Dragonfly Eyes by Cao Wenxuan

Author:Cao Wenxuan [Wenxuan, Cao; Wang, Helen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781536209990
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Published: 2021-10-14T16:00:00+00:00

Ah Mei had been counting down the days to the performance. At last the big day came. It was a Sunday.

After lunch, Ah Mei couldn’t contain her excitement any longer. She wanted to put the dress on, but Nainai said it was too early and she should go and practice some more. Ah Mei was holding the dress in her hands, but she put it down and went into the piano room. She played for a while and then went back to Nainai. “Océane, I’d like to go to school early.”

“The school told you to arrive at four o’clock and then go for makeup, didn’t they? It’s only just past one. Go and practice some more, or come and sit under the apricot tree for a while. Aina, what you need most of all right now is to calm down and relax.”

Ah Mei chose to go and sit with Nainai in the yard.

Yeye and Mrs. Hu helped them to move two chairs under the apricot tree. The tree was in full bloom.

Nainai asked Yeye, “Could you bring two cups of tea, please?”

Yeye seemed a little confused.

Nainai laughed. “Two cups of your special tea to calm the nerves: one for me and one for Ah Mei.”

“Yes, yes, yes.” Yeye nodded. “Mrs. Hu, could you bring two cups of tea?”

Yeye placed a small table in front of them, then turned around and went to fetch the tea tray from Mrs. Hu. As Yeye walked back toward them, he saw Ah Mei under Nainai’s watchful eye, sitting as calmly as her grandmother. He placed the tea tray on the table and presented the first cup of tea to Nainai.

“The first one is for Ah Mei,” said Nainai.

“Yes, yes, yes.” Yeye turned around and, with two hands, offered the cup to Ah Mei.

Ah Mei accepted the cup of tea with both hands. She was smiling broadly.

“Be careful not to scald yourself,” said Yeye.

After serving the tea, he left them in peace, smiling as he took the tea tray back inside.

Nainai couldn’t help taking the piano recital seriously. Recently, both she and her granddaughter had felt black clouds building up inside them. If only the clouds would part and the sun could shine through again — for both their sakes. She hoped that the recital would be a new beginning, that Ah Mei could be happy again, that the loneliness, rejection, and uneasiness would disappear from her eyes, and she would come skipping home from school with rosy cheeks rather than hanging her head in dejection, her schoolbag all but scraping the ground. She wanted Ah Mei to be calm, to be in the right frame of mind, so that she could throw herself completely into the performance that evening. It had to be perfect; it had to be a success. Nainai believed that Ah Mei could do it, but she needed to relax first.

“Aina, look at the blossoms.”

Ah Mei looked up. The blossoms reminded her of the light dusting of snow they’d had that winter, except that they hung in midair, off the tips of the branches.

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