Diamond Determines The Heart
In the small village of Segio in Austria, lies a house different from the rest, and much more quiet than the other cottages in the village. From outside the people knew the cries of the inside and, as they passed by, they could hear the furtive bickering of Grandma Maisy as she searched painstakingly through her aprons, hoping to find something that would provide them a day's meal.
She was an old lady, with a rather huge bosom, and her physique was nonpareil among the other women of the Segio, and, in spite of it, they all loved her. She was kind and very unassuming, but the stripes of poverty stroke her like a cruel whip and made her cry. Most of all it held her bondage.
Heidi, the young girl who was there from the incipience of all her adversity, was most precious to Maisy. Not because of her pulchritude, not because of her finesse or cheeks as red as ruby, not because of her intelligence, but most importantly because she was like a daughter to Maisy. The daughter she always desired but never had. The daughter her fantasies and prior realities never allowed. Heidi had lived with Grandma Maisy ever since the gruesome incident that perpetually separated Heidi from her parents.
As Heidi sauntered along the longitudinal road, she wished for some good fortune to meet her. Life with Maisy was deluged with adversity-that became all she knew and could think of; but now she felt that it was time to take a stand and do whatever necessary to transform their lives. Besides, Grandma Maisy had worked hard and was now tired. As she pondered upon these things a sudden thought overwhelmed her and she remembered something that had not crossed her mind since childhood. Now she knew exactly where to go and most of all what to do.
In retrospect, there was a place she remembered as a child filled with tangible treasures and echoing laughter. A lovely place, it was the domicile of her father, where she had once lived, but now it was ruined terribly by a fierce fire that killed both of her parents. “But the knob, the precious doorknob”, she soliloquized, “ it must, oh it must still be there. It is the only way”.
With hope she returned home and told Grandma Maisy about the diamond doorknob that her father had given her on his very birthday. Her father was a wealthy businessman in Wilfer and despite his affluence, he acted as one endowed with immeasurable humility and restraint, and thus felt it necessary to bestow this gift to his daughter, even on his birthday. The very next day a locksmith came and installed the diamond doorknob on her bedroom door. She vividly described the astounding beauty of the knob to Maisy and how it shined and glittered splendidly in the night. It was promised the knob would served as a reminder of her father’s love and that whenever she opened her bedroom door it would bring him to remembrance. Now with dad gone, Heidi was determined to retrieve the present that would rescue her out of the slums of poverty.
Early that following morning Heidi kissed Maisy farewell and left for the demolished house that laid far to the west. “Remember my child to be careful and don’t be enticed by appearance”, advised Grandma Maisy with her face in an ugly scowl. Heidi wondered what she meant by such a remark and most of all why did she seem so upset and afraid. But as usual, Heidi never went beyond thinking, not until now, for now she planned to retrieve the diamond, which would be her bulwark against poverty. She prayed it survived the fire. “It must be there”, she thought while struggling with her pully along the concourse, awaiting the next train to Wilfer. For it was also her ride home since she had no more money left, not even for a meal. Not to mention how physically drained she felt and intensely hungry.
Heidi slept a great deal throughout the entire journey and upon finally arriving in Wilfer a sudden feeling of nostaglia overwhelmed her and almost made her cry. Everyone seemed distant, but it really didn’t matter for she remembered very few people. After taking a cab and walking some miles Heidi finally neared the street of her childhood. As she came closer to Elkins Bridge, she could vividly outline the remains of what used to be a splendid house. As she approached her house, Heidi’s attention was suddenly drawn to a bulldozer that ominously crept towards the house. With thoughts as wild as lightning she quickly spat out “But…no, that’s my house,” she said with a sense of realization. The men immediately desisted from their work and stared at Heidi waiting for an explanation for disrupting them.
“Oh please,” she begged, “I came all the way from the village of Segio to see my father’s house; you can’t destroy this place, at least not now.”
The men were set in an immobile position, as if they had no sense of comprehension. Finally, a sinewy and rather tall man asked, “Miss, what is it you would like us to do, this is our job”?
“Oh I'm sorry, I don’t mean to seem strange”, she said shamefully. “I just wanted to see the inside of my home....well what used to be my home, for the last time”, she corrected.
“Well please hurry, you know we don’t have all day long for this kind of suspense.”
Years had passed since Heidi's parents died and the feelings of grief were still so very strong. She remembered the trauma she experienced returning from school and finding a great commotion in front her house, only to be paralysed with news of her parents death in a fire that seemed to destroyed their rooms but somehow left the remains of hers. She thought this was symbolic because in reality she was all that remained- only her physical self- everything she ever loved died when her parents died. She was only ten years old and ever since then she had lived with Maisy, who was father's mother. Even now she felt it odd that after all these years, someone finally decided to demolished that which was so long ago demolished in her mind and heart. Nevertheless, her eyes started up and down, across and around the ruins. Then she saw it shining like it always did and with no hesitation Heidi darted towards the diamond knob. To her dismay, it was just a shiny piece of silver paper. The silver paper hung lifelessly and a sudden air of despondency overwhelmed her. She began to cry, and then she remembered her father’s eyes that hid behind his stern morals. She recollected once having a dream of becoming an actress, and this was the only hope that propelled her into each new day. And then, with great effort to subdue her imagination, she recalled her real reasons for coming to Wilfer. It was so she could get the diamond knob to sell and buy Maisy a birthday gift and ultimately rescue them from impoverishment.
As she turned and endeavored to depart, she realized that there was something very strange about the door. For as long as she could remember, the front door always possessed a huge bar that securely governed it, instead there was a small knob. She decided to take a look at what could possibly lie beyond such a peculiar knob. Heidi slowly rubbed the surface of the knob, and the secret unfolded right before her eyes.
“I've found it! I still can't believe it actually survive. Oh daddy, thank you so much. It must be a miracle after all this time!!!” The tears flowed uncontrollably and she knew that life would never be the same. Now, she felt a sudden change of heart. She had forgotten all about Grandma Maisy and there was a conflict in her heart, concerning whether she should return home or send a message explaining to Maisy that she was ill and temporarily sojourning with some benevolent neighbor, and wouldn’t return for quite some time. Heidi thanked the construction workers and headed for the jewelry store, so as to get her diamond knob sold.
That night Grandma Maisy didn't sleep. Neither was she astonished when Heidi didn’t return home. She knew how much Heidi longed to be an actress and nothing could interfere with her dream, not even a grandmother who loved her tenderly. Yet she cried and wondered when she would see her again. She loved Heidi and wished her success, wherever she was. There was a part of Maisy that understood Heidi’s decision, for she had once done a very similar thing, but that’s a different story, that could never really be told. And now Maisy saw the riches of the world as odious as she could envision. She knew there was disaster in the diamond and there was greed in Heidi’s heart because of the "beautiful diamond".
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