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The old, yellow vehicle had many additions of artwork added to it since Kennedy and I reconnected many years ago. Joy drew a picture celebrating her ninety-fifth birthday last month. Nathan and Yoana added a drawing of their sweet newborn, Elijah last year. And just recently we had Elizabeth create a picture of her first day of school.
Watching the car grow with memories was one of my favorite things to witness.
As we reached the car, we all climbed inside the back seat to watch the sky fade to night.
“Didn’t you already have a granola bar?” Kennedy asked Elizabeth with a raised eyebrow.
“Yes, Mama, but that’s why I asked Daddy because he always says yes to me even when you say no,” she said matter-of-factly.
The girl wasn’t wrong. I had a very hard time saying no to my little sweetheart. It was the eyes, I swore. She had her mother’s eyes.
“Well, how about we hold off on the granola until we get some dinner inside you,” Kennedy said.
Elizabeth threw a fit of course, but when she realized we weren’t going to give in, she released the biggest sigh in the world. “Being a kid is hard,” she groaned.
“I bet.” I laughed and pulled her into my lap. “Don’t worry, someday you’ll be a grownup and you can eat all the granola bars you want.”
Her eyes lit up. “Really?”
“For sure.”
“Even the ones with chocolate chips?” she asked.
“Even those,” Kennedy nodded, kissing Elizabeth’s forehead.
As we watched the sky, Elizabeth always loved to point out the moon when we could see it. “There it is! There! That’s you right, Daddy? You’re the moon?”
I smiled. “Yup. I’m the moon.”
Elizabeth narrowed her eyes. “And Mama’s the sun?”
“Exactly,” I said.
“Does that mean Daisy and me can be the stars?” she asked, looking up