The Sandbox CHAPTER 8

“Hello, Mrs. Alexi’s mom! Where’s Alexi?” I asked with reservation knowing that I wouldn’t be liking the answer I would hear.

For now, Alexi’s mom could not talk at all. Her eyes are closed fiercefully as she tries to stop a river of tears. But this river has reached the waterfall.

Momentarily, she was able to hold her composure. “You can call me, Olivia. Come sit down with me, I have a story to tell you.”

“Is it ok if I just stand here, Mrs. Olivia?” I asked. I did not want to sit down. I’m as anxious as can be.

“It is much more respectful that you sit down when someone is telling you a story,” Olivia replied.

She is indeed Alexi’s mom. Doesn’t let Alexi go out in the rain, doesn’t let me stand up.
Nevertheless, I sit down beside her.

And so Olivia begins her story…

“Jacob, five years ago, I gave birth to the most beautiful angel in the whole world. I named her, Alexi. And she was all any mother could ever hope for. From the moment I held her little hand, I promised myself to always take care of her and always keep her happy…”

My anxiety couldn’t take it any longer. I’m a kid. What do you expect? I have an attention span as big an ant. I had to ask her, “Then why don’t you let Alexi go out when it’s raining? You scare her off of the rain as if it’s going to be the end of the world each time it rains! You said you always wanted to keep her happy! Then why do you stop her from having fun?! She played in the rain once last week and no she’s never to be seen outside?!”

My outburst pushes Olivia to tears again. But she quickly composes herself and gives me an upset look. Right now, she’s confused between being a mother and being an adult. But she answers back.

“Jacob, it’s not easy being a mother. There is no other person who gets caught up with more right-and wrong situations than a mother. Of course I wanted Alexi to be happy. And, of course, I wanted to take good care of her as well. But there’s a big difference in decisions with taking good care of her and keeping her happy. As a mother, you want to do both, you’d do anything to make both happen, but somehow life is just not set up that way.”

Olivia got me as confused as her. I’m a little boy. I’m the exact opposite of a mother. Of course I don’t know what it’s like to be a mother. But I had to answer back. I feel that although Alexi isn’t here, I have to stand up for her. I want to stand up for her.

“Mrs. Olivia, no offense, but what makes life sad, or, for our conversation’s sake, the opposite of happy, are the rules that we create. Don’t mistake me. There’s nothing wrong with rules, but rather, the basis on how we make them. When people make rules to prevent what they’re afraid of happening, they end up putting handcuffs on life. Where’s the fun in life when it’s handcuffed?”

Olivia begins to look at me in disbelief. But I continue.

“Mrs. Olivia, you made this rule on Alexi not to go out in the rain because you were afraid of something. Please! What is it that you’re afraid would happen?”

Olivia looks astonished as she answers back. “Oh my! Young man, were did you learn to talk like that? It’s amazing for such a little boy to speak his mind. The answer to your question, Jacob, is in the story that I was telling you until I was so rudely interrupted... which… oh… now turns you back into being a normal mischievous little boy.”

Olivia gives me a wink. That wink was a big gesture. With that wink, I cross out the “most strict parent in the world” label I had given to her.

“Please continue your story, Mrs. Olivia,” I tell her as I reverse my anxiety.

“Very well, Jacob. Similar to what I had said, life doesn’t always turn out the way we want it to be. It’s not always a perfect moment. In fact, it rarely is a perfect moment. That’s why perfect moments are treasured. And giving birth to Alexi was my perfect moment of all perfect moments. But that perfect moment, was soon to be hit with horrifying news.

A couple weeks after Alexi was born, the doctor gave me a call. He had some news regarding Alexi. I found out that Alexi was born with a very rare disease. This disease was very complicated. It’s like an extreme case of pneumonia. Every time Alexi would catch a cold, she is in the risk of losing her life.”

I feel paralyzed now from the neck down. I can’t move. I can’t talk. There were only a few gestures my body allowed me to do. But one of them showed exactly what I felt inside. I closed my eyes, and then I put my head down.


“And that is why I laid on that rule to Alexi to never go out in the rain,” Olivia continues.

