That Devil Girl from mars!

When people associate the elements with fear they usually conjure up images of grey skies, thunder clapping or ferocious winds. Any one of these images is capable of enhancing an atmosphere of gloom. Ironically my first rendezvous with fear began on a glorious spring afternoon in Australia when the sky was a cheerful cornflower blue.

The object of my fear was a fictitious character from a film I had watched that same afternoon with my two brothers, Simon and Tim. I still have a vivid recollection of when ‘The Black Lady from Mars’ became the primary focus my childhood fears. I was aged six at the time. This was an age where I had absolutely no decision-making powers when it came to selecting what was viewed on the television set. In that era, when my father wasn’t present, the sole arbiter for daytime viewing was my older brother, Simon.

He selected a rather low budget science fiction movie for our consumption. I don’t remember the plot, nor do I recall the outcome. The major recollection I have is the immense fear the leading character instilled in me. I remembered her only as ‘The Black Lady from Mars’. All I could memorize about her appearance is that she was dressed entirely from head to toe in black leather.

Never had I experienced such fear as a result of watching a movie. Afterwards I remember going into the school ground adjoining my parent’s house. Even an abundance of sunshine could not eradicate the storm clouds of fear that now occupied my mind. The glorious sky was incapable of providing a barrier to my fear; if anything I felt even more defenceless and vulnerable surrounded by this ocean of blue sky.

I was subsumed with terror. Simon, who had also watched the movie, appeared in the playground. My new nemesis, ‘The Black Lady from Mars’ obviously had not had the same effect on him. He was in a devilish mood; anxious only to enjoy what was left of the afternoon. I was sitting on one of the swings. Anyone else would have assumed that I was daydreaming. My brother detected my discomfiture almost immediately. The sheer look of terror on my face betrayed me instantly.

"What’s wrong with you?"

"Nothing"

I paused for a moment and then timidly summonsed up the courage to ask him a question.

"She’s not real, is she?"

"Who?"

"The black lady from Mars, the one in the movie, she’s not really up there is she?"

Whilst he knew that ‘The Black Lady from Mars’ wasn’t real, he knew that my fear was very much alive. Instead of providing me with the re-assurance I was obviously in need of, he seized the opportunity to encourage my fear.

"Of course she’s up there, and she’s coming to get you"

His words resounded like a powerful blow to the head. He ran off instantly, oblivious of the immense psychological damage he had caused.

My terror was now in freefall and not even the vast expanse of the school playground could provide an adequate sanctuary. I retreated almost immediately back to the house. I found my mother and cuddled her with an intensity that caused her to suspect that something must be very wrong.

"What’s wrong Ant?" She asked tenderly, part of her natural warmth was to address me by my pet name.