August 4, 1994
"Come here, sweetheart," my mother said. "It's time for bed. Put your Legos away."
I was almost finished with my skyscraper. "But... but..."
"No 'buts'," she said sternly. "Come on, I want to tell you a bedtime story."
"Mom, don't you think I'm a little old for a bedtime story?"
She pursed her lips with a slight smile. "Nonsense. Let's go. You. Bed. Now."
I crawled into my Ninja Turtle sheeted twin bed and curled up next to my mother. She always smelled like vanilla. It was an unbelievably comforting scent.
Then, she unfolded a few pages she had tucked away in the pocket of her muumuu. She quietly cleared her throat and began to read:
"This isn't like the bedtime stories you're used to; this one has a little bite to it. That's why I waited until now to tell it to you.
Once, there were two sisters. They were as thick as thieves. They lived together, they fought together, they schooled together, they worked together, they laughed together, they cried together, and they forgave together.
But, one day, the darkness crept out further than usual and it claimed one of the sisters. The last one standing didn't know what to do. She was beside herself. Nothing made sense anymore. And because she was in such deep mourning, it made it lonely that no one made sense anymore.
But, then came the day when she received a letter. It was from her late sister.
'How is this possible?' she thought as her mind raced. That didn't keep her from tearing up the envelope just before clasping the letter tightly.
She read it aloud: 'My sweet, sweet sister, for far too long, you've made it a point to push yourself so very far away from anyone who could possibly love you. Don't be a dumb bitch. This is asinine. Don't you remember why we always did everything together? It's because whatever we were doing was always better when we had someone to share it with! You're at the lowest you've ever been in your life. You know what would make your life better? SOMEONE TO SHARE IT WITH! We are not designed to be a one-woman army. We're strong and we're independent. We are not autonomous creations. We're meant to live as a village. We're meant to be together. So, go out and be amongst the people. Don't worry. I'll be right there, just behind you, rooting for you in the corner. I love you, sister. Eternally yours, YOUR Sister'
She collapsed on the floor and burst into tears. Her seemingly uncontrollable sobs eventually found a deeper, elongated pattern and soon after, she regained her rhythm and her breath.
As she came to her feet, she slowly realized she had just heard what she needed to hear when she needed to hear it from whom she needed to hear it. It filled her with that one thing she had long forgotten she missed: JOY."
My mother folded the papers back up and tucked them inside her pocket. "And that's the story of the two sisters."
"Mom, what ever happened to the sister that was alive?"
"Well, she found the strength to move on. And then, one day, she became a mother."
"Really?"
"Yes, sweetheart. And she had the most beautiful son that the world has ever known." Then, she kissed me on the forehead and hummed a little tune: "You Are My Sunshine". And that was enough.
