Orphan Tales

The summer of 1995 in the town of Chancelade, France was, unsurprisingly, hot. The residents of this town in the Dordogne were accustomed to the blistering months of summer. Occasionally, their prayers for a break in the heat were answered in the form of a rainstorm, but this summer there had been little rain so far. And so it was on a stifling July day in Chancelade when a young boy and girl found themselves in the shade of a large oak tree, trying in vain to catch whispers of a breeze that might cool them off, unaware that their lives were about to change forever.

The sight of children outside on a summer’s day was perfectly normal, but the circumstances which brought this boy and girl to the oak tree were not. The tree was located on a large estate belonging to an orphanage, which, incidentally, was the home of the children. Henri and Eloise were sixteen years old and had spent most of their lives at the orphanage. Although neither of them remembered their parents, they didn’t mourn this fact. They considered one another not only best friends, but family. And, like family, they occasionally grew annoyed with one another, as was happening at this particular moment.

“Remind me again why we’re lying here instead of swimming in the river?” Henri asked, sprawled across the grass and feeling quite frustrated with both the heat and with Eloise.

“Because the others are at the river and I don’t have the energy to put up with them. You know as well as I do that they won’t stop teasing us until hell freezes over,” Eloise replied, her eyes closed as she sat on a low branch of the tree and rested her back against the trunk.

“I wish it would… at least it would get rid of this heat.” Henri muttered.

Henri and Eloise were not overly fond of the other children at the orphanage, who had an unfortunate habit of making fun of them for spending all their time together. They didn’t mind the teasing, but it did become somewhat tiresome. And so, the two children sought refuge under their favorite tree while the rest of the orphans swam in the river near the orphanage.

The orphanage had an interesting history. It used to be the home of an American woman, Emily Grant, who moved to Chancelade when she was in her forties, though no one knew where she had come from or what brought her here. Stories about her past circulated around town for years, but she never confirmed nor denied any of the rumors. Although she usually kept to herself, she became very close friends with a young woman, Marie, who had lived in Chancelade her whole life. The two women were constantly in each other’s company, and they eventually decided to establish the orphanage to provide a home for orphaned children around the region.

To the grievance of the orphans and Marie, Emily eventually developed lung cancer and passed away. Unsurprisingly, she left everything behind to Marie, who would continue to run the orphanage. The townspeople speculated that Emily had been an orphan herself, which would explain her wish to provide a home for other orphans, but no matter how much they pestered Marie for answers, she wouldn’t give them. She simply continued to take in orphans, and though children came and went, Marie’s love for every child in the home remained constant.

Marie was quite fond of Henri and Eloise and appreciated the fact that they didn’t cause trouble. She too was at the river at this moment, keeping watch over the other orphans. Although she noticed the absence of Henri and Eloise, she wasn’t concerned. She knew they were at their usual spot, under the oak tree.

As Eloise leaned against the thick trunk of the tree, her hands skimmed over the bark, feeling the rough texture which at this point she could almost commit to memory. She loved this old tree, feeling a sense of comfort and security in its long, tangled branches. She looked up at its crown and spontaneously decided to climb to a thicker branch a couple feet above where she was now. She had never ventured above the first layer of branches, but at the moment thought that the thicker cluster of leaves higher up might provide more shade and cool relief from the heat. Once she climbed up, however, she noticed a wide, deep hole in the trunk that couldn’t be seen from the ground nor the lower branches. Peering inside the hole, Eloise saw a large, rectangular metal tin, decorated with flowers that had clearly once been painted in vibrant colors, but had now faded with age. She gingerly picked up the box and dusted off some dirt and leaves, and climbed back down the tree with the tin in one hand.

“Henri, look at what I found,” Eloise said once she got back to the ground. She walked over to him and sat down. Henri noticed the tin in her hand and sat up right away.

“Where did you find it?” he asked.

“It was in a hole in the tree, further up the trunk,” Eloise replied.

“Is there something inside? Open it,” Henri said.

Eloise opened the tin, revealing a little black book and, to both her and Henri’s immense shock, wads of American cash. Each bill was 100 dollars.

“What on earth? Is that -- that can’t be -- real money? There’s so much! What was it doing in a tree?!” exclaimed Henri, picking up the wads and starting to count them.

“I have no idea! It’s American cash… do you think it belonged to Ms. Grant? But why would she hide it away?” Eloise replied, just as stunned as Henri.

