Time for a little experiment...

I haven't done much with writing prompts or free-writing lately, but this prompt from Rebecca T. Dickson's Just Write program spoke to me. So, here goes...

Prompt: “When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You know that your name is safe in their mouth.”

She doesn't need to say "I adore you" - it's evident in the way her tone softens when she picks up the phone. That moment when she realizes it's me on the other end.

I can hear the smile in her voice, her easy laugh. It's like she wrapped her arms around me from miles away. I feel warm. Safe. Not afraid anymore.

After four years alone, it's nice not feeling that fear. That awful, gnawing dread of going through the rest of my life by myself. Of having no one to call when my doubts assail me again. No one to share a meal with, watch a movie with. No one to snuggle with me on the couch or kiss me.

Now that I know these things again, life has gotten less scary, the world less menacing. I'm no longer afraid to leave my familiar, safe apartment. The glass is half-full now.

And when she says my name, I know she'll always be there to catch me when I fall.