The Canary

Ah, dreams—girls’ fantasies… Sometimes we’re sorry, even if a happy life was lived, that something important was lived out against the will of the heart. Giving way in our young years to common sense or to the demands of parents, we sometimes still think how it might have turned out if we hadn’t then surrendered to the will of reason. I don’t know why it happened to me in particular, but it was the widow of a well-known antiques dealer who had to test this in practice. And that’s exactly how it turned out: a young body, empty pockets, a fiery mane, and the voice of young Elena Obraztsova—before whom later even the great Montserrat Caballé didn’t shy away from kneeling. And a new life, promising great adventures for my sunny-red head.