Friday Figments: MISSING MAGIC

Leena sits at the window, resting her round cheeks on arms crossed over the sill. 

Rain slips on the glass in a glistening circus of ripples. 

Their show doesn't attract Leena's attention, however.

Instead she sees a ring of light, glowing purple silver and red, high in the dark sky, and it’s just sitting there, although sometimes it winks back. 

She doesn’t know what it is, but her face shows no fear, no confusion--only peace and interest.  

Her mother, holding a yoke's-weight of laundry, walks past the window and asks Leena what she's looking at. 

“It’s nothing,” Leena whispers.  

“You must be thinking about something then, you look very thoughtful.”

Leena exhales a silent laugh and turns to her mom, who is looking out the window too now in the direction Leena was staring.  

She watches her search the darkness for what could be so interesting, certain the sight that would let her mom find the magic in the sky had faded long ago.