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Olivia Solace
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PostPosted: Fri Jan 02, 2009 5:54 pm


Lighting Prompt (Required to reach Lit Scent stage)
You have just purchased an oil burner and a specific scented oil from the Solace Scents shop and you can't wait to light it! Now that you're home, it's time to find the perfect place to light that scent! However, strange things seem to happen when you do... particularly with the smoke...
PostPosted: Sun Jan 11, 2009 9:59 pm


Divine Vision - The Lighting



She hadn't been able to light it then, since inflammable items were forbidden in the dormitories. She had hidden it carefully in her suitcase until Christmas break, and now that she was home, this was the perfect time to light it. Han-hui studied the vial of oil, her eyebrows rising in curiosity at the variety of colors in the nearly iridescent oil. She cleared away a place next to the picture frames on top of her bookcase, blowing away a little dust. Having arranged the coiled silver burner in the spot she deemed most suited to its simple elegance, she poured a portion of the incense into the glass bowl and lit the tealight under it with a match, bringing the matchstick up and blowing it out carefully.

Han-hui watched the flame contentedly and waited. It took a moment for the oil to heat, but once it had, a celebration of refreshing aromas wafted up into the room. She breathed in slowly, trying to pick out each scent. Pine was obvious... as was the peppermint. There was also the subtle smell of apples, which made her smile. She loved apple scents. Almost hidden in the fragrance was something like berries, and the scent of something refreshingly exotic she couldn't quite put her mind's finger on. Whatever combination it was, it certainly deserved its name of Sparkling Angel, for it smelled absolutely heavenly.

Taking a deep breath, Han-hui stepped back and smiled, her excitement bubbling. She began to tidy up the rest of the room, feeling the urge to have a clean, organized living space. Hours passed as she opened this drawer and that box, shuffling their contents here and there, throwing out old papers, admiring long-lost knick-knacks, and shelving away other things that might come in handy later. At the end of the day, as she was preparing to sleep, she stepped up to the bookcase to blow out the flame from the tealight.

She blinked. She hadn't noticed earlier when she'd first lit the scent, because the slowly swirling halo of wispy smoke looked perfectly natural. But now... she rubbed her eyes and waved a hand through the smoke. It lazily floated up, forming that same wispy halo, but it was soon joined by a tiny pair of puffy, iridescent white wings. She scattered the smoke again and continued to stare, cracking a grin as the smoke reshaped itself. This last time, she quickly blew out the candle, and the steamy smoke rising from the pool of incense slowly dissipated.

That's not normal... definitely not normal. Maybe it's a trick candle or something? she thought. Not that she knew of any candle that could make smoke shapes. She fished the bottle of incense out of its decorative box and examined the label. Sparkling Angel... However she squinted, she couldn't find any indication or advertisement of its smoke-producing qualities. Making a quick decision, she put the incense carefully back in its box and stowed it in a safe place. Either way, she didn't want to risk her parents finding out about the magical smoke... she'd rather wait until she moved into an apartment of her own to try it again.

Silver Angel

Timid Regular


Olivia Solace
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PostPosted: Mon Feb 09, 2009 4:46 pm


Awakening Prompt (Required To Reach Child stage)

Having run into your last ounce of oil, you mournfully place it into it's burner and light it, letting the aroma spread throughout your home happily.

------
[For Those Who Want To RP Witnessing The Event]

You leave for a moment, deciding you felt peckish after smelling something so wonderful, and grabbed a snack from your kitchen. When you return you witness something absolutely amazing. The end result of the incident being a child on the floor of the room. Describe the sight, and the reactions of both you and the child at the end of it all.
------
[For Those Who Want To RP Finding The Child Only]

Having remembered something you needed to do, you ran out of your home quickly, forgetting all about the burning oils inside. You return content, having completed your task only to find a small child wandering the halls of your home, leaving oily foot steps behind, leading to a cracked burner, and split candle wax. Describe your reaction, and how you deal with the oil tracking child.
PostPosted: Sat Apr 04, 2009 10:47 pm


Transfiguration - The Awakening



A long, warm sigh floated out into the air of the room, drifting past a pair of dangling wrists, brushing over a pair of outstretched legs, and finally settling into the carpet.

These resting limbs belonged to a weary young woman comfortably slouched in a collapsible chair, snuggled into her loose sweater and jeans and looking out over the room with a pleased, wide smile.

