A Morning of Hope

(This flash fiction was a runner-up in an online contest.)

Pamela wanted to fly away from the window. If she were a bird, and not a girl, there would be no thoughts of sickness and death and only hope to fly into the dawn of a new day.

Hospitals smelled like sour lemon drops. She leaned over the railing of her bed and tucked the gown behind her legs. She was pinned by the needle of an IV bag as if Jesus’s cross had descended out of the books of history and became alive in her again. She wondered if heaven had any crosses or suffering. Pamela knew both as if they were a twin sister. She thought of an Easter chocolate cross her aunt had given to her last year and then she knew heaven would only contain sweetness like rivers turning water into honey. She liked honey. Hospital stays had been a part of her year like Christmas or New Year’s Eve.

The chemo took her hair, but not her spirited hope that her mother would buy her a dog. She would make a wish for one, but then she worried her father would not walk it for her if she was in the hospital again. The nurse would be there soon to check on her. Then, as if by her thoughts alone, she heard a tap against the window.

It was a lowly sparrow. Oh, but to Pamela it was the funniest little pet! She watched it with wonder as it hopped along the outer edge and chirped. It was a baby, and Pamela felt a sudden longing for the bird.

What if it couldn’t find its mother Pamela worried. Looking around, she could not find a way to help the bird. If she could get out of her bed, then she might be able to go to the window and comfort it. A rush of fear for the bird made her fret. What could she do? Her nose crinkled.

As if her helplessness would turn upside-down, Pamela said a prayer for the mother to fly to the baby. As if a divine nod answered her, she watched another bird land next to it. Then the chirps continued until they flew away together. As the sun shone through the cloudy new day, the safety of God wrapped its way around her thoughts.

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Note: I’m beginning a new project and therefore will be blogging less often due to the writing process. Thanks for reading this piece.