For Lucy

by Jewel E. Ann

“No matter how undeserving one might feel of forgiveness, no one is unworthy of it.” —Emmett Riley

“And your heart…” Lucy’s tone shifts into one that’s more serious “…is almost too big for your chest. It’s almost too big for this world. And nobody knows that better than I do.”

“I think when we sleep, our minds try to fill in the holes. The emotional wounds. And for a split second when we wake, everything doesn’t hurt. For a few breaths, things feel right and normal. Then we blink and it all shatters like illusions do. Everything starts to hurt again.”

Never is a strong word. It’s absolute. It’s all encompassing. And it’s nearly impossible to say with any truth. Never is the embodiment of the unimaginable. So is always. There is nothing absolute about our lives. Who we are lies in the space between always and never.