement but had the feeling she was trying to convince herself, not me.
Secretly, I was disappointed. That would have explained a lot. “Do you ever
feel overwhelmed with responsibility because of your ability to heal people? I
mean, do you ever wish you were just – normal?” I asked quietly.
She sighed and
looked at me thoughtfully. “Oh Lexi, I suppose there are times when I wish my
life was simpler. But,” she shook her head slightly, “I stop and realize how lucky
I am to have such an extraordinary gift. I’m able to affect so many lives in
positive ways…even if most of the time people don’t realize it.” She stopped
and pointed to herself. “I know, though, and that’s rewarding.”
“I hear ya,” I
said.
She nodded vigorously.
“Besides, I don’t even like the word ‘normal.’ It’s overrated and shouldn’t be
applied to people. We all have different strengths, weaknesses, faults, and of
course problems. Yes, my life is different from others, but it’s wonderful. I’m
healthy, happy, and I have an amazing family and great friends. I might be
different, but I feel like I’ve been blessed, especially now that I’ve found
you.”
“Thanks,” I said
gratefully, bumping shoulders with her. What she’d said meant more to me than
she could ever know. I sat up straight. “You can’t bring someone back from the
dead…can you?”
She chuckled. “I
wish, but no. I can’t cure terminal illnesses either. My Essence is strong
enough to give a person that extra boost in the right direction, like someone
who’s going through chemo treatment.”
“Or like someone
who’s in a coma?” I asked. With a grim face, she nodded slowly, and I
continued, “You’d mentioned something about more people turning up in the same
condition, and you were going to need my help. What is that all about?”
Taking a deep
breath, she looked down, and fiddled with her bracelet. “Lexi, there’s so much
more for me to tell you and teach you. I’m afraid if I get too detailed right
now it will overwhelm you and distract you from becoming an Amethyst. I
shouldn’t have said all those things when I did.” She glanced up at me
pleadingly. Do you trust me?”
“Of course.”
She nodded, but
I noticed her clenched fists. “The college student that was comatose, he was
like that because his Essence was all but gone. Fortunately, a little of my
Essence was all it took to get his flowing again – his and the other two more
recent victims.” She eyed me warily. “I think we’ll see more incidents in the
future, and I have suspicions about what happened to his Essence,” she glanced
away, “but I’m not at liberty to talk about it yet. Can you accept that vague
explanation for the time being if I promise to give you more details when
you’re further along in your training?”
“I guess.” She’d
totally piqued my curiosity, and I wondered why she wasn’t at liberty to say
anything, but I, of all people, understood the necessity of keeping
some
secrets.
Relief washed
over her face, and she draped an arm around me. “Thanks. I promise there will come
a time soon when I can tell you everything, and I will need your help.” Drawing
away, she smiled and said, “Now, no more questions. It’s time to get back to
work. You need to focus.”
Eventually, the
sun sank lower in the sky, and we headed home. She dropped me off at my house
saying she’d call soon for an update on my progress. I promised to work
diligently. Little did she know my life depended on it.
Once inside, I
was surprised to find it was already seven thirty. Ally would be begging for an
update on the day’s episode of her favorite, real life soap opera:
The
Essence of our Lives
. I found a good-sized box waiting for me next to the
kitchen table with a note from Ally:
Lexi~
Looks like your aunt’s box has arrived. Ben and I will
be home after the movie. Don’t know what we’re seeing yet. I’m all about a
chick-flick and he’s dead-set on some shoot-em-up action show. (I should have
sent U with him). Chicken enchiladas in the oven. U R so lucky to have a best
friend that takes care of U!
J
But U R on dish duty!! Have
fun sifting through old books. I’ll expect a full report when I get home! Luv
ya, Ally
After eating, I
spent some time sitting quietly in the middle of my bedroom floor, meditating.
But still, I had no success in detecting any of the so-called Niagara
Falls-like Essence of mine. Frustrated, I took a break and began unpacking the
box. A short time later, dust balls were hopping all over my blue and orange
bedroom – a Denver Bronco haven. Posters of my favorite players, pennants,
bumper stickers, and jerseys pretty much plastered one wall.
I’d uncovered
several great books from the box, and most everything was in good condition. In
fact, they looked like they hadn’t been touched in years. I‘d carefully wiped
layers of dust away from
The Hobbit, The Secret Garden,
and
Dr.
Zhivago.
I was now holding a copy of Jason’s favorite novel,
The Great
Gatsby
. I felt like Christmas morning had arrived early.
Curious to see
if the novel had any real value, I spent a few minutes googling and found a
couple similar copies had sold between $4000 and $8000. I kissed the cover and
called my parents with the news, letting them know I had just found tuition
coverage. They’d laughed and said ownership of the book would be up for debate.
After a discussion about the other books I’d found, and a few questions
regarding my job, we finally hung up. Sitting down next to the pile of books on
my bed, I reached into the box again and pulled out a couple more novels before
pulling out the last item – a primitive, wooden box.