That was it. After days of packing and moving the majority of her belongings out of her parents' house and into the place in which she was to live for at least the next year into the future, Han-hui was finally done. She had finished unpacking, arranging, dusting, sweeping, mopping, vaccuuming, dish-washing, and away-putting everything that now belonged in this new home, and now all that was left was for her to simply sit back and enjoy it.

Ah, what bliss! She sat in her chair, barely moving but for her slow, content breathing. The fragrance of the Sparkling Angel incense which had been burning on the coffee table for the purpose of dispelling the dusty, musty smell of the moving boxes for most of the week faded as the melting tealight burned itself out. The last chorus of a lively song streamed out of the radio she'd left running in the living room to listen to as she worked. The silence following felt so peaceful, so calm...

....

So quiet. Daylight had faded since the last box was unpacked and Han-hui now felt a little jittery being alone in the apartment, no matter that it was her new home. Not to mention the sticky, dusty sweat and grime on her skin was definitely interfering with the enjoying of the apartment. But that, at least, could easily be fixed! The wide smile returned as she squealed a little to herself. OMG~ I have my own bathtub! This thought alone was enough for her to spring out of the chair (as well as she could spring from a slouch, anyway) and bound to her bathroom.

A moment later, she trotted out of the bathroom and into her bedroom and rounded the corner back to the bathroom, her tape deck and a few tapes in hand. Plugging the player in, Han-hui selected her classical collection -- just the thing for relaxing and replenishing one's energy after a hard day's work.

After a thorough shower and a warm, leisurely soak, Han-hui wrapped herself in her bathrobe, tying her hair up in a towel, and ambled to her bedroom, feeling warm, fuzzy, clean, and smelling quite fresh. She flipped up the light, threw the bathrobe over her chair and put on her underthings, then her pajamas, sighing happily at the the comforting feeling of soft fabric against her skin. She stood hugging herself for a moment, breathing in the wonderfulness that was clean, and then placed her hands on her hips. It was still a bit early for bed. Throwing a glance at her meager bookshelf, she plucked out one of her favorite books, short enough to not take all night but engaging enough to pass a few hours, and flopped on the bed belly-first. She hadn't read very far before the book mentioned food.


"Why does reading always make me hungry...?" Han-hui mumbled as she crawled off the bed, swinging her hair down from its towel and giving a good rub before tossing the towel over the chair to join her bathrobe, leaving her damp locks loose and wavy over her shoulders.

She grabbed a nice red apple from the produce bin in her small fridge, washing off any residual insecticides, pesticides, or any other -ides on its skin in the sink before stuffing it in her mouth. As an afterthought, she fished a fresh tealight out of the cupboard above the stove and grabbed up the incense burner as she circled her way through the living room and back to the bedroom, holding the apple in her teeth as if she were the victim for a cannibal roast.

Setting the burner carefully on the side table and replacing the tealight, Han-hui took a long-necked lighter and lit the tiny candle, setting the lighter down beside the metal stand. Flopping once more on her belly as she opened her book again, she tore out the bite of apple between her teeth, holding the book in one hand and the apple aloft in the other. By the time the apple was crunched to the core, Han-hui was too engrossed in the story to care about brushing her teeth or washing her hands, instead licking stray apple juice from her fingers after tossing the core by its stem into the plastic bag lining the nearby popcorn tin she kept as a decorative trash can. The classical music still floating in from the bathroom provided a faint soundtrack as she flipped page after page, following the travels of her literary adventurers, giggling here and there at witty dialogue or a comical scene.

As the tealight burned low and the oil in the glass bowl curled away into unnoticed, smoky swirls and puffs, Han-hui's face drooped lower over her book. Though weary, her eyes were bright with excitement as they flicked over each word. She had just reached a scene in the middle which was building up to a big reveal. Practically glued to the next page, Han-hui sucked in a breath of the thick air she barely registered and held it...

Suddenly she heard a blast of music from a multitude of strings signalling the start of a well-known chorus. Her head shot up and she yelped at the same moment the trumpets let out their first blare.

Her book dropped to the floor with a quiet flutter of pages as she leapt backward across the bed, which was a horrible idea which led to her back smacking hard into the wall and knocking the wind from her. She coughed a little, bringing her forearm up to her nose as she stared at the glowing mass hovering near her ceiling, which seemed to amplify the music streaming in from the forgotten player in the bathroom. Han-hui could almost swear she heard chimes and handbells joining the voices, the light from the smoky cloud pulsing in time with the beat. Drawing the blankets over and around herself as her mouth hung open, she curled against the wall, unable to tear her eyes away from shining light which seemed to expand, swirling into a whole spectrum of colors as it touched the ceiling and began spilling toward the floor.

