The Visit

Marley was bored. She twisted her dark hair around her finger listening to the two grownups talking. She didn’t like visiting with mom’s friends. There was never anything fun to do. Besides, she didn’t understand grownup talk.

Andrea, her Mom’s friend, stopped talking and looked up at her. The young woman’s soft smile told Marley she understood her plight. Brushing a red curl out of her face she patted the table and said, “Here Marley, sit next to me. I want to show you something.”

Marley slid closer on the bench as Andrea reached behind her to take a paper from the desk against the wall. “Can you sit very still?” she asked.

Marley shook her head yes and looked on as Andrea began to sketch on the paper. Her Mom said, “Didn’t I tell you Andrea could draw?”

 Marley watched, sitting very quietly, her chin turned up. Before her eyes a familiar face took shape. The round head with the dark eyes and dimpled cheeks was hers. Except for the open lips giving away the gap toothed grin, the picture was perfect.

Andrea asked, “Do you like it?”

Marley wanted her two front teeth in the picture, and she said so. Andrea gave her a hug as she passed the paper to her. “It’s ok,” she said. “By the time you come visit again you will have your front teeth back and I’ll draw you another picture.”

Marley took the picture and asked, “Can I go play outside?”

Andrea said, “Why don’t you visit with Rick. It’s getting dark and he’ll be setting up his telescope.”

Mom reached for the pencil sketch of Marley and said, “You should leave this here for safekeeping.”

Marley passed the picture to her and went out back. Andrea’s neighbor was standing over a telescope in his yard. Since there was no fence, Marley walked over to him saying, “Hi, I’m Marley.”

“I’m Rick,” he answered adjusting knobs on the telescope. “In a couple of minutes we’ll be able to see Andromeda.”

 Marley didn’t want to tell him that she didn’t know who Andromeda was, so she just said, “Can I wait with you?”

He answered, “Have you ever looked through a telescope?”

“No,” she answered, “but I sure would like to see.”

In the growing darkness, Marley couldn’t see Rick grin, but she liked the thin tall fellow bent over the telescope. He didn’t talk much or say things she couldn’t understand. He spoke in a hushed voice, as if the things he was looking at with his telescope would disappear if he talked to loud.  “Here,” he suddenly said as he stepped away from the telescope. “Have a look.”

Marley came forward, and he pointed at the eyepiece.  She was too short for it, and Rick pulled a stool up for her to climb on. When she put her eye to the eyepiece, she saw a big white oval shape. “It’s a squashed cotton ball,” she said. Curiosity made her back away from the eyepiece to look at the sky.

“You’ll have to wait a little to see it with just your eyes. It’s not quite dark enough,” said Rick.

Marley couldn’t help getting excited over the country night. It was full of bright stars. “It’s not this pretty at home,” she told Rick, who bent over the telescope again. "You must live in the city,” he said. “There are too many lights.”  

 “Can I see something else?” she asked.

“Here you go,” said Rick who had moved the telescope to point straight up. “Try this.”

Marley looked through the eyepiece again but saw only blackness. “I can’t see anything, not even a star.”

“It’s a little harder to see than Andromeda,” said Rick. “You have to look for a very tiny puff of a ring.”

“A ring?” asked Marley.

“Yes; it’s very small and pale, but right in the middle.”

Marley looked hard but still didn’t see it. She started to look away. As her eye relaxed from the strain, she felt as if there was something in the center.

Rick didn’t say anything. He waited patiently for her to try to see the little ring.

“I thought I saw something,” Marley said almost holding her breath.

“You did,” whispered Rick back, sure she was seeing right.

“I think I see it,” said Marley. “I do see it. It’s like the puff of smoke Mommy blows with her cigarettes.”

Before Rick could answer, Marley’s Mom called from the other house, “Marley, we have to go. The last bus leaves in fifteen minutes.”

“I’m sorry I have to go,” said Marley to Rick. “Thank you for letting me look through your telescope.” She walked toward the porch light where Mom was waiting with Andrea. A cigarette hung from her mouth and the smoke curled around the two women.

“Mom, Rick showed me the Ring in his telescope. It looks just like your smoke rings.”

Mom chuckled, blowing a smoke ring, “Like this?”

“Yes, Mom, exactly like that, but a lot smaller.”

Andrea gave Marley a good-bye hug and said, “Don’t forget the sketch.”

“Can I come back when my teeth grow in,” asked Marley. She wanted the promised picture of herself. Thinking about Andrea’s neighbor she added, “It’s so fun out here in the country."