Magic Couch

by Weichuen You 2006

Cal lived in a seaside village when she was little. Rain or shine, she would go to the sea every day. The sea was part of her.

When she was 10, her parents decided to send her to a boarding school inland. They were so busy with their little bakery that they hardly had time to visit her once a week. Whenever adults came to pick up their kids, Cal looked with at lines of cars racing off for sweet homes. Her eyes were brimmed with longings for the small and warm house in the village and most of all, for the sea.

One Sunday, she was sitting on the couch in the student lobby. The first floor was five-story tall. Having no one to talk to, Cal sank into daydreams. She closed her eyes. The dazzling lights felt like twinkling stars in the dark. The noise around her faded away and then came the soothing lullabies of tides. She dipped her feet to make sure that it was really seawater. She could even feel that salty smell. Suddenly her yearnings and nostalgia were replaced by a sense of satisfaction and calm…

After Cal became a mom, she told the story of the Magic Couch to her children. It was from then that the sofas and chairs in Cal’s house all became magical!

Note: I redid an old drawing done 6 years ago. I like the idea but the illo is sort of crude. But there seems to be something else inside the old one. What do you think?

by Weichuen You 2000