The chorus concluded on its triumphant note, and there was silence as the cloud seemed to stop moving, the sound of tinkling bells fading as well. Han-hui stopped clutching the blanket and sat up on her knees to stare at the pillar of glowing smoke, her eyes and nose swimming with the overpowering smell of the incense. She gathered her courage and reached out to touch it.

Just before her fingers could sweep through the cloud, there was a rumbling sound like drums, or thunder, then a swishing sound like satin, growing louder by the second. The cloud seemed to split in two with a loud sound like a tapestry ripping, the light seemingly pouring out of it. The light seemed to burn up the billows in a flash, yanking a scream from Han-hui, who threw her arms up, expecting an explosion following the sound of rushing wind.

Instead, when she opened her eyes again and looked up, she saw a pair of large, bright eyes. She flinched and shrank back, peering back from under her blanket at what those eyes belonged to. A being the size of a child was crouched at the edge of her bed blinking up at her, smiling curiously. Han-hui blinked back, biting her lip in shock, staring wordlessly at the skin of this entity which seemed to carry the same glow as the cloud. Or maybe that was just the spots in her vision left by that freakish flash of light.


"Are you afraid? Don't be afraid." The being's mouth moved and a child's voice came out. It was a sweet voice, a gentle, kind voice, and the meaning as well as the smile behind the words told her that she truly had no reason to fear. It was only then that Han-hui realized how strange she looked, kneeling on her bed with a blanket draped over her head, and gave a dry smirk.

"Um..." she started, her voice cracking a little. She swallowed and tried again. "If you're looking for the Virgin Mary, I'm afraid you've got the wrong girl. Maybe even the wrong millennium."

The child's brow furrowed in confusion. "Huh?"

Han-hui blushed furiously. "Um... nothing, forget that first part. But I'm... I still don't think you've got the right person. You're an angel, right? Is... is there a lesson I need to be learning now, or... or... is... is it time for me to..."

The child stood up next to the bed and placed a small, gentle hand on Han-hui's, giving that easy, natural smile. "I don't know. But you don't need to be afraid anymore. I'm here with you now."

Silver Angel

Timid Regular


Silver Angel

Timid Regular

PostPosted: Fri Jul 31, 2009 5:11 pm


Han-hui stared at the child. "So I'm not dying." The question came as more of a statement as she wondered if this was all a hallucination. She'd have to have a talk with a couple of people and track down the place the incense had come from later. She pressed a palm to her forehead. Of all things, what a gift!

The being looked back at her, brows bending slightly in puzzlement.
"I don't think so... you look pretty healthy. Maybe you're just tired from moving around all day."

Han-hui raised her own eyebrows. "Yeah, that might be it." She felt her own forehead and pinched herself hard, flinching and biting back a cry at the pain when the dream turned out not to be a dream. The child looked up at her, concerned, and placed a palm over the spot where Han-hui's nerves still tingled. The small, warm, slightly moist fingers brushing her arm felt real enough, and she felt the pain fade, replaced by a warm, yet cool sensation. As the being leaned toward her, she caught again the smell of the heady incense.

She groaned, glancing over at the burner. There wasn't a drop of oil left in the shallow glass bowl, though the flame from the candle flickered indifferently. She stared at it a moment before climbing down from the bed and puffing out the flame. As great as it had smelled, she didn't think she'd go hunting for the incense again. Having gathered her wits again, or at least the practical parts, Han-hui walked over to the bathroom and turned down the volume on the tape player, stopping its playback mid-measure and unplugging it from the wall. She carried it back into the bedroom and set it down on the floor. The child, still sitting on the floor, stared up at her curiously. She stared back, not sure what else to do.

A few minutes of uncomfortable silence passed.


"So..." Han-hui finally ventured. "If you're not here to bring me a message or take my soul, what are you here for?"

The being tilted its head, looking at the floor near Han-hui's feet as if thinking hard. It looked up again. "I don't know. I'm just here. I've been here. Because you wanted me here, I think."

It was Han-hui's turn to look puzzled. "I don't remember summoning any angels." She paused, looking slightly alarmed. "Um. That is. If you are an angel."

Crinkling its brows, the child looked this way and that, examining its arms, and then its hands. "I don't know. I don't think so."

