Sweat beads below my lip...
My fingers anxiously await the deciding factor...
I watch as he begins to sift through remaining slips of paper...
He looks up...
I inhale...
Light
I let the air out and turn to the familiar keys....
***
Laughter.
Rich, full laughter fills my ears.
My body tingles with the excitement that her blue eyes hold. I want to move quickly, to find that special moment where she sees me for the first time.
Plush carpet beneath my feet has my mind on clouds of white and cotton candy summers. My legs no longer ache and my mind no longer burns with the disturbing heat.
The laughter comes again, only this time ending with a giggle. Sweet and cute, the sound is purely female.
Weaving through the house I ignore the piles of dirty clothes and magazines yet to be read. I'm oblivious to the dishes that wait to be washed in the sink. They no longer matter.
There is only the sound of utter joy that leads me to my goal.
I hear the voice of an angel singing her ABC's and the bark of a dog welcoming home it's favorite friend.
Her laughter rumbles again, smothered only by what I am sure is the love of a treasured pet.
I grin, steps away from what I know is paradise when I hear his voice. My smile grows wider. He compliments her on her dress and I hear her polite response.
My heart swells at the thought of two people so special, so amazing, so missed.
As I walk down the hall, photographs line every inch. She is so small, so precious. He is so handsome, so loving. There are three photos on the end. Very special photos.
We are all four together. Captured together only three times before the loss, forever frozen within the frame.
She laughs again and calls for me up ahead.
A tear begins to travel down my cheek but I brush it away. No longer will there be tears, no longer will there be sadness.
I step forward and see them.
She smiles, her deep blue eyes sparkle with joy. He holds out his hand and the dog dances at his feet. I cannot contain the love that pours from my heart as I grasp onto him.
She begins to sing again. Only this time it is the lullaby I used to sing when she was scared of the dark. I shake my head.
"No need, darling, I am not afraid. There is no more darkness."
Together we step outside and into an eternity only found within the light.
***
For members of the Royal Court new to my Wednesday's Written Word series please peruse the past entries under my Original Works page or via the right sidebar menu.
(How it works: these are written on the spot with a time limit of 45 minutes - no word limit. Each word is drawn from a bowl where the 26 letters of the alphabet are represented by words selected by my husband. I have no idea what words are in the bowl nor which ones will be pulled out each week. I use this as a great 'interruption' from my current work in progress to keep my creative juices flowing & to not get bogged down with current major projects)
Have a Wondrous Wednesday!
