Lilly

Beginning of First Grade

“Mommy, get up. We need to get ready,” Lilly said, shaking her mommy.

“It’s still tay early,” Caitlin groaned, turning over and putting a pillow over her head, her long blond hair wrapping around her face in the process.

Her effort was in vain, though. Her little girl jumped on the bed and started shaking her with increased vigor. Resigned to her fate, she sighed and removed the pillow, pulling her long blonde locks from over her face, and looking at her daughter. In spite of her slight irritation, she couldn’t help smile at the raven haired little girl bouncing on her stomach.

“Ye aren’t gonnae be thes excited abit skale in a few years. ‘en, i’ll hae tae force ye oot ay th’ bed, an’ i’ll gie mah revenge,” she said. With a snarl, she grabbed the little girl, the sole source of her happiness, and began tickling her. Loud squeals pierced the morning, and lots of flailing limbs destroyed any remaining order the bed covers once had.

When the play finally came to an end, Lilly jumped back up, her energy seemingly boundless. “Let’s get ready, Mommy,” she said. Her mother groaned.

“Mah wee flower, yoo’re a handful,” she replied, placing her feet on the floor in exaggerated slowness.

After a nice breakfast, using the last of their Spam, along with the last of the eggs, they got in the car and headed to school. Although they were early, it wasn’t nearly as bad as it could’ve been. Lilly’s mother managed to slow every task down today, just enough to make it somewhat more bearable, and insure they were just late enough for someone to have arrived at the school.

“And who do we have here?” a slightly rounded woman asked, when they walked in.

“I’m Lilly,” the little girl said. She was like a barely held spring that had been tightly coiled. With the slightest provocation, she’d release all of that energy on some poor unsuspecting teacher.

“Such a pretty name, and for such a pretty girl,” the woman replied.

She then turned to Lilly’s mother, “I’m Jane Stiles, principle of Briarlake Elementary.”

“Guid morn, Mrs. Stiles. A’am Caitlin Pimlott, Lilly’s mither,” she replied. “Lilly’s first nam is actually Priscilla, but she goes by Lilly,” her mother said, the Scottish accent thicker than usual, betraying her nerves. There was no apparent nervousness from her daughter, though.

“Lilly, when you get to your class, let your teacher know that. Okay?” Mrs. Stiles told Lilly.

“Yes, ma’am,” Lilly replied, gently tugging on Caitlin’s hand.

As mother and daughter walked away, the principle lightly shook her head, wondering at the obvious disparity between the two. Although the mother’s features could be seen in the face of the little girl, the daughter’s raven black hair was in stark contrast to her mother’s pale blond. The girl’s complexion was dark, whereas the mother was the typical pale northern European. The most prominent distinction, though, were their voices. The mother’s Scottish brogue was almost unintelligible, but her daughter had a very deep, endearing southern accent.

“Mr. Colquitt?” Caitlin asked, barely crossing the room’s threshold.

“Please, call me Mr. Jack. How may I help you?” the man asked. He was smiling widely, and looked extremely friendly, almost like a kid himself. She knew he would be an excellent teacher, in only that initial glance.

“A’am seein’ mah dochter tae ’er class,” she replied. The teacher paused for a moment, and it was obvious he was translating in his mind.

“And what is your name?” he finally asked, bending down to Lilly’s level.

“I’m Lilly,” she said, getting closer to her mommy’s leg, and holding on just a little tighter.

“I don’t recall seeing Lilly on my roll,” he began.

“Lilly’s first nam is actually Priscilla, but she goes by Lilly,” her mommy said, for the second time.

“Ah, I do know that name. That’s a very pretty name, too,” he said, as he looked back from the mother to Lilly. “Lilly, when class begins, everyone will be called by their first name. Then I’ll ask each of you what you want to be called. That’s when you tell me to call you Lilly. Alright?” he explained. Lilly nodded and smiled, finally relinquishing her grip of her mommy’s leg.

