Poor Olivia

Her bright blue youthful eyes gazed at me in awe from behind the giant living room window. The reflection of the setting sun glinted off of the window just above her innocent head, like a halo, as if she were an angel on earth burning my eyes with all of her glory. To her I was a new adventure she had never discovered before. I stared back into her eyes which seemed to posses an expansive universe of new things. Youth, I remember those days, happy, innocent oblivion. Those days are past, gone like a scarce cool breeze on a humid summer night. I am a hollowed out human machine, just a product of society, conditioned as needed, lacking courage, heart, and the ability to think for myself. The loss of such admirable qualities seemed like a horrific tragedy that could never happen to her, nothing could fade that glow in her eyes. I stared into the hopeful expanse of her eyes longer as I passed by, trying dearly to capture what it felt like to be three years old again, trying in vain to switch places with her. If I could live even one miniscule second of a life filled with happiness and void of worry.

I have hope for her. With eyes so intense maybe she is above the brainwash that I suffered so many years ago, when I was young like her. Maybe her eyes can detect all of those lies, and all of the empty promises the world will try to fill her with.

I continued my way down the sidewalk, worn and tired, a lonely observer trying to fill every gap in my life merely by watching. A thousand actions try to captivate my soul, but observing is all I have left.

Then, as if our eyes had never met, the girl disappeared from the window and I could just see the top of her head, where that halo should have been, moving and bobbing toward the door. The door opened uneasily, with the hint of inexperience, but there she stood, laughing, smiling, and screaming with glee and delight. Looks of such blatant innocence and happiness stirred the dead memories of my own happiness, and instantly triggered a feeling of living that had somehow been missing from my life. She stood eagerly in the doorway, ready and waiting, waiting to jump out and greet me, as if she was pulled to me by a force unknown to both of us. Before such a moment could transpire a harsh voice shattered the blissful silence.

"OLIVIA!..." a voice screeched from within the perfect white house, halting the small girl in her steps.

"OLIVIA!!!..." bellowed the voice again in a tone more harsh and urgent, as a figure appeared next to her in the door.

Olivia tottered on the edge of the threshold, eyes growing wide, toying with the idea of escape.

"Olivia get in here!" the mother shrieked, as she snatched he daughter's arm, and proceeded to drag her through the doorway of the house.

Olivia's eyes were wide and focused on her goal, the outside world, as if she was trying to further grasp the moment that she knew was escaping her. Every part and molecule in my body began screaming in hopeful unison that she would break free, that she would make it out into her own free world. These were just hopes, just dreams, and just had I have seen in my own life, they would never come true. As the world had done to me, Olivia's mother had done unto her. Eyes still yearning to be free in the outside world now glistened with tears, as Olivia's mother pulled her back into the dark doorway. Just before the door closed I could see something new had settled in her eyes, that troubling look of defeat, innocence lost, and I thought to myself poor Olivia.