The sun was just coming up from beyond the hills. It lighted up the sky in red and rosy tints. Everything was bathed in sunlight and everything looked like it had been freshly made just for everyone to enjoy. The birds sang like a choir of musicians who had been waiting to put on a show. Of course this its not how everyone else saw the morning. But this is how Elena pictured it. She loved the morning when everything came to life, at least she thought that everything that mattered to her, came to life in the morning. She got up and pulled aside the blankets and yawned. Yesterday had been a tough day with all the packing and moving and travelling. She had been busy all day with it.
She dressed up as quickly as possible. She was excited to explore the place as soon as she got the chance. "I might as well go and see what the place is like while I have the chance," she said as she climbed down the stairs. She slid down the banister and nearly lost her balance and fell off. She felt quite dizzy after she reached the last step.
She dashed down the corridor, to the hall. The smell of freshly baked bread, fried potatoes, grilled tomatoes and fried chicken filled the air. Elena breathed in. She felt hungrier than she had felt in a long time.
Then she remembered what the doctor had said while writing a long prescription. "You have severe asthma. You need to be careful."
Elena was sick of taking medicine that only seemed to make things worse. Her grandfather had suggested that a change of air would help her. "You need to get some fresh air."
The village of Phoenix was a very charming one. The gardens were all well kept. There were plenty of vegetable patches and fruit patches that were all in full bloom with fruits hanging from every bough,
"Good morning Elena," said a kindly voice. Elena looked around and saw a thin smiling woman dressed in a lime green dress.
"Good morning Mrs. Lavinia" replied Elena as she sat down at the table. For a moment she forgot everything and started to eat. She loved two things above the rest. Animals (dogs, cats, robins and larks were some of her favourites) and home made food prepared by loving hands (pancakes and toast). Everything was as delicious as they appeared to be.
"It seems as if you haven't had a proper meal for years," said Mr. Langston sitting down on a chair. "Do you like our food?"
"I haven't had one as good as this in ages!,'' said Elena as she picked the crumbs off her plate. It had been a long while since she had emptied her plate. It felt different.
"Well, I prepared it. Just for you!," Mrs. Lavinia said as she served herself some fruit from the dishes. There was a sound of footsteps and a plump gentleman with twinkling eyes came into the room. He smiled. "How does our young guest like it here?," he asked as he sat down on a chair.
"I've never been as happy as this in a while," said Elena getting up. She was excited to explore the place. It had been dark when she had arrived there and everything seemed like shadows and blotches when she had arrived.
"She will get well once she has stayed with us for a week or two, or as long as she likes," said Mr. Langston as he sat himself down to have his breakfast.
Elena excused herself and went out. She couldn't wait to go and see how everything was handled around in the farm. She knew that there would be many animals for her to look at and since she had never been to a real farm, let alone live in one, was something she had been looking forward to since her grandfather had spoken about it.
The farm was surrounded by a white wooden fence that stretched like a white caterpillar. Elena gazed at the tall green trees and the the lush green bushes. There was a well at one end of where a blackbird was sitting preening its feathers.