“Alrecht, sweetheart. Ye hae a guid day an’ i’ll pick ye up at th’ front ay th’ skale,” Caitlin said, smiling at her little girl.

“Okay, Mommy. I love you,” she said, and kissed her mommy on the lips as she bent down to hug her, then darted into the class.

“I assume she’s excited to be here,” he remarked.

“She got me before 6:00 tae gie ready,” she replied.

“I think she’ll have a good time,” he said, with a friendly smile.

“Thenk ye, Mr. Jack,” she said, then turned and left.

Jack allowed the kids to play for a little while, allowing them to run off a little of their excited energy. That was a feat if it came anywhere near working. Eventually, it was time to get the new school year started.

“Good morning,” Mr. Jack said a while later, once all of the children seemed to be present, and the bell had rung.

“Good morning,” they all replied. The reply was a cacophony of noise, causing Mr. Jack to smile. The first day of school was always an adventure.

“This is going to be an exciting year for all of us. We will begin by taking roll. I’m going to use this time for all of us to find out who we all are. I’ll start by telling you my first and last name, and then what I want to be called. Once I’m done, I’ll toss this little ball to you, and you’ll do the same thing. Then, you’ll toss it back to me. Alright?” he asked, getting a lot of different responses, but all positive.

“I’m Jackson Colquitt, and I like to be called Mr. Jack,” he said, then tossed the foam ball to Lilly. As it got to her, it bounced out of her hand and she had to scramble across the room to get it.

When she finally made it back to her seat, she said, “I’m Priscilla Pimlott, and I’m called Lilly.”

The game continued, every kid given a chance to introduce themselves. Although it was complete chaos, which Mr. Jack expected, it was fun for the kids and let them get to know each other a little.

Lilly loved school, and loved to learn. Her day was almost heaven. To make it even better, she absolutely loved Mr. Jack. He was fun and taught all kinds of neat stuff. That was only the first day.

“See you tomorrow, Pee Pee,” she barely heard, waiting on her Mommy to come pick her up.

Lilly wasn’t sure the boy was talking to her, although she was the only one that could’ve heard him. She didn’t even know who Pee Pee was. Confused, she decided he must’ve been talking to someone else, and returned her attention to looking for her Mommy.

“Mah wee angel, ah hae a surprise fur ye,” her mother said, once she was loaded into the car. Her Mommy’s pronouncement made Lilly almost vibrate in her seat.

“Did you get me a puppy?” she asked. Caitlin couldn’t stop the laughter that erupted, almost wrecking the car as she did.

“Nae, honey, nae a puppy. Ah got a job,” she said, when the laughter finally abated.

“That’s awesome, Mommy,” Lilly said, still excited, but definitely deflated. The disappointment was short lived, as Lilly realized, with a job, they might be able to afford a puppy.

Her mommy tousled her hair a little, then said, “Tae celebrate, we’re gonnae gie supper an’ ice cream.”

“Yay,” her little girl squealed with delight. Eating out was a very rare treat, ice cream even rarer.

“Nae only ’at, but ye hud a guid day at yer new skale,” she added.

The next day, Lilly started the school day the same as her first. That day at the playground showed her that things weren’t going to remain the same, though. “Hey Pee Pee,” she heard, as she was playing with several girls in the playhouse. Glancing over, she saw the boy from the day before looking directly at her.

“Yeah, that’s you, little Pee Pee. Are your pants wet, from your pee pee?” he asked. Other kids began laughing. The girls she’d been playing with all moved out of the little house, leaving her by herself.

“Prissy is pee pee! Prissy is pee pee!” he started chanting, other kids joining with him. Poor little Lilly immediately broke down, tears pouring from her eyes. As she started running away, the bully stuck his foot out, and she went sprawling into the rock that made up the playground.

By the time Mr. Jack got to her, there were no kids nearby, and no one to place blame on for what had happened. None of the adults had heard the taunting until it was too late, or saw what had happened.

