ELLEN, - A CHILDHOOD PASSAGE

Although she hid it hard and worried about the possibility of revealing her secret, Ellen had noticed the visible lack of control in Reinaldo when she saw the photo taken by the Eskimo couple's great-grandfather, in his exhibition that night. Aldous ended his poor life in Siberia, with no money to vote and abandoned by all his crew, who one by one left, except the English, Jefferson. During her research to undertake a complete report of her great-grandfather's travels, Ellen met a Scotsman named Sean, who seemed to know much more about not only his great-grandfather, but also her, which she was surprised to find during her interviews. - I met your grandfather in 1947. The second war was over but Europe was still devastated by hunger and misery and destruction were still visible both in the desolation of the landscape and in the hearts of the English and all European nations. His grandfather Patmus was only 13 at the time and did not even dream of inheriting the Conrad fortune. The CIB (Conrad Internacional Bank) bank, one of the most solid financial institutions in Europe, was for his grandfather, the favorite place for him to play and when his father, his great grandfather, took him, little did he know that there, just like that jokingly, he was already learning from his visionary father to run the bank, meet people and deal with them. I joined the family as a friend of your grandfather and ended up becoming more than that. A counselor, a confidant, participating in every moment of his life. I saw Jack, your father, being born, I saw you being born. I'm surprised that you don't remember me. But in this troubled time for the Conrad family, I know that their lack of memory is justified. His father, the oldest of Patmus' children, did not want to dedicate himself to the bank, the family business and the fights with his grandfather were Homeric.

- The first memory I have of childhood was with my great-grandfather. He had just arrived from a trip to Northeast Africa and I was the first person he wanted to see. He crouched down and spread his arms, but I was scared. I hardly saw him. And that old man in the hat, all exotic, with extravagant clothes and full of bulky white bags and mustaches terrified me. I went out running and crying. Then curious I went to his room. I knew that I couldn't go there and I was hidden. He was sleeping. He snored. My great-grandfather, even though he was absent for a long time, always fascinated me. I was afraid of him, it is true, but with the fear the admiration grew. I opened one of the suitcases and they had veils and burqas, which I didn't know what they were. For me they were fabrics, cloths and I covered myself with them, as if I were a princess from one of those mystical places he had visited. India, Nepal, Egypt. But the heavy trunk, which required two employees to be transported, impressed me the most. I tried to open it but it was heavy for me and it was also locked with a very thick padlock. The noise woke my great-grandfather. I freaked out and got no reaction, but he smiled at me, still lying down. He sat down calmly and held out his arms to me. This time, however, I didn't run away. - Want to see what's in the trunk? Do you want, Ellen? - Yes, great! Sorry, I didn't want to wake you up. - It's all right. You have the Conrad curiosity. That's great. Let's open the chest. My great-grandfather and I laugh a lot and have fun. Each of those wonderful objects and artifacts had a unique and fantastic story, as if each one was a tale told by Sahrazad in the Thousand and one nights. What I remember about that day, the stories, that marked that moment and made me travel through the mysterious worlds that my grandfather searched for on his excursions, was a picture of a Russian circus called Shut, with the troupe in front. The magician, tamers, clowns, trapeze artists. It was through the charm that this photo had on me and my insatiable curiosity, that over the years and on the rare opportunities that I had to be in the company of my grandfather, I was able to draw a linear and plausible map to understand his itinerary and what he, with so much bravery, sought. I haven't been able to complete this map yet, but I know that what it seeks has affected and will affect the lives of many people. It is something that is not of this world and cannot be understood by any earthly intelligence. "Look for me and you will lose me. Get away and you will be closer. From darkness I emerged, in the light I am not visible. In this world I'm just a reflection. Over your heads, with the gods, I am matter."

My great-grandfather wrote this in his diary, on his last trip when I heard from him. He came from Russia. I was fifteen at the time and he was sixty.