Duitse Amháin

November, 1995

Ellie sat quietly at her grandmother’s bedside. She watched as Gram slept, snoring ever so softly. Outside, the snow had just started falling again but Ellie was in no mood to play. Her forehead wrinkled into more creases than a six year old princess should ever have.

“Why does she have to have loopers?” she asked her grandfather.

“It’s called lupus Sweetpea, and I don’t know, really,” Grandpa sighed. He patted her fiery red hair and gave her a weak smile.

“I don’t care, it’s not fair Grandpa!”

“I know Sweetpea, but Gram is tired. Soon she'll be free from her pain, and Heaven will welcome a beautiful new angel to watch over us.”

He sat down in his armchair beside his wife’s bed and grasped her hand. It felt cold, just like the miserable weather. His eyes welled up with tears. “I love you, Alma.” He felt a last little squeeze from her hand, and then it relaxed completely. A soft sob escaped his lips. Ellie threw her arms around Grandpa's neck and held on tightly as the tears streamed down her cheeks.

June, 2020

Ellie stood in front of the old house with a heavy heart. This cozy old craftsman was where her grandparents had raised her after her mother died during childbirth. Family memories came flooding back to her in an instant. Even the not-so-great ones. Grandpa remarried a few years after he lost his beloved Alma, and Ellie wasn’t terribly fond of her step-grandmother, Patricia. She hadn’t been back to visit much since she graduated college and moved away, and now the pangs of guilt bore through her like a hot poker. Why did she stay away for so long?

The screen door creaked open and a sharp faced older woman croaked to her.

“Are you just going to stand there all day? I have things I need to do Ellie.”

“Hi Patty, sorry.”

Ellie took a deep breath and trudged up the walkway. Might as well get this over with as soon as possible, so she could leave and never look back again. She stepped into the house and looked at the disorder everywhere. Her throat tightened at the sight of all the packing boxes.

“Your father left me with a big mess to deal with, I’ll need you to give me some help. All this useless junk I’m not taking to my next place will need to be sold or put in storage. I would like everything packed by the end of the week.”

Ellie stifled a giggle as she imagined how she was going to wrap Patty up and stuff her into a moving box with the rest of the 'useless junk'. She walked over to the dining room table where the good china was stacked, next to a few piles of newspapers.

“You’re getting rid of the china?” asked Ellie.

“It was your grandmother’s, not mine. I never could stand that ugly pattern.”

Ellie frowned. “Why didn’t you tell me? I would love to have this!”

Patty grew impatient. “Look, I don’t have the time to sort through everything and give you all kinds of valuables. I need the money so I can move somewhere nicer. The condo I have picked out is very exclusive Sweetpea.”

Ellie rolled her eyes as Patty turned and walked away. “Rotten witch.” she muttered under her breath.

Just then a glint of gold caught Ellie’s eye. On the top of a stack of old books piled on the table, looking very out of place, was a small black leather book. It was exquisite. The leather was in perfect condition, the design of a tree embossed in a green foil on the front. Gold gilded the edges of the pages, and not one bit of it was worn off. A red silk bookmark peeked out of the bottom, and the words Duitse Amháin adorned the front. “Wow!” she gasped. It instantly felt special.

Patty quickly made her way over to the table to see what Ellie was examining. She snorted a laugh when she saw. “THAT moldy old book? You can have that. I don’t even know why your grandfather kept that book, there’s nothing in it anyway.”

“I would love to take this book with me.” Ellie held it close to her and felt at peace for the first time since she arrived back at her childhood home. She wondered what her grandfather had intended to use it for, for it was indeed blank inside. She stuffed it into her shoulder bag and got to work helping Patty pack up the old house.

September, 2020

Ellie sat at her desk, crying tears of frustration. Her bank account was overdrawn and the mortgage wasn’t even paid yet this month. Her husband had decided to clean out their joint bank accounts before running off with his twenty four year old girlfriend, and Ellie had no idea what she was going to do next. She stared off in space, misty eyed. “I miss you so much, Grandpa. You always had just the words I needed when my heart was broken.”

Suddenly the image of the old black book she took from her grandfather’s house popped into her thoughts. She went over to her night-side table, where she had put it as soon as she got home from helping Patty pack. Due to all the recent fighting with her husband she had almost forgotten about it... until now. The moment she picked it up that same peaceful feeling overcame her, just like before. She slowly grazed over the odd title on the front with her fingertips.

What could it mean? she wondered.

A quick search on the internet proved successful, and the excitement in her started to rise. “Duitse amháin” she tried to pronounce out loud. “For you only.” Ellie opened the book, and she gasped audibly when she saw the words now inside. They were written in cursive, with the most beautiful iridescent purple-black ink she had never seen before. Intrigued, she started to read the shimmering message out loud.

"For Sweetpea~

Embrace this otherworldly dance

In a realm of mystic dreams.

