Everything written below is purely a work of fiction. The places, date and time do not correspond with any event in reality.
So also does the names of people, industries and events.
Everything is purely a work of fiction and nothing else.
The Genesis
November 2, 2004
A hotel in Baguio, Philippines.
Narrator's POV.
Elizabeth sat by the hotel's window, watching the world move without her.
She saw the little children playing and some picking up valuable things from the trash.
She used to be like them and wondered which was better, her life before or now.
Tears flowed through her eyes, but she did not clean them; she just let them flow peacefully.
She wondered why she had always struggled all her life and why the world was against her.
Esther, her mother's presence, was slowly noticeable as she was making a call to someone. She looked at her daughter's poor state and sighed. She decided to tell Elizabeth of her new plan.
Deciding to interrupt her thoughts, Esther said, "I strongly think we would be better off in Hawaii than Jamaica...",
Elizabeth did not move; it was as if she was no longer present. Esther noticed this and decided to call her attention.
"Elizabeth..." Esther continued.
Still no movement
Esther decided to raise her voice this time. "Elizabeth!"
Like a blunt force, Elizabeth jerked off her sad state and looked at Esther, not in the mood to talk.
"Did you hear me?"
Elizabeth turned and raised her brows, "Hear what?"
Esther sighed.
"I think we'd be better off in Hawaii than Jamaica."
Elizabeth frowned. "Why? We have already booked a space on the cruise ship."
"I know," Esther continued, "but you mentioned while confronting the Grandeys that you would go to Jamaica on a cruise ship. I did not want anyone to know of our traveling."
"We can't just change locations; we don't even have an American visa."
Elizabeth turned to the window again; she was not interested in the conversation and did not even give it a thought. She did not want to hurt Esther's feelings.
"I spoke to an old high school friend," Esther interrupted again, " She works at the American embassy and is willing to help us get an American visa faster. We would use the scholarship grant given to Rosalie and the remaining insurance money..."
Elizabeth turned, looked at Esther, and turned back to the window. A tear dropped from her eyes, touching the glass frame.
Esther turned away from the hotel room, feeling the conversation was not going anywhere. But Elizabeth turned and answered her.
"I agree," Elizabeth said, "The Grandeys might look for me forcefully and take my child away from me. So if you think Hawaii is better, then let's go there."
Esther walked towards Elizabeth, hugging her tightly. She had to be strong for Elizabeth.
"We are going to come out of this, okay."
She was correct; they would.
"Should I get you something to eat?"
"I'm not hungry," Elizabeth said.
Elizabeth stretched her hands and pulled out a blanket to cover herself. She was not going to lie on the bed that night; she just curled herself up on the sofa, stared blankly at the glass window, and then closed her eyes.
To understand the whole story, you would have to travel back into the 1980's, where it all started.
* * *
June 29th 1986
In a small village near Lake Sebu
Donald's POV
"I'm back, Marissa, I'm back!"
I screamed my lungs out, running down the Rickshaw to my house.
I had traveled to Manila to get the required drugs to cure my wife, Marissa, and my daughter, Elizabeth.
They had both been infected with yellow fever. All the hospitals in the village could not find a cure for their illness.
I decided to travel to Manila to find a cure for both of them.
I could not find a cure, but I was given some medications which may keep them. The Doctor advised me that they may not cure the virus, but if I feed them well, give them proper medications, and take them for regular checkups, they may heal Marissa and Elizabeth.
My soul was excited when I came down from the Rickshaw, holding the medications that may heal my dear wife and 3-year-old daughter.
I promised Marissa that I would not rest until they were healed, and I was going to fulfill that promise.
I was expecting a warm welcome from my family. I was hoping to see my wife back in her whole state. I missed her a lot, the way she nagged me all the time, especially with Elizabeth.
She would always complain that I spoilt Elizabeth too much.
I had some medications, and the Doctor at the clinic in Manila said they might survive, and I clutched the word "might" tightly, hoping it would be true.
Instead, I found a crowd of neighbors surrounding my house. It was shocking because I lived an introverted life and never really held conversations with the neighbors. Mainly because a majority of them were uneducated and traditional, coming up with superstitious beliefs.
Everyone looked sad, and my mind was unable to interpret this scenario.
"Where's my wife? Where is Marissa?...
Where is my daughter?" I asked, wanting immediate answers.
But they all looked like I was asking a rhetorical question. Nobody wanted to give me an answer.
It got annoying, and nobody was willing to answer me until a woman pointed at two bodies covered with a white cloth, one taller and the other a little smaller.
"No, no, no, it can't be. It can't just be!"
