Flowers Everlasting * EDITED PLEASE REVIEW*

And on comes he a spritely fellow.

He seeks the maiden true and fair

For in her heart she holds

Such a treasure beyond compare

A compassion long foretold…

This is the poem that began a story of the truest friendship known in Ireland. Young Licel was writing this sweet melody one crisp sprig day. She was greatly mesmerized by the delicate swish of the pen on the paper but still lacked the inspiration to complete the song. A gust of wind ripped it from petite hands and far down the road.She would have lost it had a boy, not much older than she, caught it midflight, embarking them on a journey that would change the way people saw the world.

For now though, the writing was quickly forgotten and tucked away as the two conversed and shared the joys of each other’s company. Short little chats became long talks as the two became the best of friends. Eric would often come over on rainy days to bring her flowers and enjoy her mother’s sweet jams and teas. It was on days like these that her mother would teach lessons about the land from which they came.

She told them that the sweetest things in life would always fade away for not even flowers were forever. Every life had a spring, when it was born, a summer, when it was young, a fall, when it was older, and a winter to mark the end of its life. She said this was the way of the world and it was in this way that people could truly learn to appreciate the things they cherished. There would have to be an everlasting beauty unlike any other to alter such universal rules.

Licel came to love pink roses most for their resemblance to her mother; light pink to represent her tender heart and wise ways. Luckily for her, the luscious plant was abundant in her little town. She and Eric would take to picking them by the dozen when they were in full bloom and arranging them in spectacular bouquets.

Eric’s father would tell the children wondrous Norse tales from his voyages that would both frighten and inspire them. The greatest of all of these was perhaps that of the princess and her Isbjorn. Countless times they would pretend to be the princess and the polar bear. Licel would always rescue Eric from the evil troll queen thus turning him into a man for all eternity. These were precious times when their lives were still young and their hearts full of innocence.

The children had much fun making believe and exploring every nook and cranny of the forest nearby. However, such novelties come to pass with age and school but the magic remained.

Now the Sunday afternoons were filled with lessons and practice. Eric proved to be quite the mathematician, far exceeding even his father .Ever the optimist he was always smiling and cracking jokes. Every time Licel saw him he had come up with some other whimsical way to make her grin. It would often be the case that his witticisms were so intricate she couldn’t follow and would simply nod and smile to humor his enthusiasm.

Licel became an avid writer, she would always be found humming a tune or scribbling a new story. She relished in her quality time with nothing but pen, paper, and lute. Her greatest pleasure though came from writing in her journal about all the sweet times she spent with her mischievous companion and how he’d always remember to bring her flowers on rainy days.

Eric and Licel fell effortlessly into a daily routine of escapades after lessons. Being the curious duo that they were, they stumbled on a secluded stream which would be the place for many hours of their free time.

This too came to pass in the years following. Licel was finally of marrying age and it thrust upon her a great many new chores. Her father was constantly trying to pair her up with the most successful apprentices in the kingdom. Her mother was always occupying her time with sewing, cooking, and other things becoming of a wife.

However, she had no intention to wait on snotty suitors for hours at a time. They were all selfish and depressing, far different from her caring demeanor. She quite enjoyed coming up with new excuses to evade her parents and their company. After she had slipped out under some ludicrous pretense she would steal away with Eric to their hideout.

It was the winter of that year that tragedy befell the fair lass and her father.A howling blizzard had swallowed what semmed to be all of Ireland but Licel’s family was safe inside their house. Suddenly they heard a dreadful howl from the barn which could only have been the family cat. Her mother rushed out into the torrent in hopes to save the poor tabby before it had gotten to intense. Against starting odds, she was successful.

It wasn’t until the following day that the real calamity surfaced. Her mother journeyed to town to get the cat looked over after the nights events. She was never to return. Witnesses told the grieving family that she must have been walking to close to the ravine when she slipped and fell into the depths below.

The sweet rose had finally faded from the world. Licel grieved for weeks and promised herself she would keep her mother alive in her writings. Her father however was never the same again.

