The Lost Boy with a Heart of Gold: A Fable
by Alicia DeFonzo
Fate looked through his mirror of maps and mazes, as the grand clock tolled, echoing the centuries. The violet layers of the galaxy and moons were as they should be.
“Ahh, just in time,” he smiled.
“The lost boy with a heart of gold.”
The lost boy with a heart of gold was nearing manhood. He was ready – though he did not know for what quite yet; Fate did. He had pleaded with Fate years before to bring him someone to share his heart of gold. Fate replied to the boy, “Be patient, for Love requires such of men.”
Although the boy was lost, he was about to cross paths with a young woman with a heavy heart. She was not lost, as she remained exactly where she desired, although the heaviness of her heart was much to carry. Fate watched as the boy smiled at the young woman. She smiled back. But knowing the boy was not yet a man, the young woman walked away.
Fate smirked. He had expected as much from her. “Excuse me, Chance,” he called. “Please come.” Chance brushed in and bowed.
“How can I assist, your Entity?”
“When can you schedule these two to meet again? He is such a dear boy.” “You know such repetition offends my good work.”
“Understandably. As you know, I would never!” Fate said gently, “But do you mind if they have a second?”
“As you command, although there are no thirds.” Fate smiled, “Yes, yes, I know.”
Chance nodded and left as swiftly as he came.
Soon enough, the lost boy with a heart of gold and the young woman with a heavy heart met again. This time, she stayed. His heart radiated an internal warmth through his body and a glow which caused his eyes to sparkle like stars along a dark shoreline. As was planned, the boy was no longer lost, and the young woman’s heart was no longer heavy. The two fell in a love which beckoned the stillness of Time. Happiness illuminated all they touched, as their souls intertwined for many sunrises and sunsets. The boy, now a man, envisioned a family, as he loved her more each passing dream, and soon a ring. Their lives were rich in many ways but gold, for the man’s heart was more than enough.
As seasons changed, the man began to ponder his youth. He called upon Fate once more. “Is Time so kind as to delay a while? I fear my years are fleeting.”
Fate replied faithfully, “Time cannot be controlled by man.”
“Then I wish my path to have more adventures, more freedoms, more excitement.”
Fate asked: “Are you not fulfilled?” Fate had asked the same question of many men over the ages.
“I am, indeed. I am the most I have ever been.” The man hesitated, “But there must be more, is there not?”
“You choose your path, for it is your own and cannot be unwritten.” The man was delighted at the possibilities.
“I must add,” Fate said. “Such a choice will charge your heart of gold.” “But why?”
“It will be of little value on your new path.”
The man debated these words. His heart of gold protected him as a lost boy, but as a man, knowing the weight the gold sometimes carried, he agreed.
The man returned home, eager to claim his new life to his love. As he recounted his story, the young woman’s heart suddenly grew heavy. His eyes dimmed, and his hands turned cold. The man was unrecognizable aside from the outline of his shadow. She began to weep, not for herself alone. Though the stress on her heart would become almost unbearable, she knew what she must do. She departed their home, as the man stood bewildered.
He summoned Fate. “You cheated me!”
Fate replied, “I would never deceive you. I am merely a reflection of your will.” “But my love left when I returned. I am lost without her.”
Fate saw the eyes of the boy once more.
“I am sorry, but I thought you knew the cost. For this is not a fairy tale.” “Knew?”
“Your heart of gold was the reason she stayed.”
The man pleaded. “Please, Fate. Reverse this path.”
“You can reverse a path once it is trodden. However, you cannot reverse what has been.”
The lost man hastened to find his love. He would search over landscapes and lifetimes, as the moon pulled the tides precisely, endlessly. Fate had seen all before and all hence. Knowing what the lost man would soon come to realize, Fate sighed, “Oh my dear boy.”
BIO: Alicia DeFonzo is an award-winner professor and author of the WWII nonfiction narrative The Time Left Between Us (Potomac Books, 2022). Featured on CNBC and NPR, DeFonzo has been the literary guest for the 80th anniversary of D-Day ceremonies in Normandy as well as the Battle of the Bulge celebration by the Ambassador of Luxembourg. Library Journal calls her debut book “a deeply personal venture but also one of significant importance now and for all future generations to learn from.” Her screenwriting has also won several awards, including Best Pilot Teleplay at Cannes World Film Awards (2024).