One day, I noticed that my mother wasn't uigizaji right. She was very pale and seemed lethargic. She also had a terrible cough. She went to the doctor and was diagnosed with pneumonia. She was later put in the hospital. The doctor alisema that things weren't looking good. It wasn't pneumonia; it was much worse. It was myocarditis. Suddenly, it happened. Her moyo stopped beating. The doctor tried to revive her, but to no avail. I still remember the chilling words like they were alisema yesterday: "Time of death: 11:32 pm." I did not want to believe I had Lost my mother. At first, I blamed the doctor for not recognizing the problem sooner. Grandma said, "Erin, the doctor did everything he could. There's no one to blame." I cried out, "So, I'm supposed to believe this is the will of God?!" She said, "Erin, recall that the Bible says that part of being a Christian is suffering." I said, "Really? Why did Mother have to suffer like this?! What did she do to deserve that?!" Grandma said, "Erin, the Bible says that all have sinned and have come short of the glory of God." I said, "You're saying Mother is in Hell, aren't you?!" Grandma said, "No, that's not what I'm saying, dear." I ran out of the room sobbing. I ignored my brother, Daniel, as he shouted, "Erin, wait! Erin!" He later found me outside the hospital crying. He said, "There wewe are, little sis." I alisema through tears, "Why, Daniel? Why did Mother have to die?" He said, "I don't have the answers, Erin. Grandma was trying to help, but she only made the situation worse. That was uncalled for. I know that's what the scriptures say, but that was not the time for it. You're upset." I asked, "What's going to happen to us?" He said, "It's going to be okay. Our aunt and uncle have been named as our legal guardians. They'll be taking care of us now." That was very perceptive for a fourteen-year-old. Still, things were never the same after that. Grandma and Grandpa told me, "Just pray, and everything will be okay." I prayed long and hard, but it didn't help. Suddenly, I felt as if I was wasting my time. The only thing that seemed to help was music. One day, I was hanging out with my cousin, Barbara Ann. She said, "I know you've alisema muziki makes wewe feel better when you're feeling down. Here's some zaidi good muziki for you." She took out her iPod, and some great muziki played. "Hey, Jude, don't make it bad. Take a sad song and make it better." That sounded nice. I asked, "What's the song? Who sings it?" She said, "The song is called 'Hey Jude'. It was performed kwa a band called the Beatles." I said, "Nice." She introduced me to a couple of other songs. I said, "They're amazing! Are they still around?" She said, "No, they broke up in 1970." I said, "Rats! Are any of the members still living?" She said, "Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr are the only ones living." I had zaidi questions, and I got zaidi answers. I said, "It would be awesome if they were all still alive and still together." She said, "Yes, it would be. We could have gone to a tamasha together." It was then I began to realize that God was distant from me, and muziki was closer.
To be continued
To be continued
Some time later, Una and Everett were settled in a cozy small cafe eating sandwiches and sipping pumpkin, boga spice lattes while foil cutouts of cute ghosts and pumpkins hung from the walls around them.
"Thanks again, Una," Everett alisema after a time. "I just... I don't like small spaces very much."
Una smiled at him and reached across the meza, jedwali to touch his hand. "Hey, wewe saved my life once. It's time I saved yours."
They sat in a comfortable silence for a bit, enjoying this much calmer stage of their Halloween celebrations. Una was first to break it.
"I can't believe we solved a real mystery! I can't wait to go nyumbani and tell Mother what the secret of the haunted house is."
"Yes," Everett smiled at her. "The secret is my talented actress and her ghost impression."
Una beamed.
"Thanks again, Una," Everett alisema after a time. "I just... I don't like small spaces very much."
Una smiled at him and reached across the meza, jedwali to touch his hand. "Hey, wewe saved my life once. It's time I saved yours."
They sat in a comfortable silence for a bit, enjoying this much calmer stage of their Halloween celebrations. Una was first to break it.
"I can't believe we solved a real mystery! I can't wait to go nyumbani and tell Mother what the secret of the haunted house is."
"Yes," Everett smiled at her. "The secret is my talented actress and her ghost impression."
Una beamed.
"What lead wewe to the club where wewe first saw us, Henry?" Les asked. Henry replied, "One of my neighbors told me that a rock band called A Wave Tossed in the Ocean was going to perform at the club that had opened the awali week. I thought that the name sounded interesting, so I asked him what kind of rock music, and he said, 'I think it's stuff from the sixties and seventies.' I was eager to hear the songs from my youth. When I saw wewe perform, I knew wewe were the right fit. Of course, wewe know how we met backstage." Jimmy said, "And the rest is history." Everyone laughed. "Yes," Henry said. "The rest is history." Just then, Felix looked at his cellphone and said, "It's 10:00, guys." Henry said, "We better go to bed. We've got a big siku tomorrow." The boys all said, "Okay. Good night, Henry." Henry smiled and said, "Good night, boys. Pleasant dreams." With that, they retired to their beds for the night.
THE END
THE END