We'd Been Trying To Touch

I Shut The Bathroom Door And Caught Sight Of My Face In The Mirror. I Had No Idea How Quickly It Was To Change, To Fade. If I Had, I Would Have Stared At My Reflection, Memorizing It. It Was The Last Time I Would Look Into A Real Mirror For More Than A Decade.

You Like Me, Josie Moraine. You Just Don't Know It Yet.

Mrs. Rimas Cried At The Mention Of The Wafer And The Traditional Christmas Blessing. "god Grant That We Are All Together Again Next Year.

I Left The Jutra To Chop Wood. I Began My Walk Through The Snow, Five Kilometers To The Tree Line. That's When I Saw It. A Tiny Silver Of Gold Appeared Between Shades Of Gray On The Horizon. I Stared At The Amber Band Of Sunlight, Smiling. The Sun Had Returned. I Closed My Eyes. I Felt Andrius Moving Close. "i'll See You," He Said. "yes, I Will See You," I Whispered "i Will." I Reached Into My Pocket And Squeezed The Stone.

Somehow I Had To Turn The Salted Peanuts In The Cigar Box Into Petits Fours.