"An Inspirational Constellation"

“An Inspirational Constellation”

by

Barbra L

On the grounds surrounding the beautiful cathedral, stood an old woman revelling in the sound of the a cappella voices trilling from within the basilica. Warm thoughts embellished her memories of the years she’d sung in the choirs directed by the best Kapellmeister directors in Germany. A groundswell of applause had most always rewarded their talents, but the welling up of tears from those touched by the hymns of old, had come to mean more to her now. Over the years, verses from particular hymns had indwelled themselves within her, helping to quell her anxious states of mind and disheartenment. Her mistrust of people, fears and the lack of fellowship had made it painfully difficult to have hope. It was as though someone had cast a spell of loneliness over her and she had become shell shocked from the war within her.

After the singing voices stopped, she felt compelled to go to the pond on the cathedral grounds and sit on a park bench nearby before going home. The smell of fresh bread delighted her senses as she opened the fresh loaf to share with her creature friends. Her well-timed gesture delighted them as much as the smelling of the loaf had her. The shier creatures seem to mellow toward her when she fed them. Funny how wellsprings of joy would surge up within her after she’d made something or someone happy! Telltale signs of darkness were beginning to intrude on her visit now. Propeller, her cat, would be waiting.

She made it home safely. Propeller was happy to see her. After she fed him, she sat down and looked at the day’s mail and came across a TV guide. Odd Fellows, a show about England’s 18^th century social and charitable fraternity club, was on Channel 3, Sellers of Diamonds, a low-budget movie, was on 13, The Pre-Chellian Culture, a documentary about a period in which the crude stone hand axes were used, on 9. Moselle Wine, a sweet, dry white wine named after the Moselle River in France, on 2 and A Beautiful Look at Wells, a city in Somerset, England on Channel 5. She would watch the stars…

Outside, the sky was brilliant with its nighttime splendor. Mrs. Kellerman, the old woman, had quite a bit of knowledge of the sky; constellations, in particular. She noticed in the distance over the trees, the beautiful Capella, the brightest star in the constellation Auriga whose name means charioteer or the chariot driver. As she studied the beauty of the Capella, an idea came to her as to how to help herself from beneath the spell of this hellacious despair and loneliness. Since her joy came from giving, she needed to give back to others what she had. The library was searching for a part-time volunteer to spellbind its reading circle with knowledge of the sky. Why not volunteer herself and begin the fellowship with others through sharing her knowledge with them?

She shared her joy with Propeller…

© 2007 Barbra L