“Lilly, are you okay?” he asked, helping to clean the gravel off of her. She just stood there, the tears not stopping, and the scrapes all over her hands and wrists seeping little droplets of blood.

“Mrs. Blaire, I’m going to take her to the nurse. I’ll be back in a few minutes,” he called out.

“Come on Lilly, let’s see if we can’t get you fixed up,” he said, gently taking her by the elbow.

A short time later, she was in the nurse’s office, bandages on the worst of the cuts, along with a liberal covering of antibiotic ointment.

“Can I go home?” Lilly asked.

“You’re alright now, sweetie,” the nurse said.

“I don’t like school anymore,”she said, her eyes riveted to her shoes.

“What happened?” the nurse asked.

“The boy called me prissy pee pee, and then they all said it and I ran and he tripped me,” she said.

“What boy did this to you?” the nurse asked.

“I don’t know his name,” Lilly replied.

“If I take you back to class, would you show him to me?” she asked, to which Lilly nodded, almost imperceptibly.

When they got back to class, Lilly immediately pointed at the largest boy in the class, who sat in the last row. The nurse led her to her seat, then motioned for Mr. Jack to go outside with her.

“Jack, she said Caden started teasing her, then when she tried to run he tripped her,” she told him.

“I thought I heard a chant coming from the area before she started crying, but couldn’t make it out. Do you know what they were saying?” he asked.

“Apparently, he called her prissy pee pee, and the other kids joined in,” she said. Jack was very unhappy with her explanation of events.

“This is all my fault,” he exclaimed. “I had the kids give their first and last names, then what they wanted to be called. Figures a kid would come up with pee pee from her initials, but I have no idea how he came up with prissy,” he said. “God kids can be nasty!” he commented, turning back toward his class.

“Caden, please come here,” he called the boy, firming his expression.

When the boy arrived, he closed the door and said, “You bullied Lilly, in spite of all of the anti-bullying stuff we teach you?”

“I didn’t bully her, Mr. Jack. I tried to tease her a little and she started to run and then when I turned around, she tripped over my foot. I didn’t mean nothin by it,” the boy said, looking like he was about to cry.

“Teasing her is bullying. If anything like this ever happens again, I’ll send you straight to Mrs. Stiles. Do you understand?” he demanded.

“Yes, sir,” Caden replied, repentance in his voice, but not in his eyes.

“Do you think that’ll work?” the nurse asked, once Caden was gone.

“Probably not, but I’ll keep an eye on her. Hopefully, I’ll be able to stop anything before it gets going,” he replied. “Thanks for letting me know,” he then added.

He knew within seconds that he was going to have trouble. Peering through the classroom window, Jack saw Caden was looking at Lilly with menace, making no effort to hide it. Before the day ended, Mr. Jack had informed the principal, sure trouble was brewing. Bullying was a big deal in schools, and he didn’t want his class to be a breeding ground for it.

That afternoon Lilly’s mommy picked her up, took her home then left for her new work without noticing anything wrong. That night, when her mommy finally got home, Lilly was curled on her little bed. Her mommy knew something was wrong then, so she sat down beside her daughter, wrapping an arm around her.

“What’s wrang ma we’an?” she asked.

“I hate my name! And I hate school!” Lilly yelled, tears glistening on her reddened cheeks.

“Whit happened?” she again asked.

“A mean boy called me prissy pee pee, and then made me fall in the rocks, and now the other kids won’t play with me,” she said, still sniffling.

“Och, mah bairn lassie,” Lilly’s mother consoled her, holding the little girl tight against her body and rubbing her back. “It’ll gie better,” she promised.

The next day, Lilly had no issues, as Mr. Jack was always within earshot of her. However, no kids made any attempt to get near her. She had become isolated from the rest of the kids, thanks to Caden.

