| Supernatural Fiction posted May 8, 2011 |
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Picture inspired story of an unusual child
Nasya
by BethShelby
The long-awaited baby was a call for celebration, but when Marion first looked into the child's eyes, she experienced a cold chill. The baby's eyes were an icy blue-gray. They were not unfocused as she had expected. The child gazed directly into her eyes with an intensity that made her uneasy. The baby seemed to be peering into her very soul and judging her.
She and Thomas had both endured a battery of tests to see why they hadn’t been able to get pregnant. The doctors were puzzled finding no apparent problem. After years of trying, Marian had reconciled herself to the fact she was not meant to be a mother. Then suddenly at the age of forty-eight, the miraculous happened. Thrilled and excited, the couple began preparing for the happy event. The nursery was ready and waiting. The pregnancy was difficult, but when at last the baby arrived, all of that was forgotten. The baby seemed perfect in every way. They named her Nasya, which in Hebrew meant miracle of God.
Marion immersed herself in everything she could find on childhood development and watched carefully for signs her child was developing normally. Early on, some things seemed a bit unusual. Nasya almost never cried. She didn't seem to require a lot of sleep. As the months passed, her physical development progressed well, but she made none of the usual babbling baby noises. When her parents talked to her, she simply gazed into their eyes as if she understood everything but made no attempt to imitate sounds. The worried parents consulted a specialist about her lack of verbal skills. The doctors conducted a battery of tests and determined the child had no hearing problems, and everything seemed normal with her vocal cords. Since she seemed intelligent, they advised the parents to wait and see. However, they warned there was the possibility of autism.
From the beginning, Sadie, the family collie, took great interest in the new baby. She became the self-appointed guardian of the child. Once the parents realized the dog and the child responded so well to each other, they made no attempt to keep them apart. It appeared there was a special understanding between the two that defied explanation. Watching them together, Marion was amazed to see the animal fetch toys and other items and place them in the child's outstretched hand.
At eight months, when a neighbor dropped by and said teasingly, "Hello little girl. What's your name?" The child astonished everyone by simply saying, "Nasya". It was the first time she had ever uttered a sound. To everyone's surprise, it was soon apparent she had an advanced vocabulary although she rarely used it.
At eleven months, Marion bundled Nasya up and took her on an outing to the zoo. She was walking well by that time, having practically taught herself without ever having crawled. All the animals fascinated Nasya, and again to the mother's great astonishment, the animals responded in an unusual way. The apes became quite excited, and even the larger animals cocked their heads and peered at the child as if they were communicating on some primal level.
Marion and Thomas were convinced there was something abnormal about their child. They had her evaluated by a leading child psychologist, who seemed as baffled as they were by her strange behavior. He was particularly intrigued by her apparent ability to communicate with animals.
"Have you ever heard of indigo children?" he asked.
Mystified, Marion and Thomas both shook their heads. "Well, I hesitate to bring it up because there is really no scientific evidence that such a phenomenon even exists, but I have a friend and former colleague who believes otherwise. It is a sort of New Age pseudoscience. It is thought by some that it is the next stage in human development. According to my friend, these children possess unique abilities and are often psychic."
"How can we find out more about this?" Thomas asked.
The doctor hesitated. "Look, this is off the record. I don't want to be involved. I could lose my credibility and maybe even my license. As I said, there is no scientific proof. I'd just as soon you don't mention that you heard this from me, but if I were you, I'd go to the computer or library and do some research. I'll have to admit your child seems to possess some unusual ability, and I believe she is highly intelligent."
Nasya was two and half when a bear escaped from a traveling circus. By this time Nasya had an excellent command of language, but she spoke infrequently appearing to be in a world of her own. The news of the escape was all over the local television stations. The bear seemed to be out of control and dangerous. According to authorities, the plan was to locate it and put it down. Nasya became very upset and informed her parents that the bear was only frightened. "We can't let them kill the bear," she insisted with tears streaming from her face. "I need to go to him and talk to him."
"Who do you think you are, Dr. Doolittle?" her father asked.
"You don't understand. The bear will listen to me. I'll tell him he has to go back, or they'll hurt him. I can find him. He's calling to me. Please, drive me. I'll show you. He's telling me he's afraid."
There was no reasoning with Nasya. She refused to eat or sleep until she was allowed to go to the bear. Thomas and Marion were convinced they had to do something, even at the risk of appearing crazy. Not wanting to risk confronting a bear without proper protection, they contacted the proper authorities and informed them of their child's strange ability. After much persuasion, one man agreed it seemed worthwhile to find out if the child could actually locate the bear. Thomas and Marion and a skeptical group of men from animal control came along. Nasya pointed out places they should turn. At last, they came to an area of forest which Nasya seemed to believe was where they should be.
