Bona Fide Image VII

Linda had read in a poem by Neruda, "How short can love be, yet how long it is to forget." A lone tear ran down her face as the adjacent waterfall laughed in glee.

When the heart knows, that is enough. No need to work so hard to create the illusion of happiness. The happiness felt within is genuine and changes in form. Be it from simple contentment, to overflowing joy. On the opposite spectrum, the pain can be gut wretchedly deep.

Linda had had a crash course on both emotions, on a very genuine and profound level. As she sat under the shade of a tree to contemplate her situation; she concluded that she had no regrets. They had loved each other intensely for the duration of two months, and she loved him still. She would harbor the good memories, and harbor the life which resided within.

Now she had to break the news to her parents, and face the reality that Phillip might not ever know of her condition. Since he’d abruptly left two weeks ago, she had not heard from him at all. Phillip had gone back home due to an emergency he had been told.

Linda hugged her knees and nestled her face between those, as the festive waterfall drowned her heartfelt sobs. Even so, the pain was so deep, that it alarmed the birds, monkeys and fauna. They were exalted and alarmed by the grief racking Linda's body as it trembled as if she were dying of excruciating pain.





-“I should not be telling you this son, but you don’t have to do this.” Clare said this to Phillip as he was eating his breakfast. This would be the last day he was living under Clare’s roof. He was getting married later that day.

-“How can I not mother? Cindy is pregnant with my child. How can I make my child a bastard? I just can’t do that.” Phillip said this with the resolution of a man that must face a formidable challenge.

Grasping his hand, Clare tried one more time to dissuade Phillip from making the biggest mistake of his life. –“Phillip you can be a father and be there always for your child, without having to marry the mother. I know that is contradicts tradition and the church, but I know that is not the woman for you! Look how even at this stage she is using the baby to hijack you into submission. She is refusing to sign a prenuptial, knowing that either way, you feel obligated to marry her, and in the event things don’t work out, she will grab a lot of money.

It’s still not too late Phillip to back out. Remember that, and for the records, I don’t give a damn for convention.” Clare said persuasively.

The sunlight filtered into the court room that afternoon. The solemnity of the place gave the caricature of the event an egregious savor. As he observed Cindy’s malicious and triumphant gleam in her eyes, Phillip had the sinking sensation that he was leasing his life to a long prison term.

With pain in his heart he agreed to marry; he was sorry that he was not marrying the girl that he had come to genuinely love.

As they were declared husband and wife, and he took Cindy into his arms to kiss her, he closed his eyes and for a moment he imagined he was kissing Linda instead.




To be continued….