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For the past six years every August 17th, John Blythe always prepared a small birthday picnic for his son, Gilbert, in the orchard by the big oak tree. They dressed in their best suits, ate cake, played catch, picked some apples, and climbed a tree. They always ended the day by napping and woke up when the sky had turned into a chaotic yet glorious mix of orange, pink, and purple. Then, they walked home together, holding hands, surrounded by the creeping twilight.
This year, Gilbert didn't get all those things. Just a few days before his birthday, a telegram arrived first thing in the morning. Gilbert, who was in his highest spirits in perfecting his reading skills, didn't give the telegram to his dad who was tending to the livestock, instead, he started to read it on his own. But to his dismay, he didn't understand what was written in it so he went outside and holler at his dad to ask him what the telegram means.
Instead of getting an explanation, Gilbert was abruptly taken inside and made to change into his travel attire while his dad was frantically packing their clothes into a big case.
Gilbert loved the ferry. It was his first time going somewhere so far that he needed to cross the sea. The horizon made him wonder what was out there and he hoped someday he'd be able to travel the world. He was so excited about the trip that he failed to notice his dad had been very quiet the whole time. Gilbert was about to ask him where they were going but when he saw his dad's face, he couldn't make himself ask the question.
It was the first time Gilbert saw tears falling down his dad's cheeks. It was strange and sad. His dad was the strongest man he'd ever known. What could make someone as strong as him cry? Gilbert wondered.
Perhaps his dad accidentally cut his finger? Was the cut so deep? He slowly brought the big hand that was holding his little one so he wouldn't fall into the ocean to see if there was a cut—there wasn't any. He looked at the other hand that was holding the railing and still, the fingers looked perfectly fine.
Or could it be that his dad had a stomach bug? Gilbert remembered when he had a stomach bug last year and it was hurting so much he was screaming on the way to the doctor's house late in the night, waking up almost everyone in Avonlea.
Bewilderment turned into worry and Gilbert focused solely on his dad, forgetting the beautiful view of the sea he was admiring only seconds ago. Gilbert was about to ask if his dad's stomach was hurting but before he could, his dad looked down, wiped his face, and smiled the silliest grin that he always gave Gilbert every single day ever since he could remember.
The one thing Gilbert loved most about his dad is; he never lied and thought just because Gilbert was a little kid, he didn't deserve the truth. His dad had always been open about everything to Gilbert while always protecting him from the unkind truth with love and care. Like that one time when Gilbert was four and asked why he didn't have a mother. When his dad told him that his mother died giving birth to him, Gilbert didn't understand what it meant. The only thing he understood from his dad's explanation was that his mother wouldn't ever meet him even if he begged for it because his mother was not here anymore and it had made Gilbert cry so much. He only stopped after his dad sang him to sleep and made him a stack of pancakes the next morning to cheer him up by saying pancakes were his mother's favourite and she loved them almost as much as she loved Gilbert. His dad also said that he would answer any question Gilbert had to get to know her which made Gilbert so ecstatic.
So this time, when he asked why his dad was crying, he told him the truth; that a good friend of his had passed away and it made him sad. His dad didn't forget to tell Gilbert what a wonderful friendship they shared in the past and he was grateful to know his friend regardless of the pain it inflicted on his dad's heart from the loss. His dad said that: pain is the price that must be paid for love and those two would always coexist together.
Gilbert didn't understand what death meant when his dad told him about his mother. He didn't understand why she couldn't come back to him if she loved him so much.
But it was then when he was so little. He was a big boy now and he finally understood the pain one has to endure for the loss of their loved one. It was now Gilbert's job to comfort his dad just as he always did whenever Gilbert was sad. So, he hugged him and let his strong old man cry on his tiny shoulder.
On his seventh birthday, Gilbert wore all-black attire instead of his white and blue sailor suit. His dad promised they'd go to town to buy a cake after the wake. However, Gilbert didn't feel like celebrating at all. It didn't feel right to celebrate in this circumstance. So he told his dad " No, thank you " and asked permission to play outside because he didn't like to be in the wake—it was too crowded and not everybody looked sad which made him feel awful.
Gilbert got permission to play outside as long as he didn't stray too far and still could be seen from inside the house. He didn't have to go far because three days ago when he arrived at his dad's friend's house, he noticed a big weeping willow tree just outside the fence. Its branches dangle towards the creek right beside it. The soft August wind caressed the leaves making them flow so gracefully as if they were tickling the stream of water.
He went there, looked up, and grinned. The tree was big and sturdy and he could climb it. He looked back at the house and immediately saw his dad standing inside by the window to watch him. Even from this distance, he could see his dad smiling softly at him. Gilbert waved and pointed up, signalling his dad that he was asking permission to climb the magnificent tree. The nod was unmistakable and it made him jump in glee. When he looked back at his dad, he could see his white teeth from how big the grin on his face was. It made Gilbert feel better to know that despite the sorrow in his dad's heart, he would always smile and be happy for Gilbert.
