The Dust Factory

Ryan Flynn:
No but I like the way things are... Here with you and Mel

Grandpa Randolph:
No. You have a home, a family, a life. That mustn't be tossed aside because you are afraid of dying

Ryan Flynn:
I won't go back!

Grandpa Randolph:
Boy, the beauty of living is that you get to solve all of the world's myths. Let each have a tug at your insides. Take a shot at answering the questions of life and death.

Ryan Flynn:
When I die, I don't want it to hurt.

Ryan Flynn:
I don't see paradise, Grandpa. I want to... but I don't.

Grandpa Randolph:
Patience.

Grandpa Randolph:
Live your life, Ryan Flynn

Ryan Flynn:
I'm not sure I understand anything Grandpa said. But at least I'm not afraid anymore. I figure he's in eternity. I almost grasp the meaning of it. But then it slips away. Maybe because I'm just a kid.

Ryan Flynn:
I never saw the Fair Footed Flekk.

Melanie Lewis:
Do you know what she looks like?

Ryan Flynn:
No.

Melanie Lewis:
Then how do you know you haven't already met her?

Grandpa Randolph:
Once upon a time there were three men who decided to climb the tallest mountain in their country.

Ryan Flynn:
Which mountain?

Grandpa Randolph:
The tallest - that's the point. These fellows knew if they succeeded, they would be showered with wealth and power by the king.

Ryan Flynn:
For climbing a mountain?

Grandpa Randolph:
This happened a long time ago, when climbing a mountain wasn't a weekend sport. They even referred to the mission as a "quest for paradise."

Ryan Flynn:
This is an honest to goodness fable, huh?

Grandpa Randolph:
You'll see. Now, the king had a beautiful daughter, and he promised her hand to the bravest of the men.

Ryan Flynn:
So even if the guy was an ugly toad with fart's breath, she'd have to marry him.

Grandpa Randolph:
Yes, yes. Halfway up the mountain, one of the men turned to the guide and said he couldn't justify the strain of another day's hiking just for the king's good blessings.

Ryan Flynn:
Go on, Grandpa.

Grandpa Randolph:
Go on, go on, go on. Next morning, the second man decided to climb was foolish. Even if the king were offering pails of gold, he figured it wouldn't be worth spending from his deathbed. So, off he went. The last man... The last man was chipper as a fox in a chicken coop! Already counting his good graces... Anticipating wealth, wench, happiness!

Ryan Flynn:
The guy's stylin'.

Grandpa Randolph:
Guys stylin', yes. Well, his excitement was short-lived as the guide outlined the final day's journey. Treacherous. This fellow just shook his head in disgust. I mean, for a spoiled child bride, it would take all the king's money to keep her happy, anyway. So, without even a proper fare-thee-well, he turned on his heel and left the young guide alone. And you know what the guy did then?

Ryan Flynn:
Bailed?

Grandpa Randolph:
He went for it.

Ryan Flynn:
Cool.

Grandpa Randolph:
Cool! Yes.

Ryan Flynn:
So, then what?

Grandpa Randolph:
After two more days, he reached the precipice and discovered a weathered bench looked out over the countryside... cupped his hands and shouted, "What paradise is this?" He was answered by a beautiful voice. "What paradise do you seek?"

Ryan Flynn:
The Fair Footed Flekk?

Grandpa Randolph:
Yes, she skipped through the clouds as is she were light as air itself. She explained how the men he'd started with were glory seekers expecting paradise, but disappointed. Disappointed at the price. The young man was touched and moved as he looked out over this tiny piece of the world seeing with a clarity he'd never known. And a word trembled from his lips... Paradise.

Ryan Flynn:
And the Fair Footed Flekk?

Grandpa Randolph:
Gone... into the clouds. Memory.

Ryan Flynn:
Climbing the mountain was his reward?

Grandpa Randolph:
Climbing was his paradise.

Melanie Lewis:
Make me a promise?

Ryan Flynn:
Sure.

Melanie Lewis:
If you decide you want the four seasons again...

Ryan Flynn:
That mean jumping at the big top. Forget it. I'm never going home.

Melanie Lewis:
But if you change your mind, promise me you'll tell me first?

Ryan Flynn:
Why?

Melanie Lewis:
I might consider going is all.

Ryan Flynn:
That's impossible.

Grandpa Randolph:
In the Dust Factory, anything is possible. You just have to unlearn your can's and can'ts.

Grandpa Randolph:
Boy, boy, boy. Don't forget. You're on a quest for paradise.