Han-hui stared. It didn't look like a demon, for sure, but looks could be deceiving. Against what she might've deemed her better judgment, she squatted down and crawled slowly toward the child to get a better look. As she approached, the apple-berry-pine-eucalyptus scent of the incense grew sharper. Olive green eyes stared at her as she wrinkled her nose against the heavy aroma, waiting patiently through the inspection. It looked everything like a seven- or eight-year-old child, except for the long, flowing white hair waving below its shoulders. Han-hui pursed her lip and then stood up, offering her hand to the being.

"Well," she said, as it raised itself from the floor. "As nice as that incense was, and as much as I hate to be rude and tell you that you smell, I guess the first thing to do is to offer you a bath. If you're staying long at all, I won't be able to stand that much concentrated aroma all the time." Han-hui's nose twitched and she tried to breathe evenly through her mouth. Marching to the linen closet, she drew out a fresh towel, ducking into the bathroom to find those little bottles of hotel toiletries she kept around for emergencies and guests. Pausing before setting the items on the edge of the sink, she turned to look at the child. "You at least know how to wash yourself, right?" Wrinkling her nose again, she thought silently, Well, whatever it is, bathing isn't too hard to figure out. The shorter figure smiled up at her. "Well, I've never had a bath before, but it doesn't sound hard." Han-hui allowed herself a dry grin. "Right, right. Just uh... get undressed and leave your clothes on the floor. I'll have to hand wash them later to get all the oil out, but..." She shrugged and turned to leave, closing the door behind her so the little person could have some privacy.

She grabbed a rag, a bowl of water, and the bottle of dishwashing detergent from the kitchen and returned to her bedroom to set to work on the carpet as she waited for her guest to finish showering. Ten or fifteen minutes passed, but there was silence from the bathroom. A little nervous, Han-hui called out,
"Hey... kid," she paused a moment, realizing she had never asked the child for its name. Everything okay in there?"

A puzzled young voice called back. "I'm trying to figure out what it says on the bottles, but I don't think there's enough water in here to wash... how do you do this?" Han-hui could feel her hair bristle as she tensed. Seriously? How can you not find water in a bathroom? And what water... She ran over and knocked on the bathroom door, speaking quickly. "Hey, that water in that big white porcelain-" The door opened at her knock and a naked little boy with white flowing hair and green eyes stared up at her. "Ojeezus!" Han-hui spluttered, turning her head and covering her eyes. "Um, hey, you might want to cover that up." She reached past him toward the sink and thrust the towel at him, feeling her face coloring several shades of red from embarrassment and annoyance. Honestly, a kid who doesn't know how to bathe himself...?

"That," she said, pointing at the porcelain seat against the wall, "is a toilet. You use it for... for when you have to go pee. And other things. Assuming you're a normal kid and not an angel, you will probably have to use it fairly often." She wrinkled her nose in a grimace. "And I will probably be the lucky one to teach you how. But for now-" she leaned into the shower and turned the knobs to run the water "-you use these to turn the water on. This one's hot, and this one's cold, and you pull this to make the water come out of the shower head. I won't do that now 'cause I don't want another shower, but for now we'll just put this in here-" she settled the drain plug in place "-and let the tub fill up, 'cause that'll probably much easier for a kid like you right now." Han-hui let out a sigh and wiped a bit of sweat and steam from her brow. She grumbled and cast the boy a sidelong glance, picking up his white tunic from the floor and dropping it in the sink. "I really didn't want to do this, but I guess I'll have to show you how normal people take baths. And if you get this funny feeling between your legs like something bad's going to happen, I'll teach you how to use a toilet properly." With a resigned sigh, she added, "For now, we'll leave the door open 'cause I'm in here with you anyway, but when you learn to do stuff in here by yourself, you'll want to close the door. I dunno how much of a private person you are, but it's common decency not to have other people see you when you've got your pants off."

After the bath, the explanation on proper use of a toilet, and a demonstration of tooth brushing, Han-hui was satisfied that the boy had basic hygiene covered. As she ran her hairbrush carefully through his clean white hair, she felt strangely calm. She didn't often get the chance to play with someone else's hair, especially not such long, soft hair as this child's. It was strange for any kind of kid to have hair so long and white, especially if he wasn't something like an angel.