“How dare you blame my son for bullying! He told me all about what that little girl called him, and then lied that he tripped her, when she’s too clumsy to stay on her own two feet,” the mother all but yelled, as she came into the school.

“What did he say Lilly called him?” Mrs. Stiles asked, having walked up before Caden’s mother got going.

“She called him a bully, and he’s the gentlest boy in this school,” she said.

“Did he claim she called him a bully?” Mrs. Stiles asked.

“Yeah. How else did Mr. Colquitt blame him for being one?” she demanded.

“Actually, Lilly never called him anything. All she said was that Caden called her names, and that the other kids started chanting it with him. When she tried to run away, he tripped her. I gave him the benefit of the doubt on that, as it could have truly been an accident. I then told him to make sure he never did bully anyone,” Jack explained.

“You made him feel like he was a bully. I demand an apology, for me and for Caden, and I want it in front of the class, and I don’t want that little troublemaker in the class with him,” she demanded.

“Mrs. Montrose, that will not be necessary. There was no accusation made and he was not punished in any way,” Mrs. Stiles began.

“If you won’t give me justice, I’ll go to the school board,” she threatened.

“What if we agree to make sure the two are not in the same class?” Mrs. Stiles asked. At her suggestion, Jack’s surprise was etched on his face.

Mrs. Montrose seemed to consider that for a bit, then finally, “I think he should apologize, but I’ll accept that, so long as that girl ain’t in my son’s class tomorrow.”

“Agreed,” Mrs. Stiles immediately said, giving the woman a placating smile. “I hope you have a wonderful evening, Mrs. Montrose.” With that, Mrs. Stiles turned on her heal, propelling Jack ahead of her and into her office.

Watching the way they left, Mrs. Montrose thought Mr. Jack was about to get an earful from the principal. “Good for him,” she said. She looked smug as she watched them leave.

“Jack, before you get upset, we’re going to move Caden, not Lilly. He’s going to Lambert’s class,” she assured him. Jack started grinning, a thing that could easily be recognized as vindictive, or maybe even sadistic. Lambert had taken a class of children that were more prone to misbehaving. To make it even better, Caden wouldn’t be the biggest kid in the class, either.

“You’re a devious woman. I hope I never end up on your bad side,” he stated.

“He’s a walker. Do we need to worry about her after school?” she asked, moving on.

“Her mother picks her up, so we shouldn’t have a problem,” he said.

“And if that changes?” she asked.

“Then...I’m not sure,” he admitted.

The next afternoon, before school was even over, Caden’s mother returned. She went straight to Mr. Jack’s class, followed by Mrs. Stiles and two other adults. Meanwhile, the secretary was initiating a lockdown of the school, normal protocol when someone barges into a school.

“I’m going straight to the board with how you’re treatin my son. This ain’t acceptable,” she declared. “Open this damn door!” she yelled, finding the classroom locked.

“Mrs. Montrose, you are not allowed in here, and I strongly urge you to leave,” Mrs. Stiles said.

“You can’t tell me what to do, and I demand satisfaction for how you’re treatin my boy. That little tramp disrespected him and I won’t stand for it, and that bastard’s not man enough to face me!” she yelled.

As strong hands grabbed her shoulder, she began fighting. Fists were swinging, with all of her fury behind them, making contact as often as not.

“Get your hands off me, you sons-a-bitches!” she screamed as one hand managed to get a firm grip.

“Mrs. Montrose, if you will settle down, and leave this school right now, we will forget this happened,” Mrs. Stiles began, but the woman started screaming a stream of profanities, not letting anyone say anything.

“Mrs. Montrose, please calm down,” Mrs. Stiles continued to say, raising her voice in an attempt to get the hysterical woman’s attention. Principal Stiles didn’t stand a chance though, as Caden’s mother had worked herself into a frenzy. She was screaming one curse after another, and swinging her arms violently at anyone that came near her.