He took to flogging the farm animals and putting Licel to work whenever she had free time. He would constantly tell her that she would never be an acceptable wife if she spent all her time marking up her journal. The extra work did kept her mind off of her troubles though she longed to have the freedom she once did. Her relationship with Eric was ever the same however, and they treasured what time they could get together even more.

Her father had had enough though. He took her aside one day send told her that her behavior was fitting of a child, not a marry able woman. He swore that if she could not find a man capable of preventing flowers from wilting he would marry her off to the son of the alchemist. This wouldn’t been such a cruel a fate if he were not the most unbearable fool in all of Ireland. He was ruthless and ignorant, though he came from a highly wealthy family. Her life was rapidly spiraling into an abyss from which there was no return.

She snuck away that night to see Eric about what her father had so heartlessly proclaimed. He also said it was outrageous and such things could only be achieved by great magic from the tales of their childhood. They both decided the only way for her to be free was to leave Ireland the next morning. Yet destiny again took the reigns.

Licel’s father had followed her and caught her scheming with Eric and forbid them to see each other again. Her betrayal had enraged him and he announced that the wedding was to be in three days’ time. Even her father said it’d take a god or a miracle to stop her union to the alchemist’s son.

For three excruciating days there was nothing. Nothing in Licel’s heart, nothing in her mind, nothing in her world… nothing that would make her smile or laugh the way her dear friend had. She realized that there was never and never will be a man with his cheerful demeanor and carefree personality. She was lost and alone and needed him now more than ever before.

The only time she had ever seen him cry was three nights ago when her father made the awful call for the wedding. Today her heart would truly die because he had been the guiding light for her all these years. Now there bond would be forever severed and the pages of their story would be lost to the wind with the petals of fallen roses. She swore to never again write another verse after the agonizing ceremony.

With the help of her maid she slipped into a lovely white gown, it would have made her glow if she had not been so doleful. She walked slowly down the stairs wondering if this was truly to be her life. Her father greeted her with shining eyes and said he couldn’t express the delight he felt for her on this wonderful day. He linked her arm in his and accompanied her out the door and into the yard where the ceremony was to take place.

In the far corner a flutist started playing her mother’s favorite song, and a single isle was marked with white rose petals. She thought this was fitting because pink without color and life is a listless white. She spied her husband to be who stood next to the town priest smiling callously. It was as though time had slowed. Step by step she drew closer and closer. Inch by inch she felt heart ache heaped on more heart ache. She wondered why she was even alive, why she even had hope.

Suddenly, a man on a brilliant white mustang came crashing through the alter. The horse whinnied as it was abruptly pulled to a halt before the lovely Licel. Astride it was Eric.

He announced proudly that he had done it, he had stilled the icy grip of time and preserved a flower in all its splendor. In his hand he produced a single silver dipped rose which would never die, or wilt, or fade. With this he hopped of the horse and presented it to Licel’s father.

He was awestruck, then he started crying. Her father said it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen and it reminded him of his wife who had never been far from his heart. It seemed to Licel that all her father’s hardness and strife melted away before her. He could now make peace and accept that some true beauty never dies, its memory just has to be preserved. She knew now that her mother would never truly be dead to her or her father.

In the midst of this Eric got down on one knee and produced a single pink rose from his other hand. He pronounced his unfaltering love for Licel and asked for her hand in marriage. He told her he had always loved her and knew deep in his heart that true friendship like theirs could withstand the test of time and overcome any obstacle before them. With her father’s blessing they were to be wed in a week with a grand celebration!

A few years later Licel was cleaning the attic when she found that fateful poem long forgotten. She now knew the perfect way to sum up her verse.

Flowers dip and trees turn yellow

And on comes he a spritely fellow.

He seeks the maiden true and fair

For in her heart she holds

Such a treasure beyond compare

A compassion long foretold.

Together they’d be the best of friends

He’d free her from all her woes

With a love so endless and sweet

And a single silver dipped rose.

Flowers bloom and trees sprout green

A lovelier couple will never be seen.