Once Upon A Karma (Karmic Krystal Book 1) (5 page)

Leena and Tania sit on the jetty with Dad.  Mum and I lay our towels on the grass near a tree so we can work on our tans.  As soon as I hear the first snore come from my mother’s nostrils, I grab my plastic bucket and spade.  The tide has long since gone out, leaving a maze of wet sand as far as the eye can see.  I slowly make my way down the stairs and as soon as my feet touch the wet sand, I turn around and face the sea wall. 

A giant round pipe is right in front of me which is easily twice as tall as my dad.  In front of the pipe is a hole in the sand which is filled with sea water.  Having seen people dangle their feet into the water at swimming pools, I decide to sit on the sand with my feet in the water.  As I turn to my left with my bucket and spade, hoping to make some amazing sand castles in the wet sand, my body slides into the water in front of the pipe.  I scream and move my arms and legs, but as I have no clue how to swim and my head is below the water, I quickly start to panic.  I don’t want to drown. 
Wake up, Mummy!  Daddy, come quick!  Goddess help me! 
When I can’t hold my breath any longer, I feel a giant hand grab my swimming costume at the back and yank me out of the water.  Dripping wet and gasping for air, I find myself sitting on the wet sand once more.  When I turn around to thank the person who had just saved me, I find nobody there.  A few minutes later, my mother wakes up and calls out my name, wondering where I am.  Still puzzled by who had pulled me from the water, saving me from drowning on my birthday, I make my way back up the stairs in the sea wall and ask if we can go home.

While opening my presents at home, I can’t stop yawning.  The events of the day have left me utterly exhausted.  I have a bath before climbing into bed for a well-earned nap, sleeping right through until morning.

Before I realise it, Leena’s first day of big girl’s school has arrived.  I wave to both of my sisters as they leave.  Leena rides her bike alongside Tania until they reach Cribb Island Kindergarten.  She then continues riding one street further until she is at Cribb Island State School.  Having seen her pack one of her colouring books into her new backpack, I know that she will not be bored during the day. 

With nobody to play with, I sit in my bedroom alone and stare at the picture on the wall.  Rusty and I look so happy in the photo.  I decide to go outside, telling my mother that I will change the water in Rusty’s bowl.  There is still quite a chill in the air so I put on a cardigan before heading down the front stairs.  After filling the large water bowl at Rusty’s grave with fresh water, I notice that the Frangipani branch has doubled in height and has buds sprouting from the side.

“Thank you for accepting my gift, Rusty.  It is getting bigger and stronger because of you,” I say, kneeling at his grave.  After touching the soil, I go and sit in the shade at the side of the house, absorbing the peace and tranquillity that surrounds me.  Butterflies fly by.  Birds sing their beautiful songs.  I can’t help but smile as a wallaby hops into our yard and drinks from Rusty’s water bowl.  “Thank you, Goddess,” I whisper as the gentle breeze kisses my face.

Mum comes downstairs carrying a tray.  She gently places the tray on the ground and grabs a small blanket from the cupboard under my dad’s work bench.  After laying out the blanket on the soft dirt, she sits down next to me, positioning the tray in front of us in the shade.  Two glasses filled with ice, a jug of water and some Vegemite sandwiches are on the plate.  I reach over and hug her arm, leaning my head against her.

“Thank you, Mummy.” I am grateful that everything is so quiet and peaceful.

“You are welcome, Sweetheart,” my mother replies.  After eating our sandwiches and drinking our glasses of water, Mum asks if I would like to go and surprise Tania at kindergarten.

“But she took her bike, Mummy.  I don’t want anybody to steal her bike!” I say to my mother, knowing how much Tania loves her bicycle.

“Don’t worry about that.  We will put her bike into the boot of the car,” my mother tells me.  “I thought you would like to see what your sister does in the daytime.  You will also get to see where you will be going next year!  I definitely think the surprise will be a happy one for Tania.”  I ponder this for a moment.  If the bike is also coming in the car, I know that nobody will be able to steal it.  I also know that Tania loves surprises.  I smile, picturing Tania’s face lighting up as we walk through the door at her kindergarten.

“Let’s do it!” I say, excitedly. “Can Ralph come too?”

“You can buckle Ralph into the middle of the back seat.  We have to make sure he is safe when he is in the car!” Mum says.  We both giggle and I hug my mother tight. 

