eyes.”
Ruth squeezed her eyes shut. She saw the lady with hair to her toes.
She heard her mother speak again in polite Chinese: “Precious Auntie, I did not mean what I said before you died. And after you died, I tried to find your body.”
Ruth’s eyes flew open. In her imagination, the long-haired ghost was walking in circles.
“I went down into the ravine. I looked and looked. Oh, I was crazy with grief. If only I had found you, I would have taken your bones to the cave and given you a proper burial.”
Ruth felt something touch her shoulder, and she jumped. “Ask her if she understood everything I just said,” LuLing ordered. “Ask her if my luck has changed. Is the curse over? Are we safe? Write down her answer.”
What curse? Ruth now stared at the sand, half believing the dead woman’s face would appear in a pool of blood. What answer did her mother want? Did Yes mean the curse was gone? Or that it was still there? She put the chopstick in the sand, and not knowing what to write, she drew a line and another below that. She drew two more lines and made a square.
“Mouth!” her mother cried, tracing over the square. “That’s the character for ‘mouth’!” She stared at Ruth. “You wrote that and you don’t even know how to write Chinese! Did you feel Precious Auntie guiding your hand? What did it feel like? Tell me.”
Ruth shook her head. What was happening? She wanted to cry but didn’t dare. She wasn’t supposed to be able to make a sound.
“Precious Auntie, thank you for helping my daughter. Forgive me that she speaks only English. It must be hard for you to communicate through her this way. But now I know that you can hear me. And you know what I’m saying, that I wish I could take your bones to the Mouth of the Mountain, to the Monkey’s Jaw. I’ve never forgotten. As soon as I can go to China, I will finish my duty. Thank you for reminding me.”
Ruth wondered what she had written. How could a square mean all that? Was there really a ghost in the room? What was in her hand and the chopstick? Why was her hand shaking?
“Since I may not be able to go back to China for a long time,” LuLing continued, “I hope you will still forgive me. Please know that my life has been miserable ever since you left me. That is why I ask you to take my life, but to spare my daughter if the curse cannot be changed. I know her recent accident was a warning.”
Ruth dropped the chopstick. The lady with bloody hair was trying to kill her! So it was true, that day at the playground, she almost died. She had thought so, and it was true.
LuLing retrieved the chopstick and tried to put it in Ruth’s hand. But Ruth balled her fist. She pushed the sand tray away. Her mother pushed it back and kept babbling nonsense: “I’m so happy you’ve finally found me. I’ve been waiting for so many years. Now we can talk to each other. Every day you can guide me. Every day you can tell me how to conduct my life in the way I should.”
LuLing turned to Ruth. “Ask her to come every day.” Ruth shook her head. She tried to slide off her chair. “Ask,” LuLing insisted, and tapped the table in front of the tray. And then Ruth finally found her voice.
“No,” she said out loud. “I can’t.”
“Wah! Now you can talk again.” Her mother had switched to English. “Precious Auntie cure you?”
Ruth nodded. “That mean curse gone?”
“Yes, but she says she has to go back now. And she said I need to rest.” “She forgive me? She—”
“She said everything will be all right. Everything. All right? You’re not supposed to worry anymore.” Her mother sobbed with relief.
As Ruth drove her mother home after dinner, she marveled at the worries she had had at such an early age. But that was nothing compared with what most children had to go through these days. An unhappy mother? That was a piece of cake next to guns and gangs and sexually transmitted diseases, not to mention the things parents
Ruth squeezed her eyes shut. She saw the lady with hair to her toes.
She heard her mother speak again in polite Chinese: “Precious Auntie, I did not mean what I said before you died. And after you died, I tried to find your body.”
Ruth’s eyes flew open. In her imagination, the long-haired ghost was walking in circles.
“I went down into the ravine. I looked and looked. Oh, I was crazy with grief. If only I had found you, I would have taken your bones to the cave and given you a proper burial.”
Ruth felt something touch her shoulder, and she jumped. “Ask her if she understood everything I just said,” LuLing ordered. “Ask her if my luck has changed. Is the curse over? Are we safe? Write down her answer.”
What curse? Ruth now stared at the sand, half believing the dead woman’s face would appear in a pool of blood. What answer did her mother want? Did Yes mean the curse was gone? Or that it was still there? She put the chopstick in the sand, and not knowing what to write, she drew a line and another below that. She drew two more lines and made a square.
“Mouth!” her mother cried, tracing over the square. “That’s the character for ‘mouth’!” She stared at Ruth. “You wrote that and you don’t even know how to write Chinese! Did you feel Precious Auntie guiding your hand? What did it feel like? Tell me.”
Ruth shook her head. What was happening? She wanted to cry but didn’t dare. She wasn’t supposed to be able to make a sound.
“Precious Auntie, thank you for helping my daughter. Forgive me that she speaks only English. It must be hard for you to communicate through her this way. But now I know that you can hear me. And you know what I’m saying, that I wish I could take your bones to the Mouth of the Mountain, to the Monkey’s Jaw. I’ve never forgotten. As soon as I can go to China, I will finish my duty. Thank you for reminding me.”
Ruth wondered what she had written. How could a square mean all that? Was there really a ghost in the room? What was in her hand and the chopstick? Why was her hand shaking?
“Since I may not be able to go back to China for a long time,” LuLing continued, “I hope you will still forgive me. Please know that my life has been miserable ever since you left me. That is why I ask you to take my life, but to spare my daughter if the curse cannot be changed. I know her recent accident was a warning.”
Ruth dropped the chopstick. The lady with bloody hair was trying to kill her! So it was true, that day at the playground, she almost died. She had thought so, and it was true.
LuLing retrieved the chopstick and tried to put it in Ruth’s hand. But Ruth balled her fist. She pushed the sand tray away. Her mother pushed it back and kept babbling nonsense: “I’m so happy you’ve finally found me. I’ve been waiting for so many years. Now we can talk to each other. Every day you can guide me. Every day you can tell me how to conduct my life in the way I should.”
LuLing turned to Ruth. “Ask her to come every day.” Ruth shook her head. She tried to slide off her chair. “Ask,” LuLing insisted, and tapped the table in front of the tray. And then Ruth finally found her voice.
“No,” she said out loud. “I can’t.”
“Wah! Now you can talk again.” Her mother had switched to English. “Precious Auntie cure you?”
Ruth nodded. “That mean curse gone?”
“Yes, but she says she has to go back now. And she said I need to rest.” “She forgive me? She—”
“She said everything will be all right. Everything. All right? You’re not supposed to worry anymore.” Her mother sobbed with relief.
As Ruth drove her mother home after dinner, she marveled at the worries she had had at such an early age. But that was nothing compared with what most children had to go through these days. An unhappy mother? That was a piece of cake next to guns and gangs and sexually transmitted diseases, not to mention the things parents
Similar Books
