excerpt
often playing the grand piano in their living room, but she stopped the
minute she heard his feet on the porch steps. He could never persuade
her to continue. If he could just get at what it meant. Her piano playing
had been an important part of their lives, but now Sue-Anne
refused to share it with him, even to discuss it. Talking between them
came seldom. He wished he could fix it, but something kept him from
trying, something that frightened him. He could not identify the barrier
any more than he could name the sonata.
A group of children gathered at the piano. He stood at the edge
as the pianist put up a piece of sheet music. They began singing.
Tell me why the stars do shine,
Tell me why the ivy twines,
Tell me why the skies are blue,
And I will tell you just why I love you.
“You sing too, mister.” It was Dwayne Ellwood Mortensen.
“You wouldn’t want to hear me sing,” Torgerson said, leaning
down toward the boy.
“You don’t gotta be good at it.”
“No, you go ahead. I’ll listen.”
Dwayne gazed at him for a moment and turned, singing, back to
the group. The young voices harmonized. Torgerson felt an ache
for Sue-Anne, for their lost communication, for the child they had
tried to have, for the confusion in his mind and soul, for his fear,
for the boy. He found himself absently humming the song low in
his throat.
Because God made the stars to shine,
Because God made the ivy twine,
Because God made the sky so blue,
Because God made you, that’s why I love you.
The sky glowing a faint blue above the mountains hinted at the
longer evening beyond, but the camp was nearly dark when they
Hellenic Canadian Literature 