Surrounded by darkness, the girl with hopeful eyes pressed ahead toward wavy lines shimmering in the narrow distance.

Whirling and dancing, the lights reminded her of the silver blue stars and crescent moons that often filled her dreams. She continued to follow the brightness, and even though the girl was alone she was not afraid.

Who will take care of you? the wind asked.

Pausing for a moment, she answered, I will take care of myself.

Trees rustled. Are you strong enough?

I am strong enough.

Wind and trees together: How do you know?

More air rushed through her lungs and her skin sparked fantastic and electric. The girl could not answer the final question because she was running—carving out a path along the blanket of wet grass. Before she knew it, the wind went silent and the trees were as hard as stone. The only sound was her soles pounding against the earth, her heart galloping in the night: I know. I know. I know.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Janet Dale currently lives in Statesboro, Georgia, where she is a Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Writing and Linguistics at Georgia Southern University. The first book to make her cry was Charlotte’s Web while the last was The Book Thief. Her work has appeared in Founding Review, The Medulla Review among others. In addition to reading and writing, she also enjoys knitting and watching independent films.