Dear Reese,
You said "Mama”.
Well, I think. We’ve been playing with our bah-bahs and dah-dahs and all sorts of consonant-syllable combinations for a while. A week ago, I swear you sounded like you said ‘mom’ from across the room (which you didn’t because we don’t really even say ‘mom’ but I think it was practicing the “mah” sound).
Tonight, before bathtime, we’re playing in your room, and I’m giving you tummy raspberries and shaking my hair. You’re laughing and laughing. And then I look right at you and you say “Ma-ma”.
“Did you say mama?” I ask.
You say it one more time.
And then not again.
I know there was probably no meaning behind it yet — that comes later. But it felt different.
Mama. What a wonderous word.
Love,
Mama
The Castle in the Pond, Part 21
The lily pad shield bursts with green light and repels the black swan!
“Where are you from?” he exclaims as he reels back in pain.
A strange question.
The splash of the water down on your face and the glow of green light bring you back to the day you left home. It was raining. This part of the forest was dark, and little sunlight reached the ground through the thick tree cover. The presence of the curse was heavy as you walked away, vowing not to return unless you had the power to break it.
“The forest,” you answer simply. “In a forgotten place.”
You came to this pond for The Great Bullfrog to grant you a wish: the power to help your family.
The Great Bullfrog’s power is gone.
But you feel power awakening in you, moment after moment. Badum. Badum.
“You said this place is your home,” you say to the black swan. “I have a home too. And if I need to fight you to save it, so be it.”
To be continued.