"Stop here!" Nasya cried.
She jumped from the vehicle and stood in the clearing. To everyone's astonishment, the huge bear ambled slowly into the clearing. He stopped and bowed in submission, and the child walked over and stroked his head.
Marion started forward fearing the bear would attack her daughter, but Thomas held her back. The group of men from animal control looked on in astonishment. They begin to inch closer.
“NO!” commanded Nasya. “Stay back! He doesn’t want to go back. He needs to be free. He doesn’t like the circus. He misses his family.”
“Honey, he has to go back,” one of the men informed her. “There are no bears in these woods. We can’t take a chance on having a bear loose. He might kill someone. This bear came from an island in Alaska. He can’t survive in these woods.”
One of the men who had managed to get closer was armed with a dart gun loaded with a strong tranquilizer. The dart hit the bear in the neck. The large animal shook is head and slowly sagged to a sitting position.
“What have you done?” the child shouted as tears flooded her eyes. “I was supposed to help him. You’ve hurt him.” The bear rolled over and laid his head down. Nasya buried her face in his fur sobbing as though her heart would break.
“No, baby, he’s alright. He just sleepy. We’re going to take him back to the circus. You can come see him perform. He’s a show bear.”
Marian and Thomas stepped forward and pulled the sobbing child away from the animal. The authorities had gotten wind of the incident and a television crew had accompanied the group. They had filmed the encounter with the bear from a safe distance. A female reporter attempted to stop the couple as they made the way back to the car.
“No, we're not talking to reporters,” Thomas said. “Step aside! We need to get our child home. Can’t you see she’s upset.”
“This was amazing. You can’t keep this child a secret. This is a story the world needs to hear. When this footage goes on television, your phone will be ringing off the hook. You need to let us interview her. We’re not giving up. We’ll call you later.”
Marian held the trembling Nasya close trying to comfort her as Thomas drove away from the scene. She knew in her heart her days with this child would be numbered. She would never be able to keep Nasya from her greater mission, whatever that might be. This child’s future would be much more than the two of them could control. She could only imagine what might lie ahead.
The long-awaited baby was a call for celebration, but when Marion first looked into the child's eyes, she experienced a cold chill. The baby's eyes were an icy blue-gray. They were not unfocused as she had expected. The child gazed directly into her eyes with an intensity that made her uneasy. The baby seemed to be peering into her very soul and judging her.
She and Thomas had both endured a battery of tests to see why they hadn’t been able to get pregnant. The doctors were puzzled finding no apparent problem. After years of trying, Marian had reconciled herself to the fact she was not meant to be a mother. Then suddenly at the age of forty-eight, the miraculous happened. Thrilled and excited, the couple began preparing for the happy event. The nursery was ready and waiting. The pregnancy was difficult, but when at last the baby arrived, all of that was forgotten. The baby seemed perfect in every way. They named her Nasya, which in Hebrew meant miracle of God.
Marion immersed herself in everything she could find on childhood development and watched carefully for signs her child was developing normally. Early on, some things seemed a bit unusual. Nasya almost never cried. She didn't seem to require a lot of sleep. As the months passed, her physical development progressed well, but she made none of the usual babbling baby noises. When her parents talked to her, she simply gazed into their eyes as if she understood everything but made no attempt to imitate sounds. The worried parents consulted a specialist about her lack of verbal skills. The doctors conducted a battery of tests and determined the child had no hearing problems, and everything seemed normal with her vocal cords. Since she seemed intelligent, they advised the parents to wait and see. However, they warned there was the possibility of autism.
From the beginning, Sadie, the family collie, took great interest in the new baby. She became the self-appointed guardian of the child. Once the parents realized the dog and the child responded so well to each other, they made no attempt to keep them apart. It appeared there was a special understanding between the two that defied explanation. Watching them together, Marion was amazed to see the animal fetch toys and other items and place them in the child's outstretched hand.
At eight months, when a neighbor dropped by and said teasingly, "Hello little girl. What's your name?" The child astonished everyone by simply saying, "Nasya". It was the first time she had ever uttered a sound. To everyone's surprise, it was soon apparent she had an advanced vocabulary although she rarely used it.