"Say... you," she began a little awkwardly, breaking the peaceful silence. "If you don't mind my asking, if you're not an angel, what are you? The boy leaned back and looked up at her, smiling at the upside-down view. "I'm me," he replied. At the brief frown which rested on his hairdresser's face, he giggled lightly and added, "I was a swirly bowl of Scent, and now I'm a kid Scent." Han-hui frowned again, a bit disappointed that she really hadn't missed a memo on the workings of reality. There really was a boy who had popped out of a cloud of incense which had sprung up from a pool of oil in an innocent-looking glass bowl which had come from a box given to her as a present bought from a mysterious store. She sighed and ran a hand through her own hair, as if it would help her grasp the concept better. When I was hoping he'd give me a child someday, this isn't exactly what I meant, she thought to herself wryly, her heart tightening with a twinge of nostalgia for her ex-lover. Up 'til now she had forgotten to feel lonely.

"Well, then," she said, tilting the boy's head forward again to continue her brushing. "Do you come with a name, too? As nice as a name like Angel is, I've always felt it was more of a girl's name than a boy's name, and as cute as a nickname like Sparkles is, I think you need a real one." The boy simply shrugged and fidgeted with his fingertips as he patiently waited for Han-hui to finish brushing his hair. After a moment of silent thought, she finally set down the brush on the edge of the sink and gave the child's hair a gentle twist or two before letting go. "How about... Kaleb? I like that name for a boy." The boy turned and smiled brightly up at her. "Okay. I like it, too. I'll be Kaleb." He threw his arms suddenly around Han-hui's waist, and she coughed a little in surprise before she laughed and returned the hug. The crisp aroma of Sparkling Angel wafted up from the child's hair, wrapping the warm embrace in a comforting, euphoric sense of peace.
PostPosted: Fri Dec 25, 2009 11:37 pm


Han-hui's Journal


It seems I've found myself the caretaker of a curious child. I don't mean curious in the usual sense of him getting into everything and constantly asking questions (although he is that, too), but more in the strange, mysterious, altogether puzzling sense. It was such a sudden occurrence and I've had to make such immediate adjustments that I hadn't even thought of writing until now.

I had no idea how much work it was to raise a child! It's expensive enough to keep one. All the clothes to be bought and space to be made and cleaning to be done and extra food to be cooked had me scrimping and saving and asking for more hours at work. On the other hand, I can't work as much as I could because I've got to keep an eye on the boy and make sure he doesn't get lonely or into some kind of trouble while I'm gone. When I am not at work, though, answering all his questions and teaching him everything I know (the good things, at the very least) is a never-ending task, and exhausting in mind as work is exhausting in body! Fortunately, he learns quickly enough when I've taught him correctly, and he's slowly learning things on his own. I've been teaching him how to write. He shapes his letters beautifully, but every once in a while he has trouble with his spelling. I wish I could send him to school like other children, but I wouldn't even know where to start... I've never had a child or been in legal charge of one so I don't have anything like the necessary paperwork, and if I tried explaining to anyone how he came to be I'd be carted off to the loony bin and then what would become of him?

I wish I knew what else to do with him! I can't explain where he came from and I can't be sure that anyone else knows. I have no idea where that Solace Scents is, if it's in the city or if it's in some other country entirely. And by the looks of the wares, it doesn't seem like a place a person of my uncertain economic stature should be concerning herself with...

He is such a good boy. I call him Kaleb because I can't think of anything else to call him. I haven't heard any reports of any missing children since he came to me, so I can't think of anyplace else that could take him in. He calls me Hanna... I can only imagine what we look like to the neighbors. No one's asked me to explain about him yet, but it's easier to pretend for now that I'm just baby-sitting than to act otherwise.

I don't think you could find a more well-intentioned boy, though. He always has this wondering, thoughtful look on his face like he's trying so hard to understand, and when he does understand he has the brightest, most infectious smile I've ever known. It's selfish of me to even think, but as much as I worry about keeping him, now I wouldn't dream of sending him away.

Silver Angel

Timid Regular


Silver Angel

Timid Regular

PostPosted: Wed Jan 05, 2011 9:44 pm


PostPosted: Wed Jan 05, 2011 9:51 pm


Han-Hui's Journal


It's so nice to know I'm not the only one who had an odd child pop out of nowhere!

Not that Remi is really that odd, but odd in the sort of way that Kaleb is odd. Remi is a little girl and she smells lovely, just like gingerbread spices and sugar, and she is no doubt one of the sweetest little girls I have ever met.