She picked up the notebook and carefully opened it, flipping through the pages as Henri continued to count. Most of them seemed to be empty. She went back to the first page, and saw that, in the center, someone had written in neat handwriting: Emily Grant.

“This belonged to Ms. Grant! I was right, it must have been her money! But why would she hide it in a tree…?” Eloise said. Henri had just finished counting and looked at her with an awestruck face.

“Eloise,” he said, “there’s twenty thousand American dollars here. Twenty thousand!”

“Are you sure?!” she replied. Henri nodded, and Eloise shook her head in disbelief, turning her attention back to the notebook.

She flipped to the first page and read what appeared to be the only entry in the journal. Henri read the excerpt over her shoulder:

When I was thirteen, my parents died and I was sent off to an orphanage. I lived there for five years until one day, I discovered a box hidden in the garden. Inside was a stash of money, and a little black book belonging to the man who had established the orphanage. He wrote that he too was an orphan and had grown up in an orphanage. When he was seventeen, an old woman he used to take care of gave him a large amount of money. She wanted him to have an opportunity for a good life. And so he left the orphanage, moved to a faraway city, and got a job he was proud of. He married, had kids, and eventually established an orphanage that would someday become my home. Never forgetting how the kindness of the old woman helped him, he decided that in addition to providing a home for orphans, he would also provide an incredible opportunity for someone. I was the one who found his gift, and consequently discovered his story. I left the orphanage, moved to New York, and pursued my dream of becoming a journalist. Eventually, I decided to follow my other dream: to live in France, a country I had read so much about as a child and wanted desperately to see. So I eventually moved to Chancelade, where I met my closest and most loyal friend, Marie. She alone knows all my secrets, and knows of this notebook and box. When you find it, and if she is still at the orphanage, please tell her ‘Emily says thank you,’ though words cannot express how grateful I am to her. And then, my friend, the world is your oyster. Go off and explore, but always remember your humble beginnings and those who helped you. One day, provide for others as you have been provided for and give someone else a chance to lead their best life.

Eloise and Henri sat in silence for a minute, trying to absorb all they had read. It was difficult to imagine, going off on their own and seeing the world. Dreams that they thought would always remain dreams suddenly seemed possible. They turned towards one another and slowly broke out into smiles, which turned into chuckles and eventually loud, boisterous laughs at the prospect of the exciting future they had ahead of them. They leapt to their feet, bringing the tin of money and notebook with them as they ran back to the house, hoping Marie would be back from the river. As they raced across the fields behind the house and got closer to the backdoor, they saw Marie standing outside, smoking a cigarette.

She waved to them as she saw them running towards her, but her hand stopped abruptly when they got closer and she realized what they were holding. By the time Henri and Eloise reached her, a broad grin had stretched across her face. She didn’t seem surprised by what they had found, and indeed looked positively thrilled.

“I had a feeling it would be the two of you. The amount of time you spend in that tree, mon dieu,” Marie said as they stopped in front of her.

“So you’ve known this entire time?” Henri panted, out of breath from running.

“Of course,” Marie replied. “I’ve been waiting for someone to find it. Emily insisted that it be found without my help. She always knew the right child would find it. Or rather, in this case, children,” she added with a smile.

“So… so does this mean we can really - I mean - we could actually just… leave?” Eloise asked with some hesitance.

“My children, as Emily said, the world is your oyster. God knows I will miss you dearly, but what is more important is that you have a chance at life. Go explore, live your dreams. And remember to someday give the same chance to someone else,” Marie replied with a sad smile, realizing that she would have to say goodbye to the children.

Eloise and Henri looked at each other, silently agreeing that they would, in fact, take this chance. They each gave Marie a hug and ran into the house to their bedrooms upstairs to pack, deciding that they would leave that very moment and catch a bus to Paris, where they would start their adventure. When they came back down, they found Marie waiting for them at the front door. She wrapped both of them in her arms to give them a final hug.

“Take care of each other, and write to me frequently to let me know how you’re doing and where you are,” Marie said, trying to prevent the tears in her eyes from falling.

“We will Marie. Thank you for everything,” Henri replied.

The two children walked out the door into the open air and started to make their way down the driveway. But Eloise stopped abruptly and turned back to Marie, who was watching from the open door.

“Oh, also… Emily says thank you,” she said.

Marie smiled at the message, and watched as the two children turned back to the path, both a little nervous at what lay ahead but excited too, and comforted by the fact that whatever may come, they would face it together.