The Dryad
Around 1920 in Palo Alto, some new houses were built, and trees were planted in front of them. A family with young children moved into one of the houses. The children used to go out and play around the tree. They talked to it and drew pictures for it, and included it in their games. Eventually a shy girl around their age came out from the tree to play with them. She was a bit tall and thin. She had pale skin and dirty-blond hair that had a greenish tinge to it and deep green eyes. She wore a simple brown dress. They asked her what her name was, and when she responded with the sound of a spring breeze passing through leaves, they interpreted it as "Melissa".
Melissa became their dear friend, and although she could never go further than the farthest edge of the tree branches and roots, she was very good at hide and seek. One boy named Ryan became her special friend. They would sit together and talk for hours. As they grew up, he went to school, and they would do his homework together after school, sitting on the grass beneath the tree. The other children became active in sports and other activities that kept them away from home, but Ryan went straight home every day.
He learned gardening and carpentry from his parents, and kept the front yard in beautiful condition. When he was about 14, his father helped him build a tree house. Melissa carefully guided the work so that the tree house and tree were almost one cohesive unit. After that Ryan spent most of his time in the tree house with Melissa.
He wrote many passionate poems to her, expressing his love in deep spiritual terms. One day he had to turn something in to his English class and hadn't prepared anything, so he turned in one of his poems to Melissa. The teacher was so impressed he asked to see more, and eventually entered him in an English scholarship competition. It was the late 30's and money wasn't easy to come by, so his parents were very happy with the possibility Ryan could go to college.
By this time the tree had grown and was beautiful and shaded the street. Melissa was shapely with brownish hair and a calf-length green dress, in the style of the 30's. She talked to Ryan about all the affairs of the world, but somehow was not seen by anyone else.
Ryan won the scholarship, and not just to any college, but to Stanford. He was able to stay at his parents' house (mostly in the tree-house) while studying English and botany and horticulture at Stanford. In 1944 he was a Grad Student, but they were running out of men in the armed services, and he felt it was his duty to finally go, no matter how much he hated to leave Palo Alto. They shipped him off to Hawaii, where he helped man the fort at Diamond Head, but he never really saw any action. He took long walks in the hills of Oahu every day. Eventually his walk was lined with beautiful brown Polynesian girls who could not go beyong the scope of their tree. They through themselves on him, for they had been lonely ever since the old ways had started to disappear. He had one wild night, and then very so full of remorse he stopped taking his walks and saved all his money and bought a diamond ring.
In 1946 when he finally got home, he ran out to the tree in front of his parents' house, and knelt, with the ring out in front of him. It took Melissa about a half hour before she came out- then she ran and hugged him and kissed him, with sweet tears running down her face.
He made the aquaintance of a lot of ministers, and brought them around to his house for afternoon tea, one at a time, until one of them saw Melissa. This one he asked to marry them. The ceremony was performed in the tree house, with the only sister who could still see Melissa as the witness.
Ryan went back to Grad school and got his PhD in English and began teaching at Stanford. Everyone thought he was a bachelor, but with the impassioned love poems he was famous for, they wondered whether he was gay, or maybe he was secretly a Casanova, but they never saw him close with any man or woman.
His parents got old and wanted to move to a Condo in Los Altos in the 50's, so Ryan bought the Palo Alto house from them. He always spent every weekend in the garden, and his yard was the best-looking on the street. The tree became lush and magnificent, spreading its branches over the house. Melissa was able to come in the house, now, so he made up a bed in the room shaded by the tree, and they lived together as man and wife.
Around 1970 his property value started to sky-rocket, and he was inundated with offers to buy the house, at ever-increasing prices, but he always turned them down. He was middle-aged, wearing the braod lapels and wide pants of the 70's, with short greying hair. Melissa was still a young handsome woman, and strangely still dressed in the style of the 1930's.
In the 90's she had barely changed, but Ryan was so old he needed a cane to walk around. One day he collapsed and she caught him. She carried him to the bed and called 911. The ambulance came, but didn't find the cultured young woman whose voice they had heard. When Ryan was released from the hospital, he announced a contest for the inheritance of his property. Anyone who could write an essay explaining how and why they would take great care of his garden and trees and would sign a legal document that they would never tear down the tree or harm it in any way would be entered. He judged all the essays and had the finalists over to his house for the final drawing. One entrant was a Black Baptist Minister from East Palo Alto and his family. When they came over, they politely introduced themselves to Melissa, and the mother and Melissa talked for hours about cooking, gardening, children and world affairs. Ryan knew he had a match, since none of the other entrants had even seen Melissa. His home, which was now worth 2 million dollars, was willed to the minister's family.