Wasting no time, Gilbert started to climb. The tree was so high and he didn't want to stop climbing until there was no strong branch to support his weight anymore. Gilbert didn't yet know how to measure distance, but he was quite sure he was seven meters high from the ground. Everything looked so little from above the tree and there were so many beautiful things that tend to go unnoticed that could be seen from this point of view—such as how the wind makes the grass dance.
It was not the same as how he used to celebrate his birthday but he didn't mind the slightest bit because now he had a new, beautiful memory on his birthday that he would always keep dearly and cherish in his heart.
"How did you get up there?"
Gilbert looked down to find the person who, as it seemed, talked to him. But he couldn't see her because she was standing right below one of the biggest branches.
"Hello!" Gilbert greeted. Never forgetting his dad's lesson on how to start a conversation with someone you just met and always begins with a greeting.
"I want to climb too!" She replied with a soft, childish voice.
"I can't see you!"
"I can't even get on the swing." She went on without moving so Gilbert could see her.
"Who are you?" He asked as he climbed down.
"Isabel—no! Call me Rose or Daisy. But I really like Marjorie and Marie..." she rambled.
"Are those all your name?" He questioned curiously, still carefully climbing down to see the girl.
As he perched on the biggest branch that blocked his view from seeing his uninvited guest, Gilbert tilted his head to the side to look down and the first thing he saw was a shock of red hair on top of a little girl's head. It was parted in the middle and set into two tight braids, resting on her shoulders. If he wasn't paying attention, he could've mistaken them as a pattern on her too small dress.
Gilbert was staring— entranced —by the bright beautiful colours of her red hair when she suddenly looked up. It was the second time he got startled by her unique looks because the big rounded eyes that were staring at him were the clearest blue he had ever seen. It was the same blue of the ocean that got him so mesmerized.
"I want to climb." She said with her nose high up in the air.
Gilbert shook his head as if to rid an invisible fog clouding his mind before replying, "Well then, climb."
The little girl stomped. She looked upset or perhaps it would be best to say that she looked annoyed.
"I can't!"
"Why can't you?"
"Because I'm short!"
"I'm short too compared to my dad who has taught me how to climb but it didn't stop me from learning."
The girl narrowed her eyes at him and he hoped she would open them fully again so he could see the bluest eyes of hers.
"You make it sound so easy," she mumbled before plopping down to sit on the grass.
Gilbert had now only realized the existence of a swing that was tied up on the same big branch he was sitting on.
"It is easy," Gilbert said as he continued his journey back to the ground. "You just have to practice."
"Can you teach me?"
"I can but I won't because I'm not an adult and climbing trees is dangerous. You must have at least one adult to look after you when you learn how to climb."
"There's no adult here. You shouldn't be climbing too then!" She said as she ran her small hands on the grass before mumbling to herself, "The grass is always so soft."
There was a funny feeling at the pit of Gilbert's stomach as he watched her. He never had this feeling in his stomach before and it made him confused. It couldn't be a stomach bug because it felt oddly pleasant. The feeling then spread warmth across his whole body when she once again looked up and their eyes locked together.
When did he get off the last branch? Gilbert couldn't remember but his feet were planted firmly on the ground in front of her.
"You shouldn't climb too." She said before looking down at the grass again. "It's only fair if none of us climb this beautiful tree."
Slowly, Gilbert lowered himself and sat facing the little girl. Once again, he was surprised and he thought she would never stop surprising him. Her face was full of tiny little freckles but those dots weren't the things that surprised him. It was the realization that he didn't find them odd like how he thought Ruby Gillis's freckles were odd. The freckles of the girl in front of him were so pretty —like the stars in the night sky. They made her glow.
"I'm Gilbert. What's your name?" He found himself asking.
"Marie," she replied.
"Is that your real name?"
She shrugged. "You can call me whatever you want."
"But I want to know your real name."
"I'm not supposed to be here. You shouldn't see me and I will not give up my name."
"Why?"
"Because that's what Mr. Beckett said. I'm not allowed to be seen."
"Who is Mr. Beckett?"
The girl finally looked up to see him again. This time, her face was bored.
"You ask an awful lot of questions, Gumbert!"
"Gilbert!"
"Whatever," she sighed. "Mr. Beckett is Mr. Beckett. I live with him and his wife, Mrs. Beckett. Mrs. Thomas said I should obey them and not make any trouble or else I would get scolded."
Gilbert was thoroughly befuddled. "Is Mrs. Thomas your mother?"
The girl giggled. "No."
"Where is your mother then?"
At that, she pointed up with her small index finger. "In the sky with my father."
