A price so high

“It will soon be day mother” The soft voice said to the fragile looking figure of a woman

“I know darling, we should get ready” The mother replied to the young girl, who was no more than six or seven years old “We have to come back inside”

The mother and daughter lied together on top of a long wooden church bench, along with the figure of other people who were chatting or playing silently in the stone church.

“I don’t understand mum” The child said, “what did we do to deserve this?” asked the little girl, unable to understand the reason why her life was more similar to the one of a prisoner.

“We are being helped sweety, if it wasn’t for this, we wouldn’t be here today” The mother replied in a sweet tone of voice “We have been hiding for so long” she sighted “years seem centuries now” she added “but if it wasn’t for this, we probably would be having this conversation in heaven, with your dad and cousins” the mother concluded.

“Why do they hate us mother?” the little girl replied worried “after all, they share the same God of those who are hiding us, and they seem to think they are doing what’s right” The girl concluded.

“I can’t think of a correct answer my dear girl, all I know, is that we need to survive, we have come so long, and the end is near, I can feel it” The mother answered in a hopeful voice and with tears in her eyes.

“Mother” the little face shinned with doubt, “Is this the price we have to pay?”

“what do you mean Hun” the mother replied confused.

“I don’t think that we own our lives mum” The girl continued “We can’t sing, we can’t play, we can’t see the light of the sun, all we do is hide” the girl cried in a quiet tone which had now became costumary.

“Zara, the end is near” the mother replied, “the smell of powder is different, the sound of guns have changed, I know that we are near” she said.

“What if they find us?, why if the father has to turn us in mother?” the little girl asked with an expression of pain “This is all I know, the rays of the sun at down in our way to our hiding spot” she said looking sick.

The mother then looked at the side door of the church that headed to the streets of that very early morning, some voices could be hears, voices of hope she recognized.

The mother took Zara by the arm and said “Come with me” and ran in the opposite direction of where the other shadows were walking, going back to their hiding spot. She opened the door, and brought Zara out to the light and air of the open space.

The girl’s face flashed with enthusiasm, she was astonished. “Mummy!”

Suddenly a tired man ran next to them and said “The Americans are here!” run to the forest!

The mother gave the girl to the passing stranger and with an anguished look in her face told him “This is my most precious treasure, she will be safer with you, please protect her like if it was yours” and handed the stranger a small box as she ran back into the church to warn everyone to run into the forests.

The man took the small girl who could just say in a soft voice “mamma” as she could not scream out of the strange mixture of emotions, and the man could see in the far distance the German troops retreating to the direction of the church.

He ran into the near forest with Zara by the hand as he could hear shot after shot coming from the hollow walls of the tall medieval church at a distance.

Zara then, unable to understand what has just happened opened her eyes to see the first sunset she had ever seen in her life. The colors of the sky were orange and yellow, and it finished with a strong red reflection of solar rays, red as the blood of the innocent people who died inside that church, including Zara’s mother.

For the first time, Zara lived, and she did for many more years, aware of the price her mother had to pay for her freedom, and the one, Zara paid for her dignity.

A price so high.

SDIH (3/11/2008)