Ellie's Song (4 page)

Luke almost dropped his coffee. “Are you serious? Of cour
se the invitation is still open.
I know the kids will be thrilled to see you back.”

“Thanks. You were right, I had more fun than I expected to and it just really put into perspective how lucky I’ve been. Volunteers like you really make a difference in their lives.”

“I saw you talking with Cori and
Calvin-
did Calvin say an
y
thing to you?”

“No, I was going to ask you about him. Cori mentioned their mother being dead. Have you ever heard him speak?”

“No, I haven’t, but I’ve been trying to get him to come out of his shell slowly, without pressuring him. I’m just happy he will stand by his sister in the choir, even if not a sound comes out of his mouth. Their story i
s a sad one. Their father murdered
their mother and Calvin was there when it happened.
He saw the whole thing.
The fa
ther was sent to prison and the kids
were sent here, to live with a
great-aunt
in Lincoln Terrace. She’s a widow and luckily for the kids she thinks the world of them. But she works two jobs trying to take care of them and they spend a lot of time alone, with Cori looking out for her brother.”

Ellie’s blue eyes glistened.
“H
ow devastating!
Those poor kids…
I can’t even begin to imagine what their world must be like.
No wonder he doesn’t speak.
”

“I know
, that kind of loss and tragedy at such a young age, it’s impossible to tell what kind of impact it has on their lives or if they can get over something like that.”

“They are lucky to have you. Watching you work with the kids, I have to say, it really melts my heart.” She saw the corner of his mouth curve into a smile and she added without thinking, “
And it’s very attractive, t
oo. It’s a side a lot of men rarely show and …it really works for you.”

“Thanks
.
And you know what
? I
t’s working for you,
too.  This coffee was on you but I want
to thank you properly for wanting to go again, for agreeing to sing in the church program, for everything. After Christmas, I’d like to take you out for dinner, for a real date, before you go back to college.”

“I’d love that.”
She felt her body getting warm and thought she’d need the cold December air outside to cool her down.
He reached over and sweetly held her hand and looked into her eyes.

“I would too, Ellie.”

***

Though the first tim
e she drove to St. Andrew’s her only excitement came from looking forward to spend time with Luke and she’d been
nervous about being around the kids, this time she was excited to see Luke but just as excited to see the kids.
Especially Calvin.
She
really wanted to bring him out of his
shell and made it a personal goal to
try to get him to speak. She had no knowledge of child psychology or if it was even a realistic goal, but at the very least, she wanted to make him feel like she was a friend.

This time she met Luke in the basement. Instead of sandwiches, he’d brought a big pot of soup
in a
slow cooker and was plugging it in a wall outlet when she found him.

“What’s in the pot, it smells delicious?”

“That would be my famous chicken noodle soup. It’s a big hit with the kids, keeps them warm on a cold day like this, it’s healthy and it tastes delicious
,
if I do say so myself.”

“Wow, he sings, he cooks, he’
s great with kids, are there any other
hidden talents you possess?”

“I’m sorry to disappoint you, but that’s about the extent of my powers.”

“I highly
doubt that. Something tells me you’re holding out on me. What is it? Are you an Olympic medalist, a c
hess master, do you invent life
saving medical devices
in your spare time
?
What’s your secret?”

He chuckled as he sampled a taste of the soup. Then he turned to her and said, “If you don’t mind, I was hoping that today while I work with the group, you could pull Cori and Jasmine aside and help them work on their solo parts.”

“Sure, I’d love to. And I really want to spend more time with Calvin. The story that you told me about watching his mother being killed by his father, it’s been haunting me all day.
Do you think there’s any chance I could get him to talk again?”

Luke looked at her with kind eyes. “Ellie, it’s really sweet that you want to help him. But don’t focus too much on getting him to
talk,
even therapy hasn’t done that for him yet. It’s going to take him a long time to process the trauma that he experienced. I don’t want you to be disappointed if that doesn’t happen because of you. Focus on what you can do-showing him the kindness and friend
ship of an adult. And use your voice
.”

“My voice?”

“Maybe you didn’t notice it yesterday, but when you were singing, you had him mesmerized. Usually his eyes are so cold, showing no trace of emotion. I’ve never seen eyes like that on a child. But when you were singing, those eyes lit up, if only for a moment.”

Ellie felt like her heart was going to burst. She wished that she could sing for Calvin every day. Just then the sound of boots could be heard trampling down the steps to the basement.
Soon, Luke and Ellie were greeted with smiling faces that were excited to see that Ellie was back and that there was hot chicken noodle soup waiting for them.

They took off their coats and started lining up at the table, waiting for Luke to ladle it into their bowls. Ellie helped by setting out napkins and water bottles at every spot before pulling up a chair next to Cori and Calvin.

She’d wanted to start engaging right away with Calvin, but some of the more outgoing kids at the table-Cori, Jasmine and Isaac
,
started chatting with her right away. It was obvious that they were glad
to have Ellie back so she happily
answered their questions as well as asking them a few questions about what they wanted for Christmas and what they thought of Mr. Williams’ soup.  After a few minutes of discussion and giggles, they started talking amongst themselves, giving Ellie the chance to focus on Calvin for a few minutes before they started on their music.