Less than five minutes into her tirade, another strong set of hands grabbed her wrists. This time, she was the one that didn’t stand a chance. She was thoroughly manhandled, as her hands were wrapped behind her, cuffs snapping onto her right wrist as that happened.

“What the hell you doin!” she demanded to know.

“You’re under arrest,” the cop started to tell her. He was interrupted as her left fist planted on his cheek.

“What the hell for?” she screamed, her arms flailing again. “That bastard is the one should be arrested,” continuing her rant and trying to keep the cops away.

“Disorderly conduct and trespass, and if you continue to resist us, we’ll add resisting arrest, and assault of a police officer,” the second cop replied, not caring that she was screaming and fighting. Her fight didn’t last long, though, as the cops stopped being nice. She was slammed to the floor, flipped over, rather unceremoniously, and cuffed.

“That little cunt disrespects my boy and you’re arresting me?” she yelled, as the cops began dragging her away, while reading her rights to her.

After the police car was gone, and the school had been secured, the longer than usual school day was over. This also happened to be Lilly’s first day walking home.

As she started on her walk, Mr. Jack caught her heading past the car pick up area, “Where are you going, Lilly?”

“Home, Mr. Jack,” she replied.

“Your mother is supposed to pick you up,” he said.

“She started her new job, and I walk home now,” she informed him, handing him a letter.

“Mrs. Walton, would you handle the kids for a moment?” he said to the other teacher on car duty. Receiving a nod, he led Lilly back into the school.

“Mrs. Stiles, it seems that Lilly is supposed to walk home today,” he told her, handing her the letter Lilly had produced. Surprise flashed on her face before she got it under control.

“Mrs. Sanchez, who is listed as backups for Lilly?” she asked the secretary.

After a moment, Mrs. Sanchez replied, “There are none, Mrs. Stiles.”

“I was afraid of that,” she said, then looked at Lilly, “Lilly, dear, your mother was supposed to let us know of any changes to your routine, a little sooner than this, so we could arrange for someone to walk with you.”

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Stiles. I forgot to give the letter to Mr. Jack,” Lilly said, her lip beginning to tremble.

“It’s not your fault, sweetie. Do you have a phone number that we can call your Momma?” she asked, and Lilly shook her head, her braid swinging from side to side. “Do you know when she gets home from work?” she then asked, again receiving a head shake with the swinging braid.

“Mr. Jack, I don’t suppose we have much choice. She sent a letter, so we’re going to have to let her walk, unless we want to call the police, which I don’t want to do,” she said.

“Be careful, Lilly,” Mr. Jack said, as he watched her walk down the path from the school. He sighed as she went down the only path that was completely wooded and hidden from view, less than ten yards away.

Just after she was around the first bend, she heard, “It’s prissy pee pee!”

“Go away, you bully,” she said, although she was really scared.

“Make me,” he taunted her, as he walked up and shoved her to the ground. “You caused my Momma to get arrested. You’re going to pay for that,” he said, as he stepped up to her. Before she could react, he shoved her down.

Surprising him, she popped up, running as soon as her feet were under her. He was behind her within a second, though. He was too big, and too fast for little Lilly. Although she ran with all of her strength, she went sprawling as he shoved her from behind. Barely on the ground, she drew into a tight ball.

The pain from her rough landing was quickly forgotten as he yanked her braid. That pain forced a yelp from her, and also opened her up.

Cayden’s feet pummeled her, knocking her breath out. She again curled up, this time even tighter, but it was useless.

As he was kicking, and she was hurting, her mind started to distance itself from what was going on. It was as if everything became somewhat foggy, even the pain she was feeling. Loosening up just a little, she tried to crawl away, but he grabbed her braid, yanking it again. A new jolt of pain exploded on her scalp that slammed through the fog of her mind.

With that new burst of pain, a blood curdling scream erupted from deep within her. It was the type of sound that could possibly be heard from a dying animal in its final moments, when the animal knows it’s over. Terror consumed her, knowing there was nothing she could do to stop what was happening. She believed that if no one came to help, he would kill her.

