Post by elizabeth on Oct 31, 2012 2:58:56 GMT -5
Elizabeth recalled that day during the summer on which she had taken her five-year-old granddaughter to the park and pushed her on the swings. It had been so blazing hot that day that they had gone through three bottles of water between the two of them before the sixty-three-year-old woman finally took the little girl home. The little girl went kicking and screaming, but only because she enjoyed spending time with her grandmother so much that she didn't want to leave. She never understood why the little girl wanted to spend so much time with her since they spent countless hours together as it was. Hell, it had been Ellie who had raised her and taken care of her since she was a baby. And now she was five. She would be starting school in a year. Her grandmother was both excited and a little saddened at the thought. It was like having her own child all over again--which, technically, she did since her son didn't seem to care about the adorable little girl he had helped to create.
That evening reminded her of that day. Only she was swinging alone and it was not blazing hot outside. It was actually a cold day in October and she was wearing the frumpiest sweater she had in her closet. It was red and ill-fitting. She had had it since before she was pregnant with her youngest child, and that had been seventeen years ago. She had worn it during the pregnancy too, if that said anything. But she loved the sweater. It was warm and red. She smiled to herself at the thought.
The woman kicked the ground with her legs to give her the momentum to swing. There was nobody else in the park, just her. It was too late for parents to be there with their kids, seeing the sun was beginning to set and it was getting dark out. The street lights lit the area just enough for her to see where she was going so she didn't kill herself when it was time to leave. She continued to swing her legs to keep herself moving. The chains creaked loudly each time she made a back-and-forth motion. Her blond-brown-graying tresses of hair blew gently with each gust of breeze. She closed her eyes. The shine from the streetlights reflected on her glasses. She inhaled deeply. The air was so fresh, so crisp. It smelled like fall outside.
That evening reminded her of that day. Only she was swinging alone and it was not blazing hot outside. It was actually a cold day in October and she was wearing the frumpiest sweater she had in her closet. It was red and ill-fitting. She had had it since before she was pregnant with her youngest child, and that had been seventeen years ago. She had worn it during the pregnancy too, if that said anything. But she loved the sweater. It was warm and red. She smiled to herself at the thought.
The woman kicked the ground with her legs to give her the momentum to swing. There was nobody else in the park, just her. It was too late for parents to be there with their kids, seeing the sun was beginning to set and it was getting dark out. The street lights lit the area just enough for her to see where she was going so she didn't kill herself when it was time to leave. She continued to swing her legs to keep herself moving. The chains creaked loudly each time she made a back-and-forth motion. Her blond-brown-graying tresses of hair blew gently with each gust of breeze. She closed her eyes. The shine from the streetlights reflected on her glasses. She inhaled deeply. The air was so fresh, so crisp. It smelled like fall outside.