The Movement

Chapter Six - Part 7

******** 

President Barber reclined in his chair, one foot propped up on his desk, the other pegged to the floor. Troy sat across from him in his own chair, waiting in silence. President Barber leaned over and pulled open a drawer underneath his desk.

“Do you know what this is?” asked the President, holding up a small object.

Troy looked at the president, dumbfounded.

“Why, yes sir. It is a candle,” he answered.

“It certainly is, Mr. Duckworth,” he quickly replied. “And what purpose does this candle serve?”

Troy sat for a moment, thinking in silence as he stared at the candle.

“I suppose the scent is coveted by some,” he said, remembering his mother’s candle at the dinner table.

“Perhaps. They baffle me,” said President Barber, staring down at the candle on his desk. “This tiny little delicacy holds inside it the power to burn, the power to suffocate and burn all life forms. Fire is such a fierce, uncaring thing. It spreads to wherever it can as quickly as it possibly can. But not in this peaceful vase. Glass, the thing that fire is needed to make, is the fragile power that restricts this hot demon’s hunger. Quite paradoxical, don’t you think Mr. Duckworth?”

Knock. Knock.

“I think she’s arrived,” said President Barber. “Greet her, please.”

Dr. Nancy Wu appeared as Troy opened the door to the president’s office. She dressed in nothing but black attire. Black shoes; black dress shirt with black buttons; black pants and a black belt. Her short black hair matched her outfit perfectly, identical in color. Although short, she appeared much taller thanks to her high heels and serious confidence.

“Welcome, Dr. Wu,” greeted Troy at the door, slightly intimidated.

Dr. Wu nodded her head and revealed her ivory-white teeth with a delicate smile.

“Welcome to my office, Dr. Wu,” shouted a standing President Barber as Dr. Wu made her way towards him.

Again, she nodded her head rather than speaking, and sat down quickly at the president’s signal. Troy followed behind her, astonished at Dr. Wu’s silence and lack of acknowledgement.

“Dr. Wu, I must say it is a pleasure to have you here today,” began President Barber through a wide grin. “We have some very important information to review here. Mr. Duckworth and I would like to hear your ideas on The Movement’s future commerce.”

Dr. Wu looked President Barber straight into his eyes without saying a word. She squinted as if she were reading his every move. She quickly snapped her head to her right, where Troy sat less than four feet away. Troy flinched, unprepared for the quick action. She returned her focus to the president.

“I do have some quality proposals on commerce, Mr. President,” she began in a fluid voice.

“That is tremendous! May you share them with us?” asked the president.

“That is what we are here for,” quipped Troy.

Dr. Wu ignored Troy’s comment.

“I’ll begin with the basics. Our exports need to be more valuable than our imports,” she said. “That does not necessarily mean that we cannot import more than we export. It simply means that whatever it is that we are exporting must be in high demand on the global market; thus, it’s a more valuable and expensive commodity, and rare to come by. It—or they, would be better—needs to be our signature, staple export. As for imports, we cannot be overly desperate for them. We need to diversify certain imports in order to not become too dependent upon one nation’s resources.”