Caden kept kicking her, over and over. Surprising Cayden, in the midst of her crying and screaming, her reaction to the beating stopped. Lilly’s mind drifted outward, completely disconnecting from her body. Not understanding what she was sensing, she could feel ‘others’ all around her. Although she didn’t understand them, or what they were, she knew the ‘others’ would help her, protect her.

Mr. Jack heard the scream, along with the other teachers monitoring the departing children. Several of them ran from their posts to find a horrific scene. Lilly was on the ground, bleeding and bruised. Sitting like a statue, she was absolutely white.

Not too far from her was a huge pile of feathers, moving, gyrating. From that roiling mass, individual birds would sometimes flit away, then return. Underneath it, they caught glimpses of someone. The birds were ravaging whoever it was, clawing and pecking viciously.

Two of the teachers began trying to swat the birds away, in spite of the danger to themselves. It took time, but the teachers efforts were rewarded. Underneath, they discovered a rather gruesome looking Caden, covered in cuts and bleeding all over.

While those teachers were dealing with the feathery mass, Mr. Jack turned to Lilly, and he saw the reason for her fear. Terror gripped him, as well, when he understood the reason for her statuesque appearance. On each side of her was a coiled rattlesnake, that telltale sound now clear.

“Call 9-1-1!” he shouted to a teenager standing nearby, the kid recording the event, with no apparent concern for helping. Just as the teenager called 9-1-1, both snakes uncoiled and slithered away.

“Lilly, what happened sweetie?” Mr. Jack asked her, dropping in front of her.

“He beat me up,” she said with a slight lisp from her swollen lip. She was also sobbing, which didn’t help.

“I know sweetheart. It won’t happen again, I promise,” he said. In spite of the ordeal she’d just gone through, she smiled up at him. Unexpectedly she wrapped her arms around his neck, squeezing him with all her strength. Carefully, he picked her up and carried her back to the school, knowing he was breaking all kinds of rules on how adults were to handle children. At that moment, he didn’t care. She was hurt and scared, needing the comfort he could provide.

Caden was sent to an alternative school, and although the threat of Caden was gone from her, she had become withdrawn. Her mother had also expressed a lot of concern about nightmares, and everyone had commented that Lilly was less approachable than she had been before. She also didn’t play with the other kids, other than the new girl Sarah, who started a couple weeks after the incident. Even then, her play seemed reserved, nervous. One of the most noticeable changes, at least to Mrs. Stiles and Mr. Jack, was that she no longer seemed excited about school. That was in stark contrast to how she’d been those first couple of days.

“Lilly, would you come talk to me?” Mrs. Stiles was increasingly worried about the little girl. Her mother had expressed concern about nightmares, and everyone had noticed Lilly was less approachable than she had been before. She also didn’t play with the other kids, other than the new girl. Even then, her play seemed reserved, nervous.

“Yes, ma’am,” Lilly replied, following Mrs. Stiles into her office.

“I’d like you to try something for me. Maybe it will help with your nightmares,” she suggested. When Lilly didn’t reply, which wasn’t unexpected, she pulled out the book.

“This is a photo album, but if you put pieces of paper in the sleeves, you can make it a journal, and add pages as you need to,” she said, and showed Lilly.

“I can have a journal?” Lilly asked, her face lighting up. Although Lilly did smile, it wasn’t like it had been before the incident. Even though they’d only known her a few days, when it happened, they’d seen a very happy little girl then. Talks with her mother further confirmed it, as well.

“You can add newspaper clippings, if you ever get in the newspaper, or you can just add whatever you want. What’s important, though, is for you to write things that you feel. Let it be a place that you can talk about what’s bothering you, or what is exciting to you. Whatever you feel like writing about. Okay?” she asked.

