Somiya Chapman

Long ago in old Italy, lived a puppet maker. Oh, he made all sorts of things! Wooden dolls that had jointed elbows and legs, babushka dolls, wooden clogs and chairs and doll houses, swings, and knife handles. His name was Emiri. On a sunny peaceful day, the door to his workshop opened early in the morning. In walked the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.

She was dressed in simple pale brown clothing of rich linen and some turquoise. Her large eyes were rimmed with black lashes. She looked around his store.

“What can I do for you Today?” Emiri set down his polishing cloth and stood up to help the young lady. He walked up to the counter.

She nodded at him with a smile and walked through the wood-shop quietly. She picked up a little doll that fit in the palm of her hand. It wore a little white frock. She returned to the check-out counter to purchase it.

He took it from her and told her the price and put it in a brown paper bag. She smiled, handed him the money and walked out with the doll. Emiri sat back down at his wood carver’s bench. Her beauty shocked him like a ray of sunshine. He continued carving.

Two hours later his friend barged in. “Hey, Emiri!”

Emiri put his work down and turned around. “Ah, Antonio!” He stood up to greet his old friend.

“Emiri, I got us tickets to see a show tonight. It’s this beautiful girl called Claudette, an opera singer. She can dance too.” Antonio opened up a pamphlet in front of him.

It was she. Claudette wore a flashy red outfit and her breasts bulged. Her skirt swirled around in waves and in the black ringlets of her hair was a beautiful flower. She looks so different, Emiri thought to himself. He decided to go.

“I’ll go.”

Antonio stared at his friend in shock. “That’s it? No fishing, you are not going to force me to give you roasted pig, none of that. You are just going to go?”

“Yes.”

Antonio laughed with disbelief. “After all these years of trying to get you involved, and you say ‘Yes’ to Claudette.”

“Claudette.”

“Oh mio..” Antonio chuckled and scrunched up the flyer and pointed at Emiri. “You had better be there by eight o’clock. The show starts at eight.”

Emiri silently nodded and smiled sternly at Antonio. Claudette smiled at him from the page in Antonio’s hand. It had been she that walked into the store. It was she who had bought his doll. Antonio walked out of his store and Emiri returned to his work bench.