Time Traveler’s Daughter

Melly awoke upon hearing the clamoring in her mother’s bedroom. Standing outside the door, she counted to 10 and the noise began again, perfectly on cue. The knob was hot to the touch, forcing Melly to use her pajama sleeve to push it open. She peeked inside and she saw her mom lying on her stomach, face buried in the pillows.

“Mom, are you ok?” Melly said, running to her side.

Keisha slowly rose her head, a partial smile forming on her lips.

“Yes, hun. I’m fine. Sorry for scaring you.”

“What happened, are you hurt?”

Stirring a bit, Keisha said, “No, it was just a rough ride.”

Melly softened and sat on the bed next to her now, sitting mother.

“What’s it like?”

Keisha pursued her lips and pulled her daughter toward her.

“First, I feel a little light-headed and then my stomach plunges like when you go down a steep drop on a roller coaster.”

Melly nodded her head, feeling her anxiety start to settle.

“So, where did you go?”

“I’m not quite sure. Sometime in the ’50s, I think.”

“Oh, mom, I’m sorry.”

“Yeah, baby it was rough. But it shows me that we have come very far. And even though we have much more work to do, I have hope that will get there.

“I want to help. Can I come next time?”

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