“Really!” Lilly said, the smile splitting her face. It was a ray of sunshine, for Mrs. Stiles. She knew this had been a brilliant idea, but she hadn’t expected this reaction.

“Really, but you can’t do it when you’re doing school work, and you should probably keep this private. It’s a place where you keep your feelings, which means you probably don’t want anyone else reading it. Do you understand?” Mrs. Stiles asked. Lilly nodded, her eyes glued to the book. Along with the book, Mrs. Stiles gave her a pack of extra pages.

“Thank you, Mrs. Stiles!” Lilly said, accepting the book and vibrating with excitement.

“How about this, Lilly. I’ll help you write your first journal entry. How does that sound?” Mrs. Stiles asked, knowing she wouldn’t be able to focus on class as she was.

“Really?” Lilly asked, her vibration becoming even more pronounced.

Taking out a small slip of paper, Mrs. Stiles wrote on the top, My Journal. Underneath that, she wrote, Lilly Pimlott.

“Lilly, you can use this or write it yourself. I’d suggest you write it yourself, so it’s totally yours,” she said.

Lilly’s face scrunched up for a moment, as she thought about it. Then, she took a similar piece of paper, and wrote, Priscilla Lilibeth Pimlott in her own unique script, which was very unlike typical first graders, being a bit more flowing, and less blocky. However, when she put it in the page, she put it below Mrs. Stiles’ entry.

“Why’d you do that?” Mrs. Stiles asked.

“You gave it to me, and I want yours there, too,” Lilly said.

“Thank you, Lilly,” Mrs. Stiles said, smiling.

“Now, most girls will put the date with each entry. Personally, I’ve never liked that. It’s your journal and you can do what you want, but I’d suggest organizing by years, like you’re in first grade. Try putting a header for first grade, and whatever entries you want after that. Then, when you start second grade, have another header for that, then third, fourth and so on,” she explained.

Lilly’s day only got better, as her new friend, Sarah, asked her to spend the night that Friday. Lilly was ecstatic, even though she still had to ask her Mommy.

“Mommy!” she all but yelled, as soon as her Momma got home from work.

“Och aye, mah angel?” her Mommy asked.

“Sarah asked if I could spend the night at her house,” Lilly said. “Can I, please?” she asked, not giving her mother even a moment to recover from the initial statement.

“Ah dunnae kinn,” Mommy said, exaggerating her look of thinking about it.

“Please, Mommy. Please, please, please?” Lilly badgered.

“Och aye, mah wee flower. Hoo coods Ah say nae tae ’at,” she replied.

“Thank you, Mommy,” Lilly said, as she almost tackled her mother. Her mommy held her at arm’s length for a bit, just looking at her. After peering at her daughter a little while, she grabbed Lilly into a hug, “I’m sae happy tae see ye smilin’ mah bonnie lassie.”

“Mrs. Stiles gave me a journal. She said I could write stuff in it, but I should keep it private. Could you help me write something in it?” she asked. Her Mommy couldn’t help but laugh.

“It’s supposed tae be private, isnae it?” Mommy asked.

“Uh huh,” Lilly said, grabbing her Mommy’s hand and dragging her to the table.

“Whit dae ye want tae write?” she asked.

Lilly scrunched her face, trying to figure out what was best to write, then her face shined like the sun. “Sarah asked me to spend the night at her house. Mommy said yes. I am very happy,” she said.

“Ye try first, an’ i’ll help ye, if ye need it. Sarah is probably spelled S-A-R-A-H,” Mommy said.

Sarah ask me to spend the night at her hawse. Mommy said yes. I am so happy. Mommy helped me rite this. Lilly wrote. Mommy looked at it and said, “’at is very good, mah bonnie flower.”

After her Momma’s help with that entry, she stuck another just before it.

There wor others when Caden hert me. They helpet me but they scared me. I don’t want to talk to them again.

She didn’t let Mommy see that one. It was private, and scared her.