She didn't need to elaborate on what she just uttered because Gilbert immediately understood what she meant. She looked so very young and Gilbert wondered if she understood death.
"Mrs. Thomas said they were sick when I was a little baby and that's when she took me in. But Mrs. Thomas doesn't actually like me enough to keep me so she sent me here."
"Because the Becketts want to keep you?"
"No. They don't want me to stay, especially Mr. Beckett but they need me to have their own baby. Mrs. Beckett said if they help take care of me for some time, they will be rewarded with a baby."
"What will happen after they get their own kid?"
"I don't know…" she said weakly. "Mrs. Thomas is too old to take care of me."
Gilbert could hear the uncertainty and sadness in her voice. It broke his heart. He wanted to help her be happy.
"What do you want?" He asked.
"Climb a tree," she replied innocently.
Gilbert chuckled. "No, I mean what do you want to do when they finally get their own baby?"
The girl looked up thoughtfully at the tree and seconds later she said, "I want to live with the trees. But right now, I think I want to play the swing. Can you help me get on it?"
Smiling, Gilbert nodded. He stood up and offered his hand to help her up. He then looped his arms around her belly and legs to get her to sit on the swing. They laughed when Gilbert almost fell from carrying her weight.
"Now, push me, please!" She requested with a smile, showing him the four missing teeth but still, she looked so cute.
"Aye, aye!"
"Beware! I am the pirate princess and I will swing to steal your gold!" She yelled in glee. "Mr. Gumbert! We need more wind! Push harder!"
"Aye!" Gilbert laughed at her silly antics.
He pushed her on the swing for so long. They were talking and laughing together. Going back and forth from pretending to be pirates to talking about why Gilbert was in Bolingbroke.
At some point, she rose to her feet on the swing and told him to imagine she was standing on a ship’s railing.
"Oh! A creek monster! It will eat our swing— I mean ship! Careful, Mr. Gumbert! We will be doomed!"
The creek monster in question was a frog that just emerged out of the creek.
"I will not let it, princess! My sword will protect us!" Gilbert picked up a stick and made a theatrical act of slaying the frog without actually hurting it. The frog leaped back into the water in one big splash making Marie laugh in delight. The sight of her flushed happy face made something swell in Gilbert's chest. He was happy and proud of himself to be able to make her smile.
"We won, princess," he said with a smile on his own face.
He caught the rope of the swing to stop it so she could laugh safely.
"That was so fun, Gumbert. Thank you so much for playing with me! You are a good friend."
If she wanted to call him Gumbert and it gave her joy to do so then Gilbert wouldn't correct her. What mattered was she thought of him as her friend and it was worth being called Gumbert. Still, he wanted to know her real name because he was quite sure that Marie was not her real name.
"What's your real name?" He asked again.
That question made her stop laughing and he regretted it almost immediately.
"I cannot tell you. Mr. Beckett would be so cross with me if anyone knows I'm here. I should go back before he gets home. He doesn't like me wandering outside."
"But—"
She jumped off the swing and took a run. Leaving Gilbert in bewilderment.
The next day, Gilbert went back to the willow tree and sat on the swing, hoping Marie would come back. After a while and still no Marie, he decided to go in the direction she ran off to. He didn't think he'd find something behind the line of trees but it turned out there was a cottage. Gilbert hid behind one of the trees and not long after, he could hear screaming and crying from inside the cottage. It was Marie's cry.
He ran to the cottage and banged the door while screaming to the people inside to open it.
When the door slammed open, he was faced with a big man who looked like he hadn't taken a bath for so long and he reeked so much that Gilbert almost gagged. But his attention was soon focused on the woman that was kneeling in front of a cupboard, trying to jam it open with force. That was when he could register the sound of Marie's crying coming from inside it.
"Marie?!" Gilbert exclaimed.
The crying immediately stopped. Gilbert tried to get inside but the man pushed him back out harshly.
"Who are you?"
"I'm—"
"Gilbert?" His dad's voice came from behind him.
"Dad, help! My friend is crying inside!" Gilbert screamed out.
"There's no one crying in this house. My wife and I are trying to catch a filthy mouse. You should go and take your son with you. Never come back!" The man that must be Mr. Beckett said before slamming the door closed on both of the Blythes' faces.
"Come, son," his dad said as he picked up Gilbert.
"Dad! We can't leave her!" Gilbert begged just as Marie's cries came back louder than before and the couple screamed again.
Gilbert looked back at his dad who was already looking at him with sad eyes.
"I'm sorry, son. There's nothing we can do."
"But we can bring people here to catch that man. He is abusing my friend!"
"Gilbert," his dad said firmly. "That man you just saw wears a constable's uniform. A man like him is immune from punishment. There's nothing we can do but pray for your friend. If we stay here, she'll be in more trouble than she already has."
