Day 353: The Heart Follower

The Heart Follower
by
Matt Zurbo

 

One day Vivi decided to follow her heart.
(Small girl, cute dress, teddy dangling from hand, watching a heart floating in the air in front of her.)

Life was boring, sometimes cruel, so, “Why not?” she thought.
(Girl following heart down the street.)

Vivi’s heart seemed to travel best to music.
(Girl at one end of page, looking at heart which is on other side of kids and people dancing, including band members.)

It took her to dark places, full or romance…
(Girl having tea party with bunny doll and baby doll under big tree, by glorious moonlight. Heart hovering over picnic. A few shadowy creatures half hidden in the background, like a lion standing like a human, with vest, glasses and top hat. Owl landing to join picnic/tea party.)

To joyous moments stuck in time…
(Girl, laughing as she kicks up dead leaves, everywhere. Heart in air in front of her.)

It was almost as if it was searching for something.
(Girl bending to look cautiously around a corner we can’t see. Heart above her.)

A place to stay?
Something new?
Different?
(Head and shoulders of girl looking up at love heart with amazing butterfly on it.)
Love…?

Eventually, Vivi’s heart lead her to a small boat, made from the tin of olive oil drums.
(Girl in small tin boat, with a collage of paintings of Italian ladies farming olives, the small sail is an embroidery of the sun. Boat is on water, following heart. Owl from earlier is sitting on back edge of boat.)

Something that reminded her of food and foreign places and foreign tastes and smells.
(Slightly rocky sea, girl and boat in middle of other small boats, each one with a person of a different nationality, cooking. Owl is eating at one of other boats.)

(Girl in boat, surrounded by arc of flying fish. Heart in front of her. Owl is in air behind her, about to clutch a fish.)

When Vivi’s heart took her to a Chinese paper dragon, she wondered aloud… “Are you what my heart has being searching for?”
(Girl in boat, looking at beautiful, huge paper dragon, held up by sticks. Each stick is held by a Chinese person with their own little boat.)

It slithered through moonlight, curled around and hugged her, and rose and fell with the tides.
(Dragon curling, rising through starts. Girl and heart floating up, as if flying to watch it.)
“Such magic…” she whispered.

But it just roared and moved on. Or her heart did.
(Girl and heart on small 5ft wide night island, watching tail of leaving dragon. Boat floating in water on edge of island behind her.)

Following her heart took Vivi to wondrous people, amazing places.
(Girl is under a tree, looking at/talking to, mad, eclectic inventor with big, white moustache. His rat with mechanical goggles is looking at her owl. Heart is in air above and behind her. There are mechanical bunnies and a mechanical wombat around them.)

But she was frustrated beyond words…! Annoyed at times.
(Girl slumped, head down, while following heart, giants in background.)

Often felt lost…
(Standing alone in a crowded playground, fingers nervously touching each other while she pouts/cries. Heart above and to the side of her.)

Yet also experienced such wonder!
(Smiling, sitting on back of owl as it flies her through brilliant yellows of setting sun. Heart tucked under her arm.)

The other kids laughed. They didn’t understand half the places Vivi’s heart took her. Nor did she.
(Girl in an art smock, painting an extroverted old lady with three dogs of three sizes and types. Lady has a frilly black umbrella and nose in the air. Girl looking over shoulder at group of school kids pointing and laughing.)

“A heart will go wherever a heart will,” she would tell them, to no avail.
(Heart rising to join band crammed into basket of small hot air balloon. Girl climbing to join them. Other kids sour expressions, dismissing her.)

Then continue her amazing journey, her quest, searching, searching…
(Girl, her own umbrella, owl also under it, following her heart through the desert.)

not realising,
(Girl, inquisitive expression, following her heart through jungle made up of flowers and their stems.)

that that, in itself, was also her heart’s destination.
(Girl in middle of gypsy troupe, by fire on river bank, all smiling, dancing, playing instruments, cooking, etc… Tin boat parked on water’s edge behind her.)

 

The End
(Small image of girl and boat sailing away from reader, following her heart. Dragon poking head out of water somewhere way ahead, owl flying.)