The Horizon

She walked away in disbelieve. She had been expecting good news. All the other young women had been paired up. She had her eye on a specific young man, but without the shamans' forecast that was not to be. The image of the advisor was of a ship on the horizon. Her fate was in that ship. Miara was not excited by the thought of adventure. She had seen the men that came in on those ships. Most of them were tan and muscular. They just didn't seem to be the dependable type. The ships didn't come into port that often. One had just left today. It wasn't as if she would go to the dock in search of a husband. The shamans had never made a mistake.

She was greeted by her mother when she walked into the house. Miara tried to hide her uneasiness, but her mother sensed it. "It wasn't the man of your dreams?" "It is some man I have never met. He is coming over the horizon on a ship." Her mother responded by handing her the potatoes and a peeler. There was nothing to say. They prepared the meal in silence.

Her mother must have told the family not to ask because the topic was not raised at supper. Some good things had come in on the ship the other day. Her father had bought them each a present. Miara couldn't help but be excited. Her father had such good taste. But he wouldn't give them their gifts today. The table was buzzing in speculation. The gift would be given to her when she needed it, and not before. When she had turned sixteen he had given her a dress, for her party. She had been all upset because she didn't have anything special enough and then he had saved the day. Her father always saved the day.

That night she hummed as she helped her mother with the dishes. She forgot about her fate, her destiny, and the uncertainty of it all. What was certain was that she was happy where she was now.

The fire was burning when she went into the living room. She sat down on a cushion and grabbed her art supplies. Her father kept her well equipped with all the latest art gadgets. She fell asleep over her painting. Her father carried her into her bedroom. It would be okay if she slept in her clothes one night.

When she woke up there was a commotion in the kitchen. Anna was visiting. She had brought her brother, Andrew. Miara hesitated a moment, but then caught up in her excitement she entered the kitchen. She gasped when she saw Andrew. She hadn't seen him in years. He hugged her. They had once been tag-along buddies. They had planned to get married when they grew older. He was her childhood crush. He had just gotten back from school. She wondered who he was marrying. He must have been fated for someone, but she was afraid to ask. He was concentrating on looking for work. His future seemed about as uncertain as hers. But he did not seem worried, he sounded excited. What he really wanted to do was work with some male school friends. They were coming into port sometime next week to toss around ideas. He wanted to sell women's clothes, but he was open to other ideas. The key would be to produce the fabrics or pay someone else to. Miara thought about her drawings, which had always been her dream, to design fabric. She listened in eager silence. She was not fated for Andrew, but his dream awakened the one in her.

Anna pulled Miara aside, I went to see the shaman the other day, she told Miara. " My fate is undecided. I was told to come back in a year. They can see two men in my future and it has not worked its way out. They are not sure who will be meant for me. " "Do you have any male friends who appeal to you? Who aren't already fated that is." I am just sort of standing back and seeing what happens. I wish they had told me the two men's names. Most of the young men are being matched up."

What about your brother? So far he seems not to be matched with anybody. I thought he'd be matched with you, but your mother told me no. She said not to ask you about it. " " I am marrying some man I have never met." Miara didn't feel like going into the details. " I wish I had the same sense of adventure that Andrew has. It could turn out to be really good. I might meet the love of my life, at least I know that there is someone out there. At least you know there is someone for you as well. Your poor brother is just waiting in suspense." The two girls joined the rest of the crew in the kitchen. It would be a late night. Andrew and Ann were like a second family. No sketching tonight, but at least she was feeling like things might be alright.

Life went on, as usual, no strange men entered her life. She drew, helped around the house, and purposely avoided the port.

The next week everything changed. Andrew's school friends were in town. Anna and one of Andy's friend's sister, were going to be staying with them. Miara quickly picked up the house. It wasn't as if it was messy, but when quests were there it should be neater.

