Wildflowers by Moonlight

Author: M.M. Ward

Growing up, I was taught there were monsters in the hollowed-out places of the mountains, forests, and hills beyond the fences. But this year, the bitter winter lasted too long, and my heart heeded its sad song. The cruelty of my mother chilled my spirit worse than the winter wind, so I foolishly rebelled against the teachings of the clan. When spring came... When the wildflowers bloomed in the warmth of the new season, I had to see them, smell them, taste them, even if it was by Moonlight. So, I broke the first mantra. I went beyond the fences.

1.

When I was very young, my father had left home to find work elsewhere. Determined to succeed in the wide world and my mother believed him. She believed his quietly crooned promises in the soft, lamp-lit straw of the loft as they lay together in blissful ignorance and youthful delusion. She believed he would become famous and wealthy then