The sky was bright blue and there wasn’t a cloud in sight. I walked out the door to the smell of the pine-scent of the woods behind my house.It seemed like a wonderful day,at first.

I heard my mom calling to me,so i groggily rose and went into the living room to find her writing in her notebook. Her hair was sticking up in every direction from her night’s rest.Her face was full of admiration and determination,as I noticed the pencil behind her ear,the wrinkles of the large t-shirt,that wore quite often.

“You called?”, I said whipping my eyes wishing I was still in bed.

“Yes,yes I did.”, she said with a large smile, “I have something for you to read.I’ve re-wrote it and re-wrote it since you moved in with me last June”.

I walked towards her afraid of what I’d read,but still i slowly moved forward.Once,I was at the edge of the couch,she handed me her notebook and I read:


I finally got my Christmas wish,
not a day too soon,not a day too late,
in late June.
When my little princess said “Mom,I want to live with you.”
I’d prayed and hoped for this day to come

As I looked up, I heard her say, “That’s all I have so far.”

“I love it,Mom”,I heard myself say almost instantaneously,as i hugged her.

“It’s almost time to go!”,yelled my step-dad from across the room.

“I really wish you wouldn’t go.”,my mom said looking at the beginning of her poem.

“I’ll be back in a week,Mommy.Just keep in mind and count down the days,and don’t forget to call me tomorrow.”,I reassured her that everything will be alright.

“OK, I’m packed!”I yelled to my step-dad,that was impatiently tapping his thigh at the door.

He took my bags to the car,while i said my goodbyes to my mom.
A lingering hug and a kiss on the cheek.

As I walked to the car,I stopped and looked back.The house so peaceful,with the puppies playing,and the sound of the wind on the lake. Then,my step-dad tapped my shoulder and startled me.

“What?”,i said quickly.

“Come along now.”,he ushered me towards the car.

As we road down the steep,winding driveway,I watched as the buttercups and trees just flowed by. Once on the street I noticed the Tiger Lilies that me and my mom had planted a year before.

“STOP!I want to take momma some of those!”I yelled loudly.

He quickly stopped and immediately i jumped out and picked the biggest and best flowers.On the way taking them back up the drive-way i picked a few buttercups to make a bouquet. I walked through the back door and ran to my mom and hugged her again and told her that I’d always love her and I’d see her soon,as i gave her the freshly picked flowers and left to run back to the car.

The next day, I received no call. I waited and waited but the phone never made a sound.I thought to myself maybe she’s just caught up in writing,but another day of nothing passed.

I was at my grandmother’s house,when the phone rang. It was my dad calling to tell her to send me and my two brothers to go home immediately. At first, we were laughing and playing,but when we walked through that front door and say the look on our dads face our hearts sank.

“What’s wrong daddy?”,I asked hoping it wasn’t anything horribly wrong.

“Your mother is gone.”,He said as he burst into tears.

“What--What do you mean?” I stuttered.

The room fell silent, as we waited for his reply.He soon gathered himself.

“She’s dead.”,he said in tears.

My older brother was in crying hysteria and punched the wall and left,slamming the door.My little brother ran to my dad and embraced one another. I was shaking and resisted them. I ran to the bathroom and slammed and locked the doors. I fell to my knees by the toilet and suddenly felt sick.

To this day, I still wake up not comprehending that she is truly gone.