Miara was curious and excited. It was fun to take a break from her daily routine. Anna slept in Miara's room, and Cindy slept in the spare room. Anna talked and talked about Andrew's guests. She told Miara about all five of them. Cindy was Guy's sister. They were both single. All of the five men were single. And they were nice. Anna was honestly excited. Miara assumed the women would hang out together and the men would hang out with each other. Except maybe at night. She planned to show Cindy around the town tomorrow. But things did not work out as she had planned. When they woke up in the morning the men were already in the kitchen. The whole crew was going to explore the town. And yes, Miara was invited. She felt a little nervous, she wasn't used to being with so many people she did not know. Cindy and Anna were being monopolized. She found herself talking to a tall smart man. He was from overseas. He had come in on a ship two days ago. He was a designer. Miara told him about her drawing, but she did not discuss her dreams. He said he had his sketchpad at Andrew's house, maybe they could look at each other's work on another day. Miara felt relaxed, not nervous at all. Not the butterflies which were supposed to accompany an attraction. She was not falling all over herself trying to impress him. The most awkward thing was finding out his name "Greg". Andrew on the other hand was showing off for Cindy. Miara had to chuckle to herself. Cindy seemed enthralled with him. Miara had never seen Andrew try so hard. Anna was talking with the other four men. She actually looked as if she was getting worn out. Were two of them interested in Anna, Miara wondered. Had the shamans forecast been right?

Greg dropped by later that night with his drawing pad. Miara had been in the living room sketching. The girls were over at Andrew's house. He liked her artwork. He thought the patterns would look nice on fabric. The color combinations were great for women's fashion. She inwardly smiled. That had been what they were designed for. His drawings went a step farther. He had designed the outfit. She couldn't help wondering how her fabrics would look on his designs. He was wondering the same thing. But neither party voiced the suggestion. When the girls showed up, he excused himself and returned to Andrews.

Cindy and Anna did not gossip that night. They said they were tired and went to bed. Miara sat up and drew. Her parents had already retired for the night. When she crawled into bed Anna was already asleep.

The next morning everyone was gone when she woke up. She was back to her regular routine. She sort of wondered why she hadn't been invited, but that's just the way it happened she guessed. And Greg, maybe she had misread that. Then all of a sudden two days later Greg appeared. He seemed very happy. "Andrew told me that all the women here are fated. Their husbands are fixed by the shaman. Anna told me that you were to be joined with someone who you hadn't met." "Well, actually I am supposed to be looking for a ship coming over the horizon." Greg smiled, "Well I came here on a ship" Miara smiled, this was far better than the tan muscular unreliable man she had imagined.

"I'll come by this evening he said. Maybe we can have a real date."

A real date. She wondered if she had ever been on a real date. She usually just hung out with friends. How was a real date different from a get-together?

She went into the kitchen. Her parents were talking, but she interrupted, expressing her perplexion. "Greg said we might go on a real date tonight. " Both of her parents stopped talking. Her father sneaked out of the room. Her mother answered her question. " A real date means he is showing some romantic interest. You should put more preparation into a real date."

Her father appeared with a package. It was a big box. In the box was a dress. But this dress was special. It was made from one of her fabrics. Laying underneath it were yards of her fabric. The dress was not traditional. Also in the box was a hairpiece. It matched the dress. Miara stood in wonder. She felt special, but it seemed like a lot of fuss for a date. She had never seen one of her patterns in a dress before. She tried it on, it looked great with her dark brown hair. She put up her hair with the hairpiece. She looked like a different woman. Would he still like her? She changed back into her regular clothes. It was hard to do anything, she felt so distracted. Finally, she was saved by her mother. Her mother had a bar of soap and some bath oil. She also had a scented shampoo and conditioner. Miara went and took her shower and started to get ready for her maybe date. She smelt like flowers. He would be too busy smelling her, to talk with her. She laughed. She felt different. Her mother appeared with her special box of makeup. She made up Miara's face and did her hair. She also brought in a pair of sandals. Miara felt special but embarrassed. But when Greg walked into their front door, she understood. He appeared to have done the same thing. Her eyes gazed over him. This was something unique. This was not the everyday feeling she had around men. She looked around for the people who would be going with them, but it was just going to be the two of them. He took her hand and they started their date. But she knew this was not just the start of her first real date, it was the start of a totally different exciting life.

Years later, as a married woman, she would still smile at her memories of that night. How had the shamans known? Greg had married Cindy, and two years later his sister, Anna had married Guy. Miara now had a stronger faith in their traditions, although she had to admit she was glad they had adopted some new traditions. When her daughter was fated she would definitely get introduced to the concept of a real date. Miara had her own box of bath supplies and makeup because just because you're married doesn't mean that every couple doesn't need a regular real date.