With that, his dad carried Gilbert away from the cottage while he kept thrashing and screaming to be put down so he could save Marie.
On the last day of his stay in Bolingbroke, Gilbert lost all of his spirits. He was angry at his dad for locking him up in the guest bedroom yesterday. When morning came, he was too tired from crying and didn't have the energy to go back to the cottage. Still, he looked out the window to see the willow tree for one last time. He almost broke the glass with how hard he crashed his face against it at seeing Marie standing under the tree, looking at the house he was staying at.
Gilbert had never run as fast as he was running to reach Marie. He immediately hugged her when he got under the tree.
"Are you alright?" He asked before stepping away to see her face.
Marie's face was swollen from crying but other than that, he didn't see any wound on her and he was grateful.
"That cottage looks awfully haunted! That must be the reason why the Becketts are so horrible to make you cry like that. Mr. Beckett was even mad at me. You should just come and live with me. Take your dolls and a sweater because it could be cold on the ferry. Let's go!" Gilbert pulled her toward the direction of the cottage.
But Marie didn't move. "I can't. I must stay and help them get a baby. I came here to say goodbye. It's your last day here, isn't it?"
"Marie, you can't stay with them!" Gilbert cried out.
Marie smiled. "I have to. That's what Mrs. Thomas told me."
"No! You are coming with me!"
"Gumbert, thank you for being so kind but I can't," she looked in the direction of the cottage and Gilbert followed her. He was startled to see Mr. and Mrs. Beckett waiting at the edge of the intersection. "They sent me here to ask you to promise not to tell anyone about what you saw or heard at the cottage yesterday. You must make your dad promise too."
"They are awful!" Gilbert countered.
"Gumbert, please. I will be in so much trouble if you don't listen to me. Please, promise me you won't say anything about this matter to anyone. You are my only friend and I can only count on you to help me."
Gilbert looked back at the couple at the edge of the path with so much disdain in his heart. He wanted to make them pay for what they did to his friend. But he was only a child and what his dad told him about Mr. Beckett being immune from punishment rang inside his head.
There was nothing he could do.
He looked back at his new friend and nodded. He pointed his fingers to his chest as he said, "Cross my heart I won't tell no other."
Marie beamed up at him. "Thank you, Gumbert. I love you!" Then she hugged him for a long time before she let go and slipped away from his embrace.
“I love you too!” He exclaimed at the redheaded girl who was running away from him.
Her red braids were the last thing he saw of her.
Gilbert promised that his love for his friend would last for so long in the hope that it would always keep her safe.
Years passed. Life was getting harder. There were so many awful things happening to Gilbert ever since he lost his innocence at the age of seven after witnessing an abuse that happened to a friend he had long forgotten the name of. The world was not as kind and beautiful as Gilbert used to think but he had never regretted the day when he met her, the day that opened his eyes to the cruelty of the world. Because of her, he learned and vowed to always be kind. Because of her, he always tried to see the good in everything despite all the bad things that came upon him.
For that, he was thankful and although he couldn't recall her face he swore he still loved her dearly and hoped his love was accompanying her wherever she went.
The past two years had been extremely trying for both him and his dad. Consumption took his dad's health and soon it would take his life as well.
At fifteen, Gilbert felt like his life was slowly falling apart.
The only good thing at the moment was the fact that he could finally come back to school. He had been missing learning in the Avonlea schoolhouse. Missing the familiar path that would take him to it as well. He loved walking on this path despite how haunted it looked being located in the middle of the woods.
Gilbert was enjoying the crunching sound of dried leaves under his feet when he suddenly heard the familiar taunting voice of Billy Andrews. He would never understand how Billy had never changed from the boyish brutality of being a bully. Truthfully, Gilbert was tired and almost thought to just slip away unnoticed and ignore whatever happened with Billy and whoever he was bullying. But then Gilbert heard the other person's voice and immediately cursed under his breath when he realized it was a girl.
At first, Gilbert thought perhaps Billy was just being nasty to his little sister, Jane, or teasing Tillie for having a big face again. But the more Gilbert got closer, he could hear the tremble in the girl's voice and she sounded nothing like any girl he knew in Avonlea.
"You're a bad dog! Bad dog!" Billy spat at the girl.
Billy didn't deserve to live at all. What kind of piece of trash taunts a girl like that?
So Gilbert stepped in to stop the worst thing that Billy could've done to the girl by calling his name and successfully interfering with the predicament.
When Billy turned and revealed the object of his taunting, all of Gilbert's attention was immediately focused on the twin red braids that looked like a pattern—forever ingrained in his soul. And when he finally stopped closed enough, he could see the clear blue eyes that he had always longed to see again.
Gilbert knew he would find her again someday and he was so glad he was right.
At last, childhood friends were reunited.