Saying this, the medications I had brought dropped from my hands. I rushed to the two bodies, forcefully lifting the covering. My heart was shredded to pieces when I saw that they were my family, lying lifeless.
"They died yesterday; we found them this morning," a neighbor interrupted.
"That's a lie!" I shouted, "they will get well soon; I know it."
"Come on Marissa, you can do this. We have survived everything together, and you promised to wait for me. Wake up now, Marissa, do it for me, please, Marissa. " I said this, tapping her face violently to try to wake her up - but her body was still.
I turned to Elizabeth to wake her up, but she did not answer me.
"Elizabeth dear, please wake up for daddy. Don't you want us to go fishing? Remember I told you I would let you row my boat if you get well? Remember I told you I would teach you how to catch a fish? You were so excited. Won't you wake up for me?"
Elizabeth did not reply, nor did Marissa, and I was slowly losing it.
* * *
They had to be buried, and I watched the grave men do their job with two coffins lying next to each other. Their coffins were being lowered into the ground, and I could not take it anymore.
Who would I sing lullabies to every night?
Who would nag me every single day?
Who would join me to go fishing every day? We made a great team together.
I was a fisherman, and Marisa was a marketer. I would go fishing daily, and Marissa would sell all the fish at the market. We were destitute but rich in happiness.
I had no one else to complete me: I had no family.
I took a step backward, and then another, and then another. Only one thing could console me - pouring my anger at the lake!
I rushed back to my house and took my boat out by force. I pushed it towards the lake and kept rowing the boat till the villagers could hardly see me.
When alone, I decided to pour out my anger and frustrations, annoyed with God because of my fate.
"You took everything away from me! Are you even a supreme being? What did I ever do to you? I urge you to compensate for your loss, and you must pay me back what you owe me right now! How can you take Elizabeth from me? How can you take Marissa from me?"
I angrily brought out my cast net and threw it into the lake. I always did that when I was angry and perhaps needed it. Suddenly, it started to rain. The way the cloud changed was unsettling.
I chose to challenge myself even further.
"I am not afraid of you! Do you think I would run away from you? Do you even know..."
But I could not finish my sentence; I noticed my net had caught something.
I decided to see what I had caught; this always brought back happiness.
But it had no tail,
It had no scales.
It didn't struggle to get back into the water,
It was a baby!
A newborn baby girl.
She must have been thrown by someone who lived in a village across the sea.
"O God... A baby! In the sea!" I immediately shouted; I was thrilled.
Without thinking twice, I rescued the baby and tried to resuscitate her. Thankfully, she still had a pulse, which meant she may still be alive.
I rowed my boat back to the village as fast as I could. I did not think twice; I had no time to think twice. The only thing on my mind was to rescue the poor child left alone in the sea to die. I reached the village in time, even with the rain. I took her to the same hospital that told me they did not have a cure for Marissa and Elizabeth.
I did not want to enter at first, but then I removed the evil thoughts and rushed in immediately.
"I need help; she is about to die! Someone help"
The nurses available rushed to my aid, and she was immediately taken away.
I kept pondering about the incident in one day, I lost my family, and the same day, I found a reason to live again. But who could have given their child away in such an awful manner?
Whoever it was, though, did not deserve to have such a beautiful child. I knew such wickedness could only be found in the nearby village - where innocent children born with strange affliction were thought to be witches and would be killed. But the little child had no flaws; she was perfect.
Why, then, was she given such an awful fate?
After walking around the small hospital aimlessly, full of thoughts, the Doctor finally came out of the curtain.
"Mr. Donald..." The Doctor asked. He was a good friend of mine, though we were not too close.
"I'm right here, Doctor." I immediately replied. I was getting worried because they had been in the hidden room for hours.
The Doctor smiled
"We almost lost her. She would not have survived if you had brought her a minute later."
I smiled at my luck.
He was right; I was a hero.
"So, what's going to happen to her? Are you going adopt her, or will you leave her in the streets?" The Doctor asked, looking concerned.
I sighed and then thought for a while. Letting the poor child walk around the streets hungry would be a shame. I did not rescue her to leave her to die alone. I, of all people, knew how painful it was to grow up in the streets.
"I'm not going to let her die in the streets...I'm going to adopt her." I said reassuringly.
The Doctor smiled
"I'm glad. What will you name her?"
I turned and smiled at my luck.
"I'm going to name her... Elizabeth "
* * *
And that was how Elizabeth got her name after Donald's first daughter.
Interesting. Isn't it?
* * *
Narrator's POV.
June 2nd, 1986
Donald came out of the hospital as a new father. The excitement of raising Elizabeth faded the anger he had felt over the death of his family. He felt renewed, and he held Elizabeth in his arms.