I met her and her mother, Lizzy, when I took Kaleb to the zoo today so he could have a day in the open air (not that it was particularly FRESH air, considering). Lizzy seems just as friendly as her daughter, and very easy-going but fairly responsible. I'd guess she's about the same age as me, but she seems like such a good mother already. Maybe I should ask her for some tips!

When we got home I was so hungry for gingerbread! Kaleb asked me where we could get some, and I had to tell him we would have to buy it in a store, but I can't think of any stores who would have gingerbread these days... it just seems out of season. I told him we could get some around Christmas time, and then he asked me what Christmas was.

I really don't think it should have taken me so long to explain. I guess I was still thinking about last Christmas... and everything since. I hope Kaleb never has to hurt the way I've hurt.

Silver Angel

Timid Regular


Silver Angel

Timid Regular

PostPosted: Wed Jan 05, 2011 10:34 pm


Kaleb's Journal


Hanna and I went to the zoo today and we met a Sent Scent like me over by the pony. Her name is Remi and we are frens friends now. Remi said she is JIN GINGERBREAD and she smells like warm and yummy. Hanna said she will let me try gingerbread cookies when Krismus Christmas time comes but nobody sells them when it's not close to Christmas time so I can't have any now but that is OK because Remi is my friend and she smells like gingerbread. I made Remi sad today but I didn't mean to but she said it was OK and when we were going home Hanna said I just have to be more careful what I say. I will try hard not to make people sad because I do not like my friends to be sad.

Remi says she met other Scents before and she is friends with them and she says she wants me to meet them too so we can be friends. I would like that a lot and I hope I can meet them because it is fun to have friends. Hanna says she is happy that I am not the only Scent. She says it is because she was worried and it is hard to be lonely and then she hugged me. I asked her what is lonely and she said it is when there is you are all by yourself because there is nobody there or there is nobody like you. I think she was lonely before but she smiles big and says she is not lonely anymore because I am here and that makes her happy. I am happy that I can help her be happy.

Hanna didn't look happy when when I asked her what Christmas was and I felt bad because I made somebody sad again today. She says it was not my fault and I don't need to feel bad and Christmas is a time when people are sapost supposed to be happy and spend time with their family. She said we will have Christmas together because we are like a little family now.
PostPosted: Wed Jan 05, 2011 10:35 pm



Silver Angel

Timid Regular


Silver Angel

Timid Regular

PostPosted: Thu Jun 23, 2011 9:12 pm


Han-Hui's Journal


I told Kaleb that Christmastime was supposed to be a happy time to spend with family. He's the only family I have, since...

I was a fool for pushing my family away... I am a fool for abandoning them for a haphazard fantasy. Even though time has passed and my days are now filled with Kaleb, still I can't forget. I can't forget the pain, the sorrow, the flashes of passion and brief happiness... all the memories haunt me. I hid that burner, that beautiful bottle, and the box away because I couldn't bear to look at it, even though it brought me the joy that is Kaleb.

Kaleb... I wish I could be the family he deserves. He deserves a bright, happy mother, just like his bright, happy self. I want to be the one to teach him so much, but how can I guide him through his future when I am still floundering in the past? My deepest fear is that my past will pollute my present entirely and cause Kaleb grief.

I cannot allow that to happen. Since that day I have tried and failed and tried again to be strong, to persevere, to overcome. By God's grace, perhaps, Kaleb's presence has helped me forget my loneliness. Now I recognize that my strength is not enough.

Although Christmas time ought to be a time of happiness, I have been consumed by old memories, and even Kaleb has noticed that I become lost in melancholy.

"What's the matter, Mom? Are you sad?" he asked me recently.
I had to smile. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to look sad."
"Why are you sad, Mom? Are you sick?"
I paused. "You could say that. But not the kind of sick you can catch."
He looked at me curiously. "What kind of sick, then? Does your tummy hurt?"
I smiled again. "No, not my tummy. More like... my heart."
"Your heart?" He looked alarmed. "What's wrong with your heart? Are you going to be okay?"
I smiled again, less certainly. "Yeah... it's an old hurt, but I'm sure I'll be okay with a little more time. I promise I won't die from it."
"If you have been hurting so long, shouldn't you go to the doctor? Doctors are supposed to help with important things like hearts. A doctor would know what would make you feel better."

I really marvel at the wisdom hidden in children's hearts. I know the words he meant. Still, I think what he said may be just what I've needed. At the turn of this new year, I'll go talk to a therapist. And maybe, somehow... my heart will find healing.
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