I Want to Tell You about Her Bursts of Happiness

I want to tell you about her bursts of happiness. They sprang up inside her like flowers after a spring rain, eager and hopeful in the warming sun. She would suddenly find herself singing along with a pounding rock song in the car, hammering her hand against the steering wheel as she wove her shoulders back and forth to the beat. Her blood would accelerate around her body, and she would feel at home inside her flesh. Her smile lifted and softened, and her eyes regained the sparkle that drew so many to her in her good days.

“LIFE IS GOOD,” she would pronounce as she danced around her little house. A grin at the dog, a flip of her hair, a flowing of her juices.

She felt excited and optimistic. Her darkness was behind her. As she stepped outside, she would exchange smiles and pleasantries with her neighbors. Heading for the hillsides she loved, she would feel a welling happiness ready to burst from her chest. She would stride along mountain pathways, greeting the tiny blue flowers that clung tenaciously to the rocks alongside. She winked at the scurrying lizards, marveled at the red-tailed hawks wheeling above her. The trail stretched before her, open and wide and inviting her forward.