“And yes, I created that rule based on something I was very afraid of… losing Alexi. I told myself that I would never live to see Alexi die. When time comes, she will write my obituary. Not the other way around. And so, in your words, I handcuffed her. I know it may have been a handcuff on her life, but a handcuffed life is never the end of the world.”

I continue to have my head down. This is the only way I could hide my own tears that are beginning to fall. I just want to break down. And before I could, Olivia gives me a motherly gesture and puts her arms around me in comfort.

“Come on now, Jacob,” Olivia says to me. “Try not to cry. There is a bright side to this story…”



End Chapter 8.

The Sandbox CHAPTER 7

It had been raining for the past week. But this time, it was heavy rain. A storm. With all the matching lightning and thunder that magically manufactures nightmares into your thoughts. Pretty weird for summer.

No sign of Alexi at the park the past week. No signs of any kid at the park. Not even me. I can deal with rain, but I do not want to be sitting on that swing when lightning strikes.

But today, the rain has stopped. But grey clouds still cover the sky. Behind it, you can see a little glimpse of the rays of the sun wanting to just punch through. Underneath all that, me. Sitting on the wet rubber seat of my favorite swing in the world.

But nevermind the swing today. Something else is the spotlight of the sandbox. The sand. The texture of today’s sand from the past week’s rain makes it perfect. And I just knew it. That’s why I brought with me my own pail and shovel today.

Yup! It’s all part of the plan. The rain has stopped. The sand is perfect. And soon enough, the sun will come out. Soon enough, Alexi will come to the sandbox and play. So before that happens, I want to build her something great with the sand.

So I dig. I shovel. I mold. I carve. And 2 hours later, I’m done.

I stand at the corner of the sandbox and stare at my works of art. To my left, I have made a tulip. A giant one. As big as Alexi. In full bloom and as beautiful as her.

To my right, the lower half of a mermaid. Like last time. But this time, I dig a deep hole inside so she just has to slip right in.
And right in front of me, the biggest sand castle I have ever made. It’s complete with a tower, a gate, and brick walls. There’s about a 6 feet square middle where Alexi can enter through an opening at the side and play. She has the smile of a princess, but when she steps inside, she’ll be queen of the castle. Queen of the sandbox.

As I stare at what I did, I begin to tell myself how good it really looks and how I couldn’t have made it any better. Suddenly, the clouds disappear and out comes the sun shining over the sandbox.

The sun glistens the sand inch by inch as the clouds move away.

The tulip looks like it had bloomed a bit more.

The mermaid fin shines as if it has just hopped out of the water.

And my castle…wow! Remember that part at the end of Beauty and the Beast where the castle which had been dark and filled with gargoyle sculptures suddenly transformed into a white castle with angels? Errr. I don’t. I never watched that movie! No! But the effect of the sun on the sand castle that I had made had just about the same effect as in the Beauty and the Beast movie… err, as my cousin has told me the story of that movie before.

It’s as if the sun has brought life to the sand figures. I always thought of the sun as the symbol of light. But right now, it’s the symbol of life… of being alive.

Though it’s hard to look at the sun right now, I talk to it. “You’re right on time,” I tell it.

Suddenly I hear footsteps behind me. I knew it! The sun is out and Alexi has come out to play!

I turn around to greet her.

Wait...

It’s not Alexi.

My smile turns upside down. But so do my eyebrows. This person. It’s not Alexi. She’s much taller. And much older. But she looks just like her. She even has that sparkle in her eye just like Alexi.

But this sparkle. It’s not a sparkle in her eye. I can tell, because the sparkle is flowing down from her eyes over her cheeks. She has that same disappointed and unhappy look as when I first saw Alexi.

She stares at me in silence for a few seconds. Then she talked. “Hi there! Are you… Jacob?”

“Yes?” I reply in complete bewilderment of who she is and what’s going on.

She tries to wipe away the drops of tears from her face, but even more comes along.

“Hello there, Jacob! My name is…” She stops again for another moment to gather herself and wipe away more tears before she continues. “I’m…my…. I’m Alexi’s mother….”



End Chapter 7.