“I love you, Mummy,” I tell her, meaning every word of it.  My mother pats my arm for hugging too tight and then gets to her feet, picking up the tray of empty dishes.  Upstairs, I ask many times, “Is it time to go yet?” but sadly, it is not.  Instead, I take a nap, asking Mum if she can wake me when it’s time.  Mum agrees that this is a very good plan.

After sleeping for two hours, I feel well rested.  My mother wakes me and says it is time to go and see my big sister at the kindergarten.  I smile and roll over to tell Ralph that we are going for a drive.  After climbing out of bed, I pull Ralph into a big hug before I put my shoes on.

Most of the parents are gone by the time we arrive at the kindergarten.  I look around for my big sister and find her upstairs.  Tania is standing in the corner, crying her eyes out.  When she turns around, I can see that her lip is bleeding.

“Mummy!” I scream.  Mum comes quickly to see what is happening.  She frowns when she sees Tania’s lip has been split and demands to speak with the teacher.  I listen while the teacher explains to our mother that a boy punched Tania in the face for playing with a toy that
he
wanted to play with.  Anger starts bubbling inside me. 
Who would do such a horrible thing?
My sister is really sweet and had never hurt anybody in her life!

The kindergarten teacher leads Mum to the front door of the kindergarten.  It doesn’t take long before an angry exchange occurs between the mother of the boy and our mum.  The little boy pokes his tongue at Tania and me as his mother gives the middle finger to our mum. 
Both of you are filthy pigs with no manners!
I am furious.  With my skin burning, I feel the need for both of them to receive a bloody good kick up the bum.  Staring daggers at them, I pay close attention to their every movement.

As the boy’s mother sticks her nose in the air, she takes her son’s hand and walks to the top of the stairs which lead to the car park.  Almost in slow motion, both the boy’s and his mother’s feet slip on the top step.  Their legs fly out in front of them and they land on their butts.  An invisible force seems to have grabbed them both by the legs, pulling them forwards, feet first.  They both hit the top step hard before their butts make a touchdown on each and every step on the way down.  It is like watching somebody bouncing in a car seat on a bumpy road in a cartoon.  Tania’s and my eyes open wide and our jaws drop in shock at the comical scene transpiring before us.

“Whoops!” I say out loud, trying hard to keep a straight face.  But with just that one word, we both break out into hysterical laughter as we fall to the floor and hug.  Tania’s tears stop and the pain in her lip also seems to have disappeared.  By the time the rude boy and his mother have reached the bottom step – their legs still stretched out in front of them - both have bitten and split their bottom lips.  They cringe from the pain and their faces are bright red from embarrassment.  Our mother does not go downstairs to offer assistance, nor does the kindergarten teacher.  Instead, they cover their mouths, trying to hold in their own giggles.

It takes a while before Tania and I are able to stop laughing.  After putting Tania’s bike into the boot of the car, Mum looks at us both as we hug Ralph before clicking our seatbelts into place in the back seat.  We all talk excitedly about the unusual, yet hilarious event all the way home.  Once we arrive, Mum has a close look at Tania’s bleeding lip.  She discovers that the lip itself is no longer split.  On further investigation, Mum finds that the boy’s punch had loosened one of Tania’s teeth.  She takes a tissue and holds it over the tooth to stop the bleeding, but when she removes the tissue, the tooth easily comes out with it.

“Your tooth came out!” I squeal at Tania as we both stare at her tooth.  “Holy moly!  Did it hurt?” 

“It hurt when he hit me,” Tania answers truthfully.  “It doesn’t hurt now, though.  It just tastes gross and I have a hole in my mouth which my tongue can fit into.”

“Yuck,” I say, feeling the urge to vomit.  It is the first time either of my sisters lost a tooth. 

“I am glad they bounced down the stairs on their bottoms!” Tania says, setting off a second wave of giggles and laughter.  When I peek around the corner into the kitchen, I see my mother laughing so hard that tears roll down her cheeks, making me laugh even harder.  I wonder to myself whether or not the boy’s and his mother’s butts have stopped hurting yet before deciding that I don’t really care.  It was just too funny to watch!