At eleven months, Marion bundled Nasya up and took her on an outing to the zoo. She was walking well by that time, having practically taught herself without ever having crawled. All the animals fascinated Nasya, and again to the mother's great astonishment, the animals responded in an unusual way. The apes became quite excited, and even the larger animals cocked their heads and peered at the child as if they were communicating on some primal level.
Marion and Thomas were convinced there was something abnormal about their child. They had her evaluated by a leading child psychologist, who seemed as baffled as they were by her strange behavior. He was particularly intrigued by her apparent ability to communicate with animals.
"Have you ever heard of indigo children?" he asked.
Mystified, Marion and Thomas both shook their heads. "Well, I hesitate to bring it up because there is really no scientific evidence that such a phenomenon even exists, but I have a friend and former colleague who believes otherwise. It is a sort of New Age pseudoscience. It is thought by some that it is the next stage in human development. According to my friend, these children possess unique abilities and are often psychic."
"How can we find out more about this?" Thomas asked.
The doctor hesitated. "Look, this is off the record. I don't want to be involved. I could lose my credibility and maybe even my license. As I said, there is no scientific proof. I'd just as soon you don't mention that you heard this from me, but if I were you, I'd go to the computer or library and do some research. I'll have to admit your child seems to possess some unusual ability, and I believe she is highly intelligent."
Nasya was two and half when a bear escaped from a traveling circus. By this time Nasya had an excellent command of language, but she spoke infrequently appearing to be in a world of her own. The news of the escape was all over the local television stations. The bear seemed to be out of control and dangerous. According to authorities, the plan was to locate it and put it down. Nasya became very upset and informed her parents that the bear was only frightened. "We can't let them kill the bear," she insisted with tears streaming from her face. "I need to go to him and talk to him."
"Who do you think you are, Dr. Doolittle?" her father asked.
"You don't understand. The bear will listen to me. I'll tell him he has to go back, or they'll hurt him. I can find him. He's calling to me. Please, drive me. I'll show you. He's telling me he's afraid."
There was no reasoning with Nasya. She refused to eat or sleep until she was allowed to go to the bear. Thomas and Marion were convinced they had to do something, even at the risk of appearing crazy. Not wanting to risk confronting a bear without proper protection, they contacted the proper authorities and informed them of their child's strange ability. After much persuasion, one man agreed it seemed worthwhile to find out if the child could actually locate the bear. Thomas and Marion and a skeptical group of men from animal control came along. Nasya pointed out places they should turn. At last, they came to an area of forest which Nasya seemed to believe was where they should be.
"Stop here!" Nasya cried.
She jumped from the vehicle and stood in the clearing. To everyone's astonishment, the huge bear ambled slowly into the clearing. He stopped and bowed in submission, and the child walked over and stroked his head.
Marion started forward fearing the bear would attack her daughter, but Thomas held her back. The group of men from animal control looked on in astonishment. They begin to inch closer.
“NO!” commanded Nasya. “Stay back! He doesn’t want to go back. He needs to be free. He doesn’t like the circus. He misses his family.”
“Honey, he has to go back,” one of the men informed her. “There are no bears in these woods. We can’t take a chance on having a bear loose. He might kill someone. This bear came from an island in Alaska. He can’t survive in these woods.”
One of the men who had managed to get closer was armed with a dart gun loaded with a strong tranquilizer. The dart hit the bear in the neck. The large animal shook is head and slowly sagged to a sitting position.
“What have you done?” the child shouted as tears flooded her eyes. “I was supposed to help him. You’ve hurt him.” The bear rolled over and laid his head down. Nasya buried her face in his fur sobbing as though her heart would break.
“No, baby, he’s alright. He just sleepy. We’re going to take him back to the circus. You can come see him perform. He’s a show bear.”
Marian and Thomas stepped forward and pulled the sobbing child away from the animal. The authorities had gotten wind of the incident and a television crew had accompanied the group. They had filmed the encounter with the bear from a safe distance. A female reporter attempted to stop the couple as they made the way back to the car.
“No, we're not talking to reporters,” Thomas said. “Step aside! We need to get our child home. Can’t you see she’s upset.”
“This was amazing. You can’t keep this child a secret. This is a story the world needs to hear. When this footage goes on television, your phone will be ringing off the hook. You need to let us interview her. We’re not giving up. We’ll call you later.”
Marian held the trembling Nasya close trying to comfort her as Thomas drove away from the scene. She knew in her heart her days with this child would be numbered. She would never be able to keep Nasya from her greater mission, whatever that might be. This child’s future would be much more than the two of them could control. She could only imagine what might lie ahead.
 Recognized |
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