The Testimony of Taliesin Jones Read Online Free PDF Page B

expansive
thick-girthed oak, set apart from the grass on a bank which i s raised up. It provides an unbroken view of the
whole s chool. The leaves of The Tall Tree
are a crisp brown and in the sunlight they appear to glow like fire . The tree' s bark
is covered in graffiti of mixed art and wisdom. These carvings give a potted
history of the school's loves and hates : John
4 Juliet; Phil" for me; Piss up a tree ; Caesar
eats Pizza.   M aybe in a f ew
ye ars tim e, T aliesin will b e carv ing i n h is n ame n e xt to so meone el se's . F or n ow h e's h appy t o b e si ngle.
    H e takes t he C ox's from
hi s ba g and s hines th e s kin o n h is j umper.
H e w hispers
th e g reengrocer's a phorism
t o h imself: ' Have a n a pple; go t o c hapel.'
It h as a n atural rh ythm a nd rh yme; th e firs t l ine l eading in evitably t o the secon d . H e t urns th e
p hrase ove r in h is h ead a nd eve ntually says i t o ut l oud. ' Have an a pple; go t o c hapel.' It 's l ike a p iece of advice
a g randmother wo uld give -it 's o ld a nd it 's w ise a nd it's do tty . H e und erstands t he fir st p art; th e seco nd
h owever , m akes l ittle se nse. C hapel i s a s trange
pl ace th at exis ts
f or r easons h e h asn't qu estioned.
    T aliesin t hinks o f E ve aga in a nd tri es to put him self in h er n aked so les. Wh at i f Go d h adn't s aid an ything a bout n ot ea ting th e a pple? H e sees Ev e mo ving about th e Ga rden O f Ed en fillin g a b asket with a pples and th en ea ting th em until s he m akes h erself s ick . Th e E ve in his h ead is d efinitely h is m other n ow.
    Runnin g f eet co me. It 's Lu c Daniel, pantin g fr om runn ing f or n o r eason . H is blu e, A ertex s hirt is han ging out: Lu c T he Shirt . Ta liesin pr e-empts hi s f riend by offerin g h im a bi te o f th e Cox's. T hey s it i n si lence f or sev eral minut es , s haring th e a pple. Wh en th ey fi nally s peak it i s e vident th at t hey're thinkin g a bout th e s a m e thin g.
    'Wh y d on't yo ur pa rents b elieve in God , th en?' T aliesin as ks hi s fri end .
    ' My Da s ays b elieving i n G od c auses m ore t rouble th an goo d. L ike th at wa r in wh erever it is. Do y our p arents b elieve in Go d th en ?' Lu c as ks.
    T aliesin wo uld lik e to
th ink th ey do.
    'Of
course they do , ' he lies , feeling that someone is watching him. 'Why do you
believe in him? 'Luc asks.
    'I don 't know,' Taliesin says, angry that he can't
explain it aga in. Fee ling s uddenly c old h e look s up at th e s ky a nd sees m ore
clo uds a rriving to
e nd th e s ummer.
H ow fi ckle th e
wea ther i s . And h ow f ragile his m orning cert ainty.
     
     
     
    CHAPTER
FOUR
     
    IN T HE AFTERNOON Welsh Ra in return s as if
fr om a lon g h oliday w here i t
has r eplenished it self. Bulb ous thu nderheads roll in on a ll s ides and position them selves for a d ownpour dir ectly a bove the school. B y three-thirt y th e fir st dropl ets s platter o nto the
hot road as he run s f or hi s bu s . Th ey mak e a n ac rid l imey smell
on the t armac, a s mell
th at h e c an ta ste. C hildren
run out of the main g ate s creaming a nd c heering as th e fir st rumble breaks . Som e par ents s it
in s teaming ca rs
with li ghts on and engines runnin g, th eir w ipers
takin g futil e s wipes a t th e rain
which i s n ow sma cking o nto a ll
thin gs with out pr ejudice. A group of huddled m others l ook v ulner a ble b eneath th eir flim sy umbr ellas . T aliesin sees' Caesa r', th e h eadmaster, s kipping across th e front e ntrance wi th a n ews p aper over hi s h ead. The
thunder storm is a g reat l eveller. N o r especter o f rank or importan ce, it s plashes
on t eachers, p aren ts a nd c hildren
in equal me asure. Th e thund erstorm m akes li ght of eve rything else that i s
goi ng on , for cing p eople to n otice thin gs out side themselves a nd bow t o so mething th at th ey h ave n o c ontrol over.
    Th e c ream and burgund y l iveried bus c hugs a nd g rowls a t th e s top.
B y