[last lines]

Grandpa Randolph:
Dust is a funny thing. It's everywhere all at once, like a teeny, tiny snowstorm, in every ray of light. Even the moon is just a big dust ball. But you know, it's all in the way you look at it. Not this way or that way, not forways or backways. Just believe before you look. The man in the moon has a magic all his own.

Ryan Flynn:
How long have you been here?

Melanie Lewis:
A while, I guess. Time is kinda unimportant here in the Dust Factory.

Ryan Flynn:
That's what you call this place, the Dust Factory?

Melanie Lewis:
YUP! Kinda a home away from home until you're ready to go back. Which I'm not!

Melanie Lewis:
It's called getting dusted. You see, when you decide to make the leap, you only get one chance to fly. So either you make it and move on, or get dusted and go back home.

Ryan Flynn:
That's the only way to go home? To jump and miss?

Melanie Lewis:
No one's getting me up there.

Melanie Lewis:
Hey, do you like to spin?

Ryan Flynn:
I don't know what you mean.

Melanie Lewis:
Spin... in circles till you get queasy and see double? Spin!

Ryan Flynn:
Have you been to the factory?

Grandpa Randolph:
Sure. Joined the crowd once. Didn't jump of course.

Ryan Flynn:
Yeah, I'm definitely not big on jumping. And I don't like that dust.

Grandpa Randolph:
Can't blame you.

Ryan Flynn:
Falling all that way? How do you know if you're ready?

Grandpa Randolph:
I'm certainly no expert. I suppose it's different for everyone. Some folks probably dawdle around here quite a while trying to figure that out. Melanie for instance, she seems a bit of a dawdler.

Ryan Flynn:
I don't mind dawdling if it means not having to jump. Hitting that floor looked awful painful.

Grandpa Randolph:
Oh, you're afraid of a little pain? That's an overrated phobia.

Ryan Flynn:
So what's it like? You know, dying?

Grandpa Randolph:
[shrugs] I don't know.

Ryan Flynn:
Well, you must. You're practically dead.

Grandpa Randolph:
[sarcastically] Oh. Thank you. Thank you very very much.

Ryan Flynn:
Well, it's gotta hurt.

Grandpa Randolph:
Hurt? Life hurts, boy.

Ryan Flynn:
Doesn't this day ever end?

Melanie Lewis:
What do you mean?

Ryan Flynn:
Well, there's a beginning but no end.

Melanie Lewis:
How do you know it began?

Ryan Flynn:
Well, it had to, or it wouldn't be.

Melanie Lewis:
That's not true. It just is what it is. You know, light all the time. Maybe if we run away from the sun we'll find night.

Melanie Lewis:
[to Ryan] Do you dance?

Grandpa Randolph:
Of course he does.

Melanie Lewis:
You know, tangos and waltzes?

Ryan Flynn:
Of course not. I'm a guy?

Melanie Lewis:
Oh, lame-o excuse!

Grandpa Randolph:
[starts singing and dancing with Melanie] Dancing is the most exhilarating, glorificating, fantazilating. Just let your toes go tapping heels kerplanking. It's the essence of life. And if you think you are too fancy, too grandiancy, just let your feet explore the floor. They'll know the layout, forget yourself and play out. 'Cause there is no substitute. And now for the romp-stompinest, skip-alonginest kind of fun around. Heck, it's the essence of... Heck, it's the essence of...

Melanie Lewis:
Life!

Grandpa Randolph:
Life.

Melanie Lewis:
What do you say Ryan?

Ryan Flynn:
I guess.

Melanie Lewis:
[exhilarated] WHOO!

Melanie Lewis:
[she just caught him with his pants down, so of course, she's gotta make fun of him] You wear butt-huggers?

Ryan Flynn:
Briefs. They're cotton briefs

Melanie Lewis:
You should wear boxers. They're way cooler than butt-huggers.

Melanie Lewis:
Did you know that Galileo thought that oceans made up the face of the man in the moon?

Ryan Flynn:
Actually, they're lava flows.

Melanie Lewis:
I know. They're called maria. Do you know the name of the biggest, nearest crater to the Apolo 11 landing?

Ryan Flynn:
Julius Caesar. Know when Apollo 11 landed?

Melanie Lewis:
Summer of '69. Which hemisphere?

Ryan Flynn:
West. Can you name an eastern landing?

Melanie Lewis:
Apollo 15, summer of '71. Name another west?

Ryan Flynn:
17, winter of '72. Name a landing near Copernicus crater.

