Taylor's Time!

Well, well, well!

Look who's back!

No, not me - Taylor!

Wait. She was back last week, your time, wasn't she?

She was.

Blast.

Okay, resume your normal schedules.

-- Kendra

December 26th 2020

Oh what a dream I had last night.

We were in a valley, my cousins and I, surrounded by sloping hills which led to grasslands that glistened in the sunlight. A clear-water beach sat just beyond them.

There was a house there, big enough for all our families, yet small enough to feel cozy and close within its walls. It had windows, this house, giant windows that reached the ceiling. I opened one as soon as I could, breathed in the sweet air, and listened to the wind. Oddly, when I looked down into the valley at the grasses and the forests of trees, I saw they weren't moving. My chin tilted upward, enough to see it was the ocean I was hearing, with its crashing waves and foam that glittered as it hit the rocks. I felt the breeze, the cool spray of salty water caress my cheeks.

I looked out at the gorgeous land before me, where my cousins were playing. The little ones laughed and played like no one was watching. The rays of the sun lit their faces and caught their hair. They danced in the light, in the warmth, as if the sun held them. I watched them, laughing with happiness, and recited a poem under my breath.

𝐷𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑡𝑙𝑒 𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑎𝑦𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑢𝑛

𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑠𝑘𝑖𝑛 𝑑𝑎𝑟𝑘𝑒𝑛 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑢𝑡𝑦

𝐷𝑜 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑡𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑡 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑛 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑟𝑎𝑐e

𝐿𝑒𝑡 ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑔𝑒𝑡 𝑎 ℎ𝑜𝑙𝑑 𝑜𝑓 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑏𝑜𝑑𝑦

𝐿𝑒𝑡 ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑜𝑟 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑠𝑘𝑖𝑛 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑝𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑏𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ 𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑡𝑙𝑒 𝑜𝑛𝑒

A𝑛𝑑, 𝑠𝑒𝑒 𝑤ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑐𝑎𝑛'𝑡 𝑏𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑑𝑒

𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑙𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑢𝑛

𝐴𝑛𝑑, 𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑑𝑒

I sighed, content and remembered the name of the author: Avan Jogia.

I watched and watched. So many little ones. So many tiny bodies I've held in my arms. The children of my cousins. No, the children of my brothers. I called to them, to my childhood playmates, but only Gabe came. We ran through the valley, into the arms of sun and out of the shade. We chased each other through the tangle of forests and trees until we stopped at a rock ledge that overlooked the sea. I felt the softness of the grass beneath my bare feet. The ocean was clear, transparent enough I could see all the way to the bottom, where the coral reefs rested. The rocks nearest to us glittered with foam and wet earth.

What happened next was strange. I looked to Gabe, who looked to me. With a sweep of his hand, the patch of ground I was standing on suddenly came free and I was flying. I held tightly onto the grass and dirt that I could as the piece of earth flew down the steep slide with me on top of it. I was afraid, but Gabe called to me.

"I've got ya, Tay!"

Suddenly he was riding with me, holding me tightly until we reached the sandy beach. We rushed to the water, the clear water that was almost warm. We splashed and played as if we were kids again, and the little ones joined us, clapping and laughing, and soon the entire family was there, joyful and smiling. We danced and played in the waves until the moon shone bright and the stars above us twinkled their greeting.