Elaine's Perfect Day By Anonymous The first thing I know are the branches of the oak tree. Long and luring, steady and certain. Next, it’s the sunlight, finding its way through the twisting branches and fluttering leaves. Finding its way through all those obstacles to shine its warmth upon my face. “Elaine!” a merry voice calls. I smile sleepily and push myself up from where I lie on the grass at the foot of the tree. A girl is waving ecstatically at me, her brown hair the precise colour of the tangle of roots I use as a pillow. “Elaine, come on!” The girl gestures at me furiously. “I’m coming!” I laugh. I scramble to my feet and skip down the small hill, letting my hands brush the violets as I pass, stirring butterflies in my wake that flit and flutter in the sunny day. “We’re going to be late,” the girl, Violet, scolds in a playful manner. I take her hand as I approach and slow to a walk, letting our linked arms swing beside us. “I know, I know.” The path to the school is a storybook trail that winds through a quiet and friendly forest. As we walk, hand in hand, I tilt my head back and inhale the sweet-smelling autumn breeze. I sigh and smile at the memories of… The trees around us are sprinkles of red and gold—a mosaic of colours as well as sounds, from the rustling of the leaves to the chitter of the chipmunk. Everything is so beautiful, so splendid. “I am perfectly content,” I tell Violet in a sing-song voice. She smiles at me sadly. “Me too.” The vibrant sound of laughter and playful shrieking announce that we are nearing the schoolhouse. A bubbly feeling brews in my belly, and I pick up into a run towards the little building, dragging a giggling Violet behind me.
-5-