Melanie Lewis:
Apollo 12, summer of '69. And 16 landed in spring of '72

Ryan Flynn:
And 14 in winter of '71!

Melanie Lewis:
[smiles] We're all out of missions.

Grandpa Randolph:
Your grandma wore a dress just like that the first time I fell in love with her.

Ryan Flynn:
You fell in love with her more than once?

Grandpa Randolph:
Of course.

Melanie Lewis:
How old were you?

Grandpa Randolph:
Sixth grade. What a romance. It lasted a week, then my family moved and I didn't see her again till I went away to college.

Melanie Lewis:
Did she remember you?

Grandpa Randolph:
No, not a bit. But we fell in love all over again.

Melanie Lewis:
That is so romantic.

Grandpa Randolph:
Yes, my beautiful wife.

Grandpa Randolph:
Did your mother ever tell you about the Fair Footed Flekk?

Ryan Flynn:
No.

Grandpa Randolph:
Once upon a time there were three men who decided to climb the tallest mountain in their country. These fellows knew if they succeeded, they would be showered with wealth and power by the king. They even referred to the mission as a "quest for paradise." Now, the king had a beautiful daughter, and he promised her hand to the bravest of the men. Halfway up the mountain, one of the men turned to the guide and said he couldn't justify the strain of another day's hiking just for the king's good blessings. Next morning, the second man decided the climb was foolish. Even if the king were offering pails of gold, he figured it wouldn't be worth spending from his deathbed. So, off he went. Now the last man - the last was chipper as a fox in a chicken coop! Already counting his good graces, anticipating wealth and happiness! Well, his excitement was short-lived as the guide outlined the final day's journey. Treacherous. This fellow just shook his head in disgust. I mean, for a spoiled child bride, it would take all the king's money to keep her happy, anyway. So, without even a proper fare-thee-well he turned on his heel and left the young guide alone. And you know what the guide did then?

Ryan Flynn:
Bailed?

Grandpa Randolph:
He went for it.

Ryan Flynn:
Cool.

Grandpa Randolph:
Cool! Yes.

Ryan Flynn:
So, then what?

Grandpa Randolph:
After two more days he reached the precipice and discovered a weathered bench, looked out over the countryside cupped his hands and shouted, "What paradise is this?" He was answered by a beautiful voice, "What paradise do you seek?"

Ryan Flynn:
The Fair Footed Flekk?

Grandpa Randolph:
Yeah, she skipped through the clouds as if she were light as air itself. She explained how the men he'd started with were glory seekers expecting paradise, but disappointed. Disappointed at the price. The young man was touched and moved as he looked over this tiny piece of the world, seeing with a clarity he'd never known. And a word tumbled from his lips... Paradise.

Ryan Flynn:
And the Fair Footed Flekk?

Grandpa Randolph:
Gone, into the clouds. *poof*... a memory.

Ryan Flynn:
Climbing the mountain was his reward?

Grandpa Randolph:
Climbing... was his *paradise*.

Grandpa Randolph:
[to Ryan] My grandfather told me when a leaf floats past you it means somewhere someone is thinking of you.

Melanie Lewis:
Oh, please.

Grandpa Randolph:
What? You don't think anyone thinks about you? Oh, Melanie. You have to believe.

Melanie Lewis:
[after Ryan leaves] I know what you're up to. It's not fair.

Grandpa Randolph:
Oh, Melanie. Little lady.

Ryan Flynn:
[while dancing in the woods with Melanie] I don't want this to ever end!

Grandpa Randolph:
Again with that word "end". It's a myth.

Melanie Lewis:
That's a lie!

Grandpa Randolph:
Don't be selfish, Melanie.

Melanie Lewis:
When you make the leap at the big top, time in the dust factory ends.

Grandpa Randolph:
Melanie.

Melanie Lewis:
Let Ryan decide!

Melanie Lewis:
Dust. I hate it. I don't wanna jump and I never will!

Ryan Flynn:
There's no paradise for me!

Ryan Flynn:
Grandpa, It's Melanie.

Grandpa Randolph:
She can wait.

Ryan Flynn:
You don't understand.

Grandpa Randolph:
I understand perfectly.

Ryan Flynn:
But Grandpa, I left her in that awful place.

Grandpa Randolph:
No, her lack of faith keeps her there.

Ryan Flynn:
No. She's just scared.

Grandpa Randolph:
Melanie will learn on her own. Otherwise, she'll never make the leap, and we can't dawdle here forever.

