spotlight
Quotables
"What flower or plant best indicates your personality?"
.. . -dtix i tit ' s %-W
Garret Seal
Kudzu, cause I'm all over the place
HH ® Y
Lisa Nanstad
a daisy "
Soft Parachute
In keeping with our goals to
feature and represent student
life as a whole, the Guilfor
dian presents a sample of stu
dent fiction. This short story
was written by Comer Gaither,
in Munich this semester, ex
pressly for the Guilfordian.
by Comer Gaither
When I think of all the
things that I could have,
should have, need to have
been-but try not to. Because to
die for your country is a great
thing, isn't it? At least that's
what the draft board said.
Let's see they said something
like, "think of it as a gateway
to adventure-carrying your
countries flag." The only pro
blem is that this flag that 1
carry is a target - and the gate
way to adventure only leads to
hell.
My mom cried more than I
had ever seen before - except
when my brother died. I ex
Peler Koch
" a sapling "
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l
P[^
Biotumelo Molefhe
" a thorn "
plained to her that clerks don't
come close to battle and ail
they do is type, but the tears
never stopped. 1 left her in her
bedroom - clutching her pillow
crying for her baby.
The yellow light came on
and Sgt. Moon spoke the
words "check the gear." His
voice sounds more like an
apology than a command, and
we all obeyed like obedient
pets.
My dad, the all-American
father played football in col
lege, on the school board and
was ashamed that 1 had to be
drafted. He was the one who
walked me out of my mom's
room where she lay crying; sat
me down and told me how
much he loved me. How much
I should care for myself and
not to get hurt. To seal this ad
dress of affection he gave me
his gold pocket watch, which
of last week he never wore. He
kissed me for the first time,
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HHHH *sss■■■ JHHHBHHP
Rachel Ramsey
" a venus fly (rap "
Eric Johnson
" a lilac
started to cry, and left.
Green light - time to jump.
I'm fifth in line and would
have given the pocket watch to
become sixth - but its been
traded for a carton of cigaret
tes. ,
Now I'm third and scared.
I've only jumped once before
-and now I'm second. I see the
camo uniform in front of me
like a silhouette of bliss. The
form of a man like me, stan
ding on the edge of judgment
day, then gone.
I was pushed and I'm fall
ing, falling for a second, a
firm stop, floating. Before
hand there was no time to be
scared, not that's all there
was: fear and time. I floated
down with terror clutching on
my shoulders. I clutching the
straps and the straps holding
my soft parachute.
I was scared of the needle
and of the doctor who held it,
but my grandmother was
I here. She sang a hymn soft
and smooth - that took my
mind away from the needle
and the doctor. While my
grandma was singing the doc
tor gave me the shot, but I felt
no pain, as long as she sang. I
was detached from my body,
and I played in her song. Feel
ings were but a forgotten
memory to me. "Chaser of
bad things," that's what she
told me. And anytime I
become frightened, this hymn
would scare away the fear.
I hummed the hymn and ter
ror turned into death. And
death played fiddle to my
hymn under the soft
parachute, which now let me
down slower with every
breath. Then I felt my grand
mother's smile. I could feel
her near, and the more I sang,
the more death's fiddle faded
away. I played in the song,
and had not a care except for
The Gullfordian, September 17, 1986
tpr| l'^-'^
JiT
Julie Marqulies
" a cactus "
13
Dierdre Davis
'• garlic "
compiled by Jon Zimmerman
my grandma, who I could tell
was close by. I could see her
breath, taste her hair and feel
her hands cradling my head
far off in some distant cloud.
Once again grandmother was
my soft parachute.
I looked down to where my j
mates lay in a bath of terror
and death, called war. I know i
that no matter how big of a j
parachute I had - its softness !
could never stop a bullet - and
I was right. I heard death smile
and smelled the stink of his
hands as he closed my eyes.
My last breath sucked out -and
grandma was very far away.
The ground was colder than
I, and my soft parachute
covered my body - as death
crept away to find another, i
guess it is a great thing to die
for your country - as long as
you have a soft parachute to
cover you when no one else
will.
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