"You will be Daddy's little girl Elizabeth, Daddy's little girl."
As he walked round the village, there were stares from around. Everyone said one thing or two about Donald's new daughter.
Everyone had their story to tell.
Some said he had made a pact with the goddess of the sea and got a daughter.
Others thought she was a witch who came to ruin Donald further; in essence, everyone thought Donald was cursed.
Some said she was a witch meant to be killed, which was why the other villagers threw her away.
All in all, no one had something good to say about Elizabeth.
Everyone in the village warned him about Elizabeth, and they insisted to Donald that she was cursed. But he never listened to their words.
He never listened to people's words and was willing to risk it all just for Elizabeth.
* * *
January 12, 1990
Donald lies on his bed, thinking deeply. He is interrupted by Elizabeth.
"Papa, papa! Look what I drew."
Donald coughs, trying to keep a straight face for Elizabeth.
"What is it, my queen?" Donald asked.
"Look what I drew, Papa." Elizabeth was full of excitement as she said that.
Donald's cough increases, but he smiles. He did not want Elizabeth to notice him.
Elizabeth drew a picture of her and her dad, with a write-up, "i LoV mY PaPa sO mocH."
It was the cutest thing Donald had ever seen, and he smiled brightly.
"You are the best thing that has ever happened to me, my queen; give me a hug."
"I love you, papa."
Elizabeth hugs Donald tightly, but Donald coughs harder.
"Is something wrong, papa?" Elizabeth asked.
"Nothing, my dear, I'm just fine. How about we go fishing?" Donald said, changing the topic.
"Yay, let's go right away!"
Elizabeth drags Donald, and he stands up. He coughs hard and picks up a handkerchief to help himself. Blood was coming out of his mouth, and his condition was getting worse by the day. He looked at Elizabeth; she was so young. Who would take care of her when he was gone?
He carries Elizabeth on his back and walks to the backyard, where his boat was. Elizabeth loves it when he carries her on his back.
"Go faster, papa, go faster," Elizabeth encouraged.
"I'm weak now, okay? Another day. Now let's go catch a fish."
...
In the middle of the sea, Donald stares at Elizabeth and is sad. He has no family, and the villagers are often cruel to Elizabeth. Donald wonders if he did a good job saving her life and then leaving her to die on the streets. He had tuberculosis, and he saw death waiving at him.
"What's wrong, papa?" Elizabeth asked worriedly.
Donald exhaled and said, "You want to hear a story about your birth?"
"Yes, papa, tell me."
"I found you here, right here. You were about to die, and I saved you."
"Wow, papa, you saved me?"
"Yes, my Queen, you are my special gift from God himself."
"You're my hero, papa."
"I know, dear, I know."
Elizabeth puts her face down and has a sad look on her face.
Donald keeps on coughing, now harder.
Noticing her expression change, Donald asked, "Tell me what's wrong, my Queen."
"Papa, do you think I'm a witch?"
"Who said that to you?"
"Everyone does, and in school today, Aryann called me a witch, and the class started to laugh at me."
"Listen, my child, listen carefully. It would help if you never allowed people's words to get to you. Do you know who you are? You're a special girl, a gift from heaven. You are a blessing; you are my Queen, don't you remember?"
"Yes, papa, but."
"But nothing, my Queen, end of the story. People will always talk, but that's the only thing they know how to do, and only that. You know who you are, so why listen to them?"
"Now tell me, my daughter, who are you?"
"I'm a Queen."
"Who's Queen?"
Elizabeth smiled, "Papa's Queen and I would be a great person someday. "
"That's it, my Queen, now give me a high five!"
Donald could not raise his hands, and his cough grew worse.
His time was nearer than he had thought; Elizabeth worried about his health.
"What's wrong, papa? Why won't your cough go away?"
"Listen, my Queen, no matter where you go or who you meet, always remember that your papa would be with you. I may not be with you physically, but I will be in your heart, my child."
"Will you go away?"
"There is a place called heaven where I will be. It is the most beautiful place you can ever imagine."
"Can I go with you, papa?"
"No, my Queen. You may face difficulties, but you should never allow the circumstances to define who you are, my child. I will always love you, my Queen. Row the boat; let's go back home."
"I should row the boat? But you said I'm too young to do that."
"Just follow my instructions, my child, you are never too young to make a difference, and you will be a great lady tomorrow."
"But what if I don't do it well?"
"Who says you have to do things perfectly? The victory is good, but you know what's better? The efforts you put into it and your willingness to make a difference. Mistakes are just a way of telling you that there can be other ways to solve a problem. It's getting cold. Now follow my instructions so we can go back home."