Gemotions

The doctor's diagnosis had been a blow. Trauma from her childhood, it was a heavy weight, she was told. Seeing the drawings, the familiar shape of “Whisper” in her nephew, Tom’s, artwork, was, at first, a fresh wave of panic. But as she watched Tom, laughing and chatting with an invisible friend, something within her shifted. She felt her shoulders loosen, her breath deepen. She was not alone.

She sat next to Tom, asking him about Whisper’s adventures. A warmth bloomed in her chest, chasing away the cold fear. She reached out and traced the outline of the drawing with her finger, a small smile playing on her lips. She felt a lightness in her step as she walked out of the room.