When
the Surgeon arrived, the girl took him to where the heart was. He saw the
enclosure, and sighed. “What have you done to your heart?”
The
girl started talking about all the naughty things it had done: Yelling,
screaming, chasing after boys, throwing tantrums, and escaping her enclosure.
The Surgeon said nothing, but went into the pen with the heart. It barely
twitched when he examined it. His hands were gentle, and the Heart seemed to
relax under his touch.
When
the surgeon came out, he handed the girl a pot of salve. He instructed her to
spread it on the sores every day. And then he gave a warning. The heart would
only improve a little with the salve; in order to be fully healed, it needed to
be free.
The
girl protested. The fence was for her safety, and her heart’s. If she let it go
free, who knew what kind of damage it would cause. For “All hearts are
deceitful and evil. Even if they look nice and new, they WILL rebel. You must
train them or else they will go crazy and destroy you.” The Great Surgeon’s
face grew hard when he heard. He asked where she had learned about hearts. So
the girl went and got the book. The Surgeon took the book and perused the
pages. Then he ripped the pages, ten at a time. The girl yelled. How was she
supposed to look after her heart now?
Calmly
the Great Surgeon replied, “Do you doubt my work? The Hearts I touch are new.
The old is gone.” He sat down with the girl and explained how to take good care
of a heart.
The
next day the girl went into the enclosure. Timidly she took the chains off the
heart, and brought it cushions and blankets to sit on. She gave the heart water
and some food, and smeared the salve over its sores. It shrank away from her,
but because it was weak, it couldn’t move very far.
Slowly,
the heart regained strength. The sores disappeared. It regained flesh, and
began to move around the enclosure. The girl knew the heart needed enrichment,
so she gave it toys to play with. Sometimes she even went inside and watched
it, timidly, while it was absorbed in play.
Weeks
later, the Surgeon came back. Proudly, the girl led him to the enclosure, which
was now filled with plants and comfortable places and toys. The heart had not
yelled or made a fuss. It did not come up to her, but it allowed her nearer and
nearer each day.
The
Surgeon was pleased to see the heart was now healthier. It even seemed happy.
But it was not free. Still, the girl kept it locked away, far from herself, and
farther still from others.
So
the Surgeon insisted, the heart must be let free. The girl fought back. The
heart was happy. Why did it need freedom? Who knew what it would do out of the
cage? Probably go running after guys again. Or talk about the other country.
No, the heart would be much better off inside.
The
surgeon left, and the girl left the heart in the cage.
Time
passed.
The
heart grew bored of the toys. It began digging up plants. It yowled loudly. It thumped
hard against the fence, over and over and over, until it bled.
Finally,
the girl saw the wisdom of the Surgeon. So timidly, she opened the lock, and
let the door open just a crack. The heart saw its opportunity and barged out
the door, smacking the girl in the face with the gate. Hurt, she stumbled back,
and collapsed on the ground. The heart ran wild, yelling and screaming in joy
and every pent up emotion it had ever felt. It tore around, knocking over
precious ornaments and unloosening sacred things. The girl was angry and ran
after the heart, but she could not catch it.
Why
had she ever listened to the Surgeon? This was madness. The heart ran onto
neighbouring properties, wreaking the same havoc there that she herself had
experienced. Angry neighbours yelled at her to get her heart under control. But
still the heart ran, exhilarated by its newfound freedom.
Yep,
hearts were definitely rebellious and destructive. Was this not the proof?
But
then the girl saw. SHE had caused this. If the heart had not been kept locked
up, would it have the need to run so far, run so fast?
And
so she wept.
And
wept.
The
heart turned, hearing a strange sound. The girl was weeping. Curious, it
stopped running. It came closer. The girl watched through her tears.
Abruptly,
the girl stood and went to the enclosure. She grabbed at the wire roof, and
tried to yank it from its staples. The wires cut deep into her hands. So she
grabbed a sledgehammer, and swung wildly. KITSSSHSSSSH, the wire roof went
flying. BANG! BANG! BANG! The fence posts came down. CLANGGGG! The gate and the
lock were smashed. The cage lay in ruins.
The
girl sat, panting, exhausted, surrounded by the rubble.
Slowly,
timidly, the heart approached the former enclosure. It came closer to the girl,
treading carefully over splinters. It sat. The girl, with trembling hands,
reached out and touched the heart. And in that moment she realized. They must
become friends.
