Suddenly, a shrill scream pierced the air. Jayme instantly ran out of the house, knowing that the sound came from the enchanted woods of Lizzie and Granna. It was Lizzie. Jayme, bounding through the trees and bushes as fast as she could, had no idea what could possibly have caused Lizzie to expel such a scream.
Slowing to a stop in front of the pond, Jayme put her hand against a tree to stabilize her body, and her heart was pounding. Finally, she looked up in time to see Granna laughing and a wet Lizzie climbing out of the pond. Lizzie, thrusting her hands in the air, screaming, "I'm going again! Banzai!" With that, she scaled a tree, using the wooden board steps that had been nailed to the tree some years ago by Donald McGhee. Reaching a thick, dangling rope that was attached somewhere above within the boughs of the tree, Lizzie let forth another shrill scream as she jumped out from the tree with a great swing and jumped out into the cool waters. Jayme, her breath slowing to a normal pace, laughed and shook her head. She and Granna watched intently as Lizzie swam to the edge again and climbed out of the pond.
"Well, Lizzie-girl, you'd better go on in now. Draw a bath and freshen up. It won't be but a half hour 'til your momma gets home," said Granna. Lizzie pecked Granna on the cheek and twirled slowly clockwise as Granna wrapped her in an oversized, soft, green towel. Then, she ran off to the house.
"What's that pretty paper?" asked Granna pointing to the violet card in Jayme's hand. Blushing slightly, having forgotten to put the card away during the frenzy of discovering the source of Lizzie's screams, Jayme put her hands behind her back, saying," Oh nothing... Just something I had... Hey, Granna... Can I ask you a question?"
"Sure, fire away!"
"Do you miss my dad?"
Closing her eyes, Granna turned to face the warm sunlight. The question had been abrupt, but she took time to consider her response. Her lips curled slightly into a serene smile. She looked back to Jayme again, gazing into her blue eyes. She replied, "Donald is my boy. I always miss him when he is away from me. Sometimes, I worry that he is so far away from you and your sisters - so far from Donna. Since he has moved from me, he has been with her. I never thought..." Her eyes closed again as she faced the sun. She continued, "This is what I know. Your daddy loves your momma, and your daddy loves you. No matter what, all parents raise their kids the best they can." Opening her tired eyes, Granna placed a time-worn hand on Jayme's shoulder, saying, "Honey, never doubt that your momma and daddy love you, and even when the choices are tough, they make the best decisions for you that they know how."
"I love you, Granna."
"I love you, too, baby," said Granna as she slowly lifted a finger to direct Jayme's eyesight to a purple and emerald hummingbird poised in front of a blooming bush. Except for the constant, fluid motion of its wings, the graceful bird appeared to be frozen in time, a still, graven image of beauty against the luscious green surroundings.
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