Though he was sitting right next to her,
Calvin had avoided any eye contact, silently eating his soup. Ellie noticed that his chair was in its normal position, unlike the day before when he had pulled it right up to Cori’s and had almost hid behind her while they ate. She thought that was a good sign.

“Hi Calvin, are you enjoying the soup?”

No answer or eye contact.

“I thought it was pretty tasty and
believe
me,
I’ve had a lot of soup in my day.” She laughed to herself as she realized how old that made her sound. It was something that she might have heard her father say.

She noticed that he was wearing another superhero shirt today, but she wasn’t up on current superheroes and wasn’t sure which one it was.

“Calvin, I really like your shirt! I remember that you wore a shirt with Batman on it yesterday and now you have another superhero but I’m not sure who it is. Do you know his name?”

Again no answer.
Not that Ellie had expected one to come.

She
thought it was time to try something else. She
reached into her bag to get out a storybook that she’
d brought and was suddenly cognizant of the fact that the amount of money she spent on her Louis Vuitton handbag could buy a new winter coat for each of the kids in the choir. It made her feel guilty and gave her a lump in her throat but she pushed those thoughts out of her mind as she reached in for the book.

She pulled out a beautifully illustrated children’s book that had pictures to go along with the lyrics to O Holy Night. It had been hers when she was a little girl and probably one of the reasons why it was her favorite Christmas song.
She had been
worried that
any one-sided conversation she’d have with the boy might become awkward as she rambled on and on, as she had a tendency to do, so she remembered how much she’d loved this story and thought she’d read it to him.

“Do you like storybooks?” she asked him with excitement in her voice.

He looked up at her.
Eye contact.
It was a start.

Cori jumped in, “He loves stories! Can I listen, too?”

“Of course you can,” Ellie answered. “I thought this would be a nice book to bring because it was the song that I sang to you yesterday. “

Ellie began the story and flipped through the pages as she kept an eye on Calvin. It definitely held his interest, she could see him looking at the pictures and he was listening to the story but she wished he would tell her that he liked it, or tell her anything for that matter. How alone he must feel, Ellie thought, with nobody to talk to, not even the people who love him.

When she finished the story, Ellie smiled warmly at Calvin. “Did you like this story? I’ve always loved the beautiful
pictures,
they’re like little paintings with so much detail.”

She waited for a minute in silence before continuing. “If you like
stories, I can bring more. In fact, I have boxes full of books that my mother still has in our basement. I’d like to give them to you, Calvin. I really loved books when I was a little girl and I would love for you and your sister to have them. Books can take you places that you’ve never been before and sometimes the characters in books even seem like real friends.”
Oh, dear
, Ellie thought,
I’m rambling again, aren’t I?

She didn’t have much time with him after the story because Luke called for the kids to clean up the tables and head to the piano for practice. He told Jasmine and Cori that they’d be working on their solos in an adjoining room with Ellie and Calvin followed along as well.

Ellie enjoyed working one on one with each of the girls. Their voices were unique but each of them
were
talented and Ellie couldn’t believe how much they’d improved after just one session with her. She’d used some tricks and techniques that she’d learned from private lessons through the years as well as from her classes at
college.

Calvin didn’t sing, but just sat on a little stool, looking over and over at the picture book that Ellie had read to him.
Even though she hadn’t brought him to speak yet, she could tell that he was becoming more comfortable around her.
Maybe she’d try again tomorrow…

***

Though her days were filled with shopping with friends, spending time with her family and wrapping presents, the next two afternoons Ellie went back to St. Andrew’s. She couldn’t believe how right Luke was; sharing music with kids was more rewarding than she realized.  She also realized something about herself. Though her parents loved her very much and gave her every material thing she’d ever wanted, there was something that they had denied her and that was the chance to serve others.

She had spent her life being the one served, her and her sister put on pedestals by their parents. She never saw poverty first hand, never helped out in a soup kitchen or homeless shelter. Though her parents were adamant about donating large sums of money to various charities, Ellie never got to experience firsthand where that money went to, never met the people that it helped. Her volunteer experiences had been limited to charity fundraisers at expensive country clubs.  She wished she would have learned at an earlier age how rewarding it was to serve others, especially children.

Finally December 23 had arrived;
t
he last day of practice before their big concert.
The practice went
great,
they were as ready as they’d ever be. The group as a whole sounded beautiful, the soloists were prepared and Ellie even practiced her song a couple of times. She’d noticed that her voice was
feeling a little bit strained so she made a mental note to do a tea, honey and lemon treatment when she got home.

After the kids got their coats on and were ready to go, they turned off the lights of the church basement and headed out into the parking lot. As they walked to the edge of the lot, Ellie started to think about how fast the week had gone and how she’d really looked forward to the practices every night. It was hard to believe that Christmas Eve would be there tomorrow and then it would be over.
For her, anyways.
Not for Luke, though. After break was over, he’d go back to days teaching at the high school and twice a week practices to prepare their new music, bring more soup and sandwich suppers, help with homework and more importantly, help them through the struggles of life.