You wandered here~ through magic guide

By chance, or so it seems?"

The rest of the pages were filled with some kind of peculiar script, almost like hieroglyphics.

Ellie wiped her wet cheeks with the back of her sleeve.

How on Earth is this even possible? she thought. She let out a laugh as she flipped through the pages. "These were blank! I must be going crazy!" she scoffed.

Less than a minute later, Ellie was down in the kitchen fixing a pot of coffee. She was determined to look through the whole weird book, even if it meant she had to stay up all night. As the coffee brewed she sat at the kitchen counter and started to get lost in the magic of Duitse Amháin....

Ellie gazed over all the symbols contained in the pages. It didn't make sense, yet somehow she felt like there was important information there, just for her. She couldn't take her eyes off the strange writing. After a couple of minutes her head felt light. Her vision blurred, and when she looked around her, the colors in her home started to brighten, twinkle, and blend together in a swirl of technicolor. Life suddenly became a glimmering scene of beautiful art. Ellie felt like she was flying among the stars.

Suddenly, she felt a tug all the way to her core. The book felt somehow magnetic to her, and she felt every cell in her body become almost invisible. The strange words suddenly raced towards her, and her entire body was buzzing as her world slipped away completely.

Light peeked through Ellie's eyes. The fresh smell of green grass and wildflowers filled her senses and she inhaled deeply. Slowly she focused on her surroundings as she came to. Ellie sat up from the soft grass and took in the beauty that surrounded her. She realized she was in a serene meadow amidst gently rolling hills. Trees and flowers dotted the horizon, and the sun was blazing in the crystal clear azure sky above.

A shadowy figure approached her quietly, shimmering like a mirage. As it drew close Ellie's breath hitched. There, in front of her was a handsome man who looked to be in his 50's.

"Grandpa?"

"Hi Sweetpea."

"But..... how?"

"You read the poem, didn't you?"

She nodded in disbelief.

Grandpa looked up. Ellie followed his gaze to the sky. A weird square shape seemed to hover above them. At closer glance Ellie realized she could see the pattern of her kitchen wall paper through the mist that covered the cut out in the sky.

This can't be happening. I must be dreaming! she thought.

"It's real Sweetpea."

Ellie ran to him and hugged him tight for a long time. She marveled at this simple moment, but still worried that she would wake from a dream at any moment.

"Come with me, I have something to show you." he smiled.

A little stone path opened up in front of them. They walked arm in arm through the meadow until they came upon a little cottage. It looked like something out of a fairy tale. Ellie couldn't wait to see inside.

Grandpa opened the door and went in. She followed close behind, barely containing her excitement. Inside the cottage was every little girl's dream. It was almost as though it was decorated by a bunch of bunch of cheerful elves, right down to the gnarly wooden furniture. Ellie thought she was in heaven.

Standing beside the fireplace was a beautiful dark haired woman, smiling. "My darling little Ellie, you look so beautiful!"

"Gram?"

"Yes dear, it's me."

She looked so young and vibrant. Ellie's eyes filled up instantly. They embraced, and the pent up sadness of missing Gram turned to joy as they laughed together. Grandpa sat at the little table, his heart swelling with love at the reunion playing out before him.

A moment later, with a slightly more serious look on his face he said, "Let's talk now, Ellie."

The three sat at the table and conversed over tea and Gram's homemade Irish tea cake. Ellie learned more about this strange and ethereal world as Grandpa spoke. She was fascinated and hung on every word.

"I know you've been struggling lately, Sweetpea. That is all over now though. When you go back to your life, it will be different. You will be bringing a piece of the magic with you. Your life will be better than you could ever have imagined. Money will be as unlimited as your imagination, all you'll need to do is think about what you need and it will flow to you. A huge house, all new clothes, expensive cars...just imagine it and it's all yours. You won't have a worry in the world!"

Ellie frowned. "But I don't want to go back. I don't care about the money or any other useless junk. I belong here with you both, I know it."

Grandpa and Gram exchanged a knowing look.

Grandpa smiled. "I thought you might say that, and that is fine with us. You must understand that the window doesn't stay open forever though. Once you've made up your mind, you must live with your decision."

"There is nothing left for me back there." Ellie replied stubbornly.

"Well then, I have someone who has been waiting patiently to see you again."

Ellie knew exactly who Grandpa was talking about, and could hardly wait to meet her. As the three walked through the meadow they passed where Ellie came through just hours ago. Ellie looked up and noticed the window was barely visible anymore. She smiled and squeezed Grandpa's hand.

Epilogue

The coffee in the pot had long since grown cold. A thick layer of fuzzy green mold floated on top. A dusty old black book lay on the kitchen table. The severely worn cover kept its title a mystery. Inside, the pages were tattered beyond readability, but that didn't matter, for they were blank.