Tania and I tell Leena about the kindergarten incident when she comes home from school.  After Leena finally stops laughing and wipes the tears from her face, she suggests that we send the lady and her horrible son a thank you card for making us laugh for so long.  With this comment, my stomach and ribs start hurting and I almost pee myself from laughing too hard.

Nobody dares hurt Tania for the rest of the year at kindergarten.  Although most of them had not been present when the episode of butt-bouncing occurred, news quickly spreads about the strange event and the laughter that ensued. 

Leena’s first school year is without incident.  She makes many friends at school, but because her friend had hurt me the previous year, Leena decides not to bring any more of them home.  While I am so little, Leena does not trust any of her friends around me because she believes that I am not yet big enough to defend myself. 

I find it strange that nobody in my family but me seems to notice the Karmic powers that are in play.  All I know is that the Goddess must be keeping a very close watch over our family since my grandfather hurt me almost two years ago.  It feels good to know that Karma exists and that justice is being served.  For that, I am truly grateful.

Chapter
Five

The school year finally comes to an end and it is Yule once again.  The books from our new book shelf have been read many times, with new ones often being added to the collection.  As I listen to my parents read the books to me, I make a decision that when I grow up, I want to write books.  Mindy lies with her stomach near my head, snoring as I listen to the story.

“Daddy, I want to be a book writer when I am big like you,” I interrupt, during a reading of “
Smoky Joe the Fish Eater,
” one of my favourite books written by John O’Grady.  I love this book because when I listen to the story and close my eyes, I pretend I am a cat, even though my dad only likes dogs.

“Hmm… perhaps you should learn to write first?” he suggests.  After pondering this for a moment, I agree.  After I learn to write, I will write lots of books about cats and seagulls and butterflies, but all of the books that I write will be without pictures.  I still enjoy the pictures that play in my head as the books are read to me when my eyes are closed.  When Dad closes the book at the end, I open my eyes and look up at the ceiling as I gently pat Mindy on the head. 

Immersing myself in every single book I can lay my hands on over the next week, I desperately try to teach myself how to read.  It frustrates me sometimes that my parents and Leena can read any book they want to, but when I look at the letters inside a book, I cannot figure out their codes in order to pronounce them.  Being three years old is tough sometimes. 

I continue to practice my incomprehensible reading skills until New Year’s Eve.  Although I am still too young for my parents to let me stay up until midnight, I decide that this year, I would like to try to stay awake so I can see the fireworks start crackling outside.  Sitting up in my bed, I talk to Ralph and Mindy about my excitement of the upcoming year and what my New Year resolutions will be.

“Ralph, I promise to spend more time with you.  I have been neglecting our quality time together and that will just never do.  Mindy, I promise more tummy rubs for you and will ask Mummy and Daddy to buy you some new tennis balls to play with because yours are gross from slobber.”  Ralph and Mindy both stare at me, seemingly pleased with these mindful resolutions.  I hear loud crackling and banging noises outside the window and quickly jump out of bed to look.  Fireworks are shooting all over the place in people’s back yards and in the street.  As quietly as possible, I cheer and look around at Ralph and Mindy, only to find that Mindy has vanished, even though my bedroom door is closed.  Panic races through my veins.

“Mindy?  MINDY,” I yell, opening my cupboard door and looking in my closet drawers.  Both of my parents come running into the bedroom.

“Krystal, honey, what’s going on?” Dad asks with a worried look on his face.

“Daddy, the fire crackers started going off and when I turned around to tell Mindy, she was gone off the bed!  I think she exploded just like the bee!” I start to cry.  Wide eyed, they wonder which bee had exploded, before volunteering to help me look for Mindy.  It doesn’t take long before she is found under my bed, trembling in fear with her tail between her legs. 

“Lots of animals are afraid of the noise and the bright lights,” my dad explains.  “Although it is fun for you and Ralph to watch, it is terrifying for Mindy and other animals because they don’t understand what the noise is about.  That’s why they hide.”  Peering under the bed, I decide to crawl under there to keep Mindy company so she feels less afraid.  Smiling, my mum passes a pillow down to me before kissing me goodnight. 

I reach up and pull the blanket off the bed.  Carefully, I put the blanket up over Mindy and myself, telling her that she does not have to be afraid because Ralph and I will protect her from the noises and the lights.  Soon, she stops shivering and we both fall asleep. 

