Can You Hear Me?

"Nora, come away from the door. We're going upstairs so you can take a nap."

Three year old Nora did not want to come away. She wanted to go forward through the door to see what was in the long box sitting in the room on the other side of the door.The very long box was not on the floor but above the floor and there appeared to be someone in the box. Nora thought the box might be a tall toy like a slide and she would have to climb up to get into it. She needed to climb into it to see who was inside. There was someone inside. She thought it was a lady who was asleep. Nora needed to go forward through the door so that she could find a way to climb into the box. Nora 's hand was grasped by her mother's hand and she was led away.

"Where is Grandmother Emily?"

"She's not here at the moment."

"Is she coming home soon?"

"Not soon. No . . .  not soon."

"Is Grandfather Miles baking my pound cake?"

Her mother never answered her. Nora was put to bed. Because she slept so soundly, it was decided to hope that she would sleep straight through until morning and not to wake her for supper.

Nora woke suddenly. She knew she was not in her own bed but did not know where she was. The house had a funny smell that she recognized but could not place. She was hungry but afraid to get out of the bed because it was very dark. Gradually she remembered that she was at Grandmother Emily and Grandfather Miles house and Grandfather Miles would bake her a pound cake. He always baked her a pound cake. Before they got out of the car, her mother had warned Nora not to mention pound cake because the old people did not have much money and the cake cost a lot to bake because he always used an entire pound of butter and a dozen eggs and Grandmother Emily always got mad. Always. Nora could not remember if she had mentioned pound cake. She did not smell cake but kept thinking about it because she was hungry.

After a while Nora realized that her mother had brought the moon and stars night light from home and she could now see objects in the room. She could also see light under the door. Then she remembered the lady in the long box. She felt certain that there was a lady in the box. Nora listened and did not hear anything. She thought that her mother would be asleep and this was a good time to go downstairs.

The thin carpet felt prickly on her bare feet as Nora tiptoed from the bed to the bedroom door. The door was heavy and difficult to open and when it squeaked, she froze. Nothing happened. No one came. She left the room. The light burning in the hallway also lit the stairs. Nora held onto the wall until she reached the stairs and then went down slowly, clutching the banister rails and sometimes scooting on her bottom.

After her second successful struggle with a door, Nora was inside the room standing by the long box. The drapes were open and the moon shone brilliantly so that Nora could easily see everything in the room but she was too small to see inside the box. She tried to climb up but the box tipped and she dropped to the floor panting and shaking. Looking around she saw a small hassock. It slid easily and once she had pushed and dragged it to the side of the long box, she succeeded in climbing on top of the hassock and was able to discover that it was Grandmother Emily sleeping there. She was sleeping under a thick comforter except for her hands that were on top of the comforter lying one on top of the other.

Climbing into the box, Nora patted Grandmother Emily's face but there was no response. It was chilly in the room. Nora felt the chill and also was still sleepy. The comforter was thick and soft and Nora knew it would be warm so she tugged on it until she could slip underneath next to Grandmother Emily.

Nora put her lips next to Grandmother Emily's ear and whispered, "Night.Night." She said that because that was what her mother always said when putting Nora to bed. "Night Night."

The next morning, Nora's mother found her there. She took her into the kitchen to feed her and to explain to her the whereabouts of Grandmother Emily.

"Is Grandmother Emily coming to eat?"

"No, Dear. She can't come. Not right now."

"Did Grandfather Miles bake a pound cake?"