In the spotlight

69

Sofia Christensen

Warm sunlight tickled my face as I sighed loudly and opened my eyes. The sky as blue as I've never seen it before looked back at me, freckled with few white clouds here and there.

The fresh air held the scent of a recent storm and newly bloomed canola. I stretched out lazily as I lay there in the middle of the meadow, caressed by the tall grass. A smile formed on my face as I did so. It has been so long since I last visited this village.

A low growling sound erupting from my stomach urged me to stand up and head home now. The sun was high up in the sky, summoning the crickets and cicadas everywhere on the field, singing their song in perfect sync.

I stepped out onto the dirt road leading me towards the village. Vast fields stretched out in the distance all around me. Yellow, green, and blue mixed where the crops reached the sky, swaying away with every blow of the wind.

Houses appeared in the distance in front of me. Small, one-floor houses made of mudbrick with bright red roofs were getting closer and closer as I quickened my pace.

I turned the corner into the very familiar street. I entered the short green gates, watching my beautiful curly-haired grey boy Boris running up to me, greeting me eagerly. I scratched between his ears before I straightened up again and cut through the front yard towards the main entrance in the back.

Animals were visible grazing in the backyard: cows, bulls, geese, and chickens pinching the ground or lying down to rest in the warmth. I headed towards the door, trying to find my grandma and ask her to make me some blini and to get permission to help her milk the cows later.

I entered the grey door, stepping inside the separate kitchen where we always spend our days. I instantly spotted the two tabby kitties lying on top of the convection heater that was turned off at the moment.

I gently patted both Masha's and Mishka's heads, but the siblings couldn't be bothered as they drifted off sleeping once again. I headed towards the "living room," or at least what my mom always called it growing up.

"Grandpa, I'm back." I smiled as I caught a glimpse of my grandfather sitting on his favorite couch, solving the crossword puzzle in the weekly newspaper.

"Did you drift off daydreaming on the field again?" He smiled, his deep voice filling the room around us. His thick village accent was clearly audible, but I'd never fail to understand the language that was so dear to my heart.

"And what brought you back, little one? Hungry?" He saw right through me. His light bluish eyes scanned my face, mischief hiding behind his gaze. It has been so long since I last saw him.

"I was hoping that I could ask Grandma to make me some blini. I'd milk the cows after!" I swore on everything that was dear to me, which made him erupt in laughter. He scratched his great white beard as he stood up, wearing his green hat that bore the marks of more than 20 years of hard labor he spent down in the mines.

"Let us find dear grandmother then." He stepped next to me as we both headed towards the door again. By the time we passed the heater, Masha and Mishka both disappeared outside.

We stepped outside of the house, into the great forest. Very tall trees with deep brown trunks surrounded us as we walked along on the dirt path. The air was slightly colder, but the Norwegian weather wasn't too bad compared to the Russian one.

We walked mostly in silence, enjoying each other's company. I really wanted to find my grandmother too. My chest tightened as I remembered how long it was since she last woke me up on a summer morning.