The Silent Girl (Chapter 1)

*Disclaimer*: This is a work of fiction. Some events may be based on real life, but some events are made up. For translations of the Chinese, see the Translation section at the very end.

    I was sitting in a seat in English class writing an essay on trees. This is how it started,

"Trees are actually very interesting. There are a lot of different kinds of trees. For example, there are fruit trees, nut trees, pine trees, and trees that grow cherry blossoms. Trees are also very good for the environment. I will talk about all the reasons why trees are very interesting and more. Once you have finished reading my essay, you will be an expert on trees! So lets get started...." 

    I was about to continue writing when Mrs. Sunfield, my teacher, said that before class was over she wanted to take a look at what everybody had written. It was a relief because sometimes she wanted us to present our essays or presentation. It's not like talking was bad, but ever since my father had died I had barely spoken to my mother let alone speak to anyone else. For some odd reason, I recalled the events that led to my father's death.

    It had been a cold day on June 15th, 2020. Even though there was Covid-19,  we hadn't been social distancing. I love painting then. So when I ran out of paint I had asked my father to buy some paint for me, and my father went and got me the paint. I was happy that I could paint again but the next day, we read in the newspaper that Molly's Paint Store, from which my father had gotten my paint, had Coronavirus. A few of the cashiers had already died. Their names were Betty White, David Farfield, Andy Sand and Norah Ballers. During dinner my father had complained that the food didn't taste like anything. Mother and I stared at each other. I knew that we were both thinking the same thing. Mother called 911 and soon we were at the hospital. But despite the doctors' best effort, father died on July 4th 2020. That was the saddest birthday I ever had. He was buried two days later. I remember at his funeral, mother and I were so mad, since nobody ever described him as funny. Believe us, at my cousin Ellie's funereal, he made so many funny jokes we actually laughed even though I had been very close to my cousin Ellie. In fact, that had been one of my favorite days before my father died. 

    By the way, my name is Isabella Lee. I have one younger brother and one older brother. My mom is a nurse at the San Jose Clinic. Before my father died, he worked as a surgeon at the hospital in San Jose. He was one of the nicest surgeons in the hospital. The other surgeons were a little mean, but that was normal, since surgeons are known to be mean. I didn't now know them that well, but I do know none of the other surgeons died because of Covid-19. I am so thankful that there is a great medication for patients with Covid-19 now. 99% of people who get the medication and have Covid-19 recover in a month or two. 

    Ding! Ding! Ding! The bell rang. I walked out of the school and waited for the school bus. When the school bus came, I went to my usual spot at the back of the bus next to my cousin and best friend Clara. In fact, she was my only friend who was my age, because nobody liked girls who wouldn't talk. 

    "Hi Isabella! Did you have a good day?", Clara asked. I nodded and got my drawing pad and drew all the events of the day. I didn't talk to her, but I would draw everything I wanted to say. For example, if somebody asked me my favorite colors, I would draw two little dots with blue and black colored pencils. About ten minutes later, we got off the bus and went to our house. We all lived in one house. My family consisted of twelve people. Ye Ye¹,  Nai Nai², my uncle, my aunt, my dad (before he died), my mom, Ava, Malachi, Austin, me, Clara, and Hayden. We also have chickens, ducks and lots of other farm animals.

    Clara got out her key and unlocked the door. We went in and smelled Da Bing*. It was a wonderful surprise because we usually only got either Gold Fish, grapes, or apple slices. 

    "Ni hao!³", said Nai Nai. I drew us picking blueberries and turning it into jam. Then, I tapped Clara's shoulder. 

    She glanced at the picture and said, "Can we pick blueberries to can? Isabella and I will do all the canning and we can put it in the basement after the 24 hours. "

    "Hao ah! Hao ah! Ni ke yi xian zai qu zhai lan mei.⁴" said Nai Nai. (Nai Nai has spoken only Chinese ever since my dad died.)

    We grabbed slices of Da Bing⁵ and then walked outside while eating the Da Bing. When we finished eating, we started picking a couple of buckets of blueberries. One or two hours later, we came back into the house carrying six buckets of blueberries. 

    "Ni men hui lai le!⁶", said Nai Nai. Clara could say some Chinese.

    "Dui ah. Wo he Isabella ke yi bang ni zuo wan fan ma?⁷", she asked.

    "Hao ba. Wo xian zai zai zuo cao fan. Ni men ke yi bang wo zuo fan ma?⁸" Nai Nai said. Clara and I quickly added three cups of white rice and two cups of brown rice. We then mixed the white and brown rice with our hands. After that, we poured enough water to reach half of our thumb. We then used the rice cooker's lid to put a little bit of water on the bottom of the rice cooker. We put the bowl thing with the rice and water in the rice cooker. We turned it in and started making blueberry jam. It was really fun, but it took a long time. Not to mention the 24 hours after you take them out. 

Translations:

¹ Grandpa.

² Grandma.

³ Hello!

⁴ Good! Good! You can go pick blueberries, right now.

⁵ Chinese Green Onion Pancakes

⁶ You guys came back!

⁷ Right. Can Isabella and I help you cook dinner?

⁸ Ok. I am making fried rice right now. Can you make the rice?

To be continued... 

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