The next morning, I wake to find that it is pouring rain.  There is no more noise outside from crackling fireworks.  Mindy and I climb back up onto my bed with Ralph and decide to sleep in, as we slowly morph into a pair of slugabeds.  I eventually wake up again just before lunch time, only to find that Mindy is no longer in my bedroom.

“She had to pee and almost broke your door,” Tania explained.  “I took her downstairs so she can go to the toilet and sniff stuff.  She peed near Daddy’s work bench because she didn’t want to pee in the rain.”  When I glance over at Mindy, snoring and fast asleep on the sheepskin rug in the living room, I see her ears move when we say her name. 
You aren’t fooling anybody, young lady!  I know you are pretending. 
As soon as the thought crosses my mind, Mindy’s tail starts to wag, almost like she knows she has been caught out.

It isn’t long to go before I am four years old.  Remembering my sister’s misadventure last year, I am a little bit daunted by the big bad world of kindergarten.  I am also quite nervous as it will be the first time I spend a full day away from my parents since the incident with my grandfather.  I contemplate taking Ralph to kindergarten with me, but soon change my mind after discussing the idea with my sisters.

“Everybody will want to play with him and they might break him,” says Leena.  “I think you should let Ralph stay here at home so Mummy doesn’t feel so lonely in the day time.”

“Yeah!” Tania agrees.  “You don’t want somebody to sneeze on him either, because yuck.  Mummy can take care of him.  Maybe she can take him to the shops with her when she buys food?  Mindy can also talk to Ralph when she gets bored.”

Both of my sisters make very good arguments about why Ralph should stay at home with our mother.  I had also seen for myself how good Ralph is at protecting people.  He’d beaten the crap out of my grandfather before he died.  Not wanting anything bad to happen to my mother when she is at home alone, I agree that Ralph can stay at home too.  I also explain to Mum that she does not have to be sad or lonely when my sisters and I are away all day because Ralph will take care of her.  This makes her smile.  She hugs Ralph and then hugs me. “Thank you, Krystal,” she whispers, a tear in her eye.

My first day of kindergarten arrives.  I am still a little bit nervous as Mum drives me to school.  Although she knows that I have been there before, she fears that her youngest daughter is about to start a very scary day.  But I am just nervous, not afraid.  All of the other children will be here for their very first time and I guess they might not be as brave.  They were not here when the horrible boy and his mum bounced down the stairs last year.  I know about how strange things can happen to mean people.

When I arrive, some of the children are already crying.  They don’t want to be away from their parents.  I take a deep breath, feeling confident that Ralph will look after and protect my mother when I am not at home, so I walk into the building with my head held high and look for a book.  Most of the books have no words.  Each page just has a picture of an animal with a letter above it.  I guess this is the book which will teach us how to write our names, as I recognise some of the letters that my sisters have taught me.  Standing in the doorway, my mother stares at me as I am about to find a seat in the corner.  Not wanting her to worry, I run over and hug her before she leaves and kiss her on the cheek.

“I love you, Mummy.  Be brave for me, okay?  Ralph will protect you today,” I say to her.  She taps my arm because I hug her too tight, but when I see her face, she is smiling at me.  With tears in her eyes, she tells me how proud she is of me.  She also tells me that she is surprised that I am growing up so fast.  I hope this is not a sad surprise for her.

When all the parents are gone, the other kids and I gather in the main room.  I go back to my quiet corner and sit down with my book, already a little bit bored.  A young girl called Sharyn comes over and sits next to me.

“What are you reading?” she asks.

“Alphabet and pictures,” I tell her and show her the book.  She looks surprised that I know the word ‘
alphabet’
already.  I smile and tell her that my big sisters taught me some things and that I am not so smart.  She tells me her name and I tell her mine.  We smile at each other and suddenly I don’t feel nervous any more.  Sharyn is my very first friend who is not my sister.  Sitting close to her, I share the book and we look at the pictures together.  I tell her some of the letters that I know.  After I say the letter, she says the name of the animal in the picture.

“Children, listen to me, please!” says the teacher loudly.  We all stop talking and look at the teacher, wondering if she is angry that we are talking so loud.  “I want you each to stand up one at a time, when I point to you.  You will then say your name to everybody and introduce yourselves.  Once you have said your name clearly, you can then sit down so the next person I point to can do the same,” the teacher says. 

Immediately, some of the children start to cry.  I wonder what is going on inside their heads to frighten them so much.  Maybe they are afraid that something bad will happen to them when they stand up?  Gazing at each child, I can see their fears materialise inside my mind.  Some are afraid of so many new people.  Others are sad that they are not with their mothers.  One is afraid because he just soiled his underwear and is too embarrassed to tell the teacher.

Sharyn and I then notice two boys fighting over a toy. 
Really?  Is that all boys know how to do, is fight?
  They both play tug-of-war with the small car while trying to push each other away.  The teacher walks over to the two boys and tries to break up the fight.  In return, one of the boys bites her on the arm.  Everybody is shocked, including me. 

“Hey, don’t bite!” the teacher yells at the boy.

“Fuck you!” yells the little potty mouthed boy.  “That douche had my car!”

He bites the teacher again.  I see blood start to trickle down her arm as she screams out loud.  Sensing the teacher’s pain, my face suddenly feels hot with anger.  Glaring at the boy who has no manners, I think about what would happen if the roles were reversed.  Before my very eyes, the teacher’s pain transfers itself directly to the boy and he screams in agony.  When he looks down, his own teeth marks are showing on his arm and some blood is seeping from the bite.

“You
bit
me!” screams the boy at the teacher.  “I am telling my mother on you!” he continues to prattle on.  Unfortunately for the young misfit, there is a room full of children who saw the boy bite the teacher, and not the other way around.  Sensing that the teacher can feel no more pain on her arm, I feel pleased and smile sheepishly.

The teacher takes the boy by the ear and marches him into her office.  She rings the boy’s mother to come and collect him immediately.  When the mother arrives, she is not surprised at all that her son bit the teacher.  She then sees the bite on his arm and asked which child bit her boy.

“Your son bit
himself
, Ma’am,” the teacher says glaringly.  “I am afraid that you will need to find a different kindergarten for your son.  He is no longer a student here as he poses a risk to the other students.  I will be notifying the Board of Education of his behaviour and it will be on his permanent record.”

I love the balls on this teacher.  She reminds me a lot of my mother, who is also not afraid to say it like it is.  I admire people who refuse to back down to bullies.  I also now like this teacher.  Sharyn and I both smile at each other as the boy and his mother leave the room, red-faced.  We are pleased to know that he will not be returning.  When I glimpse over at the teacher’s arm, I am stunned to see that bite has fully healed. 
Sweet!

“Let’s start again, shall we?” says the teacher, much calmer than she had been just moments before.  “Who wants to go first?”  I raise my hand and stand up.

“My name is Krystal and I hate bullies,” I say proudly.  Some of the children giggle.  The teacher smiles at me and nods her head as Sharyn stands up next to me.

“My name is Sharyn and Krystal is my best friend!” she says, standing with her head held high and completely unafraid. 

Her words take me by surprise.  Never before had I ever been somebody’s best friend!  Sharyn and I smile at each other.  It gives me a happy feeling that Tania and Leena’s first days were most likely the same as this.  As each child stands and introduces themselves, I start to find it difficult to remember their names.  By the time they have all had their turn, the only people’s names I remember are my own and Sharyn’s. 
Good grief! 
I pray there will not be a test.

The teacher smiles at us, obviously pleased, and says “My name is Mrs Tucker, and I welcome you all as students to Cribb Island Kindergarten!”  I start to cheer and applaud but quickly stop when I realise that nobody else is doing so. 
How embarrassing!
  “We will have much fun this year,” she continues after glancing at me strangely.  “You will learn to write your name and you will learn colours and how to paint and draw.  If you have any problems at all, please be sure to tell me and I will see how we can solve the problem.  Does that sound okay?” she asks.

“YEEEESSSSSS,” all of the children respond at the same time.  I can’t help but giggle at the drawn-out, synchronised response.  We are then all assigned a giant square pigeon hole.  Each one has a name which corresponds to one of the new students.  After locating my own, I put my jacket and shoes into the pigeon hole and wait for Sharyn to do the same. 

The teacher asks us to find a partner, as we are going to do some painting and learn colours.  Thankful that I had just taken off my favourite shoes, I grab Sharyn and some paper.  Aprons are distributed, along with some watercolours, a cup half-filled with water and some paintbrushes.