About 2 years later, in 1998, Ryan died. The wind blew for days and many of the tree's leaves fell to the ground. The minister and his family moved in and had a housewarming party. The house and neighborhood were so full of life, and Melissa was in the party, singing and laughing for the first time in a long while. They live there to this day, and have found acceptable ways to answer stranger's questions about why there is a diamond ring around one of the inner branches of their shade tree.
Melissa became their dear friend, and although she could never go further than the farthest edge of the tree branches and roots, she was very good at hide and seek. One boy named Ryan became her special friend. They would sit together and talk for hours. As they grew up, he went to school, and they would do his homework together after school, sitting on the grass beneath the tree. The other children became active in sports and other activities that kept them away from home, but Ryan went straight home every day.
He learned gardening and carpentry from his parents, and kept the front yard in beautiful condition. When he was about 14, his father helped him build a tree house. Melissa carefully guided the work so that the tree house and tree were almost one cohesive unit. After that Ryan spent most of his time in the tree house with Melissa.
He wrote many passionate poems to her, expressing his love in deep spiritual terms. One day he had to turn something in to his English class and hadn't prepared anything, so he turned in one of his poems to Melissa. The teacher was so impressed he asked to see more, and eventually entered him in an English scholarship competition. It was the late 30's and money wasn't easy to come by, so his parents were very happy with the possibility Ryan could go to college.
By this time the tree had grown and was beautiful and shaded the street. Melissa was shapely with brownish hair and a calf-length green dress, in the style of the 30's. She talked to Ryan about all the affairs of the world, but somehow was not seen by anyone else.
Ryan won the scholarship, and not just to any college, but to Stanford. He was able to stay at his parents' house (mostly in the tree-house) while studying English and botany and horticulture at Stanford. In 1944 he was a Grad Student, but they were running out of men in the armed services, and he felt it was his duty to finally go, no matter how much he hated to leave Palo Alto. They shipped him off to Hawaii, where he helped man the fort at Diamond Head, but he never really saw any action. He took long walks in the hills of Oahu every day. Eventually his walk was lined with beautiful brown Polynesian girls who could not go beyong the scope of their tree. They through themselves on him, for they had been lonely ever since the old ways had started to disappear. He had one wild night, and then very so full of remorse he stopped taking his walks and saved all his money and bought a diamond ring.
In 1946 when he finally got home, he ran out to the tree in front of his parents' house, and knelt, with the ring out in front of him. It took Melissa about a half hour before she came out- then she ran and hugged him and kissed him, with sweet tears running down her face.
He made the aquaintance of a lot of ministers, and brought them around to his house for afternoon tea, one at a time, until one of them saw Melissa. This one he asked to marry them. The ceremony was performed in the tree house, with the only sister who could still see Melissa as the witness.
Ryan went back to Grad school and got his PhD in English and began teaching at Stanford. Everyone thought he was a bachelor, but with the impassioned love poems he was famous for, they wondered whether he was gay, or maybe he was secretly a Casanova, but they never saw him close with any man or woman.
His parents got old and wanted to move to a Condo in Los Altos in the 50's, so Ryan bought the Palo Alto house from them. He always spent every weekend in the garden, and his yard was the best-looking on the street. The tree became lush and magnificent, spreading its branches over the house. Melissa was able to come in the house, now, so he made up a bed in the room shaded by the tree, and they lived together as man and wife.
Around 1970 his property value started to sky-rocket, and he was inundated with offers to buy the house, at ever-increasing prices, but he always turned them down. He was middle-aged, wearing the braod lapels and wide pants of the 70's, with short greying hair. Melissa was still a young handsome woman, and strangely still dressed in the style of the 1930's.
In the 90's she had barely changed, but Ryan was so old he needed a cane to walk around. One day he collapsed and she caught him. She carried him to the bed and called 911. The ambulance came, but didn't find the cultured young woman whose voice they had heard. When Ryan was released from the hospital, he announced a contest for the inheritance of his property. Anyone who could write an essay explaining how and why they would take great care of his garden and trees and would sign a legal document that they would never tear down the tree or harm it in any way would be entered. He judged all the essays and had the finalists over to his house for the final drawing. One entrant was a Black Baptist Minister from East Palo Alto and his family. When they came over, they politely introduced themselves to Melissa, and the mother and Melissa talked for hours about cooking, gardening, children and world affairs. Ryan knew he had a match, since none of the other entrants had even seen Melissa. His home, which was now worth 2 million dollars, was willed to the minister's family.
About 2 years later, in 1998, Ryan died. The wind blew for days and many of the tree's leaves fell to the ground. The minister and his family moved in and had a housewarming party. The house and neighborhood were so full of life, and Melissa was in the party, singing and laughing for the first time in a long while. They live there to this day, and have found acceptable ways to answer stranger's questions about why there is a diamond ring around one of the inner branches of their shade tree.
posted by Catherine Weaver at 12:05 AM
1 comments
