FULL CIRCLE

by Carmel Rowley

Part Two

Artwork ‘Beach Runner’ Willa Frayser

www.willafrayserstudio.com

It was around this time the voice became insistent, almost impatient, repeatedly interrupting her work, often causing her to forget her lines. In her dreams she was enticed to ride the white horse. She vaulted onto a wide firm back and leaned forward as it spun to gallop over hills, through rivers and bushlands. They never once reached their destination.

“You are not what you appear to be”, the voice told her. The words sounded so clear and precise Cary glanced over her shoulder thinking her taunter was behind her.

All her fame, wealth and success amounted to nothing as the voice became a constant reminder of her unfulfilled life. The newspapers and magazines cruelly labelled her sour and grim-faced. They were never able to photograph Cary smiling outside her work. No flirtatious laughter or mysterious half smiles framed her impish features. Photographers stalked her with relentless persistence to snap the exclusive photograph revealing the barest hint of a smile.
The final straw came when an unauthorised article portraying Cary in an unsavoury light made her realise the time had come to change her false and empty life. “It’s time”, the voice told her. After weeks of discussion and soul searching Cary decided to sell all the reminders of the life she had come to despise. It appeared the public craved the honour to live in Cary’s house, own one of Cary’s cars or a piece of furniture. Her alabaster statue of an Arabian horse stood alone in the living room. The voice warned, “You have to be strong.”

With all the reminders of her career gone Cary knew her decision was fated. She lived for the day the car would be packed ready to drive away, never to return. When the final sorting and storing of her remaining possessions was done, she formulated a sketchy plan to see the many quaint tourist towns she read about but never found the time to visit.

On the day of her departure Cary closed the front door behind her for the last time. The city was already awake beginning it’s daily rush. Sirens, car horns and thousands of hurried feet pounded the pavement jarring her new found serenity. It was time to leave.