Ryan Flynn:
You're leaving.

Grandpa Randolph:
What? I should. I should overstay my welcome?

Ryan Flynn:
But I like the way things are. Here with you and Mel.

Grandpa Randolph:
No. You have a home, a family, a life. That mustn't be tossed aside because you're afraid of dying.

Ryan Flynn:
I won't go back!

Grandpa Randolph:
Boy, the beauty of living is that you get to work all the world's myths. Let each of them tug at your insides. Take a shot at answering the questions of life and death.

Ryan Flynn:
[crying] When I die, I don't want it to hurt. I don't see paradise, Grandpa. I want to but I don't.

Grandpa Randolph:
Patience.

Grandpa Randolph:
I hear the circus clowns. I hear them. They're singing.

Ryan Flynn:
Will I ever see you again.

Grandpa Randolph:
The colors of sunset. Warm and Cool. Always extraordinary. Always extraordinary. Live your life Ryan Flynn.

[Ryan is in a sudden death competition against the Ringmaster to save Melanie's life, when he finally scores... ]

Ryan Flynn:
Yes! Come on, Mel, let's go. We're outta here.

[the Ringmaster doesn't let her go]

Ryan Flynn:
What? I beat you. I scored! I'm ready to leave. I proved it!

Ryan Flynn:
[to Melanie] What's wrong?

Melanie Lewis:
You won, Ryan. I didn't.

Ryan Flynn:
No! You just have to believe there's more to life than one long winter.

Melanie Lewis:
[crying] You're asking me to risk everything! I've been here too long. I don't even remember where I came from. Where would I end up? I can't handle that kind of uncertainty.

Ryan Flynn:
Grandpa would tell you to turn all that doubt into trust. Take a chance, Mel! Do you trust me? [she nods] Do you trust yourself? [she doesn't say anything] Do you trust yourself? Say it, Mel! Come on, get off those toe-picks and skate. Skate now!

Melanie Lewis:
[thinks for a second, then says] Meet me halfway, Ryan. [they skate towards each other and, before the Ringmaster can stop them, they disappear]

Trapeze Catcher:
Special catch, he was. He would've caught me if I'd done nothing but offer two stumps for hands. What a man. [whispers] What a man.

[seeing the ghost of his dad, who can't say anything]

Ryan Flynn:
Dad? I wanted to tell you so much. Remember when you showed me the man in the moon? And I couldn't see him for the longest time. And then you drew me a picture of him. Told me his eyes were so droopy because he only slept three days out of a month. And that his smile was so big because he loved to watch me play. Ever since you told me that story, I wanted to visit him. I really miss you, Dad.

Ryan Flynn:
I wanna go home. Really go home.

Melanie Lewis:
I know. And I don't want you to. It was always my plan to leave too, you know. But I was just waiting for a sign. I figured there'd be this perfect moment where I'd just know it was right. I guess I'm just a dawdler.

Melanie Lewis:
You know, I can still do everything better than you can. Faster - always will.

Ryan Flynn:
You can't always win.

Melanie Lewis:
I'll always beat *you*.

Ryan Flynn:
And I won't mind... I'll never forget you, Mel.

Melanie Lewis:
...you will.

Ryan Flynn:
No, I won't. See ya later.

Melanie Lewis:
Not later. Just see you.

Melanie Lewis:
I wish I had the courage to climb a mountain. All I have is this stupid lake! It's not winter, it's not winter, it's not winter! It's summer!

Melanie Lewis:
[sadly] I had an accident. In my head. They said it was an aneurysm.

Ryan Flynn:
[confused] Oh. Is that bad?

Melanie Lewis:
[smiles her biggest and cutest smile] Not anymore!

Melanie Lewis:
I don't like cold weather. Give me heat any day. There's this island called Tahiti. I'm going there when I grow up. No winter - just long, hot days.

Ryan Flynn:
I don't know. I kinda like fall and winter.

Melanie Lewis:
That's 'cause your parents told you winter makes you look forward to summer. Why wait nine months?

Ryan Flynn:
I suppose you're right. But I'd still miss the colors and the leaves.

Melanie Lewis:
Boy, someone snowed you over but good!

Grandpa Randolph:
Dust is a funny thing. It's everywhere all at once, like a teeny, tiny snowstorm, in every ray of light. Even the moon is just a big dust ball. But you know, it's all in the way you look at it. Not this way or that way, not forways or backways. Just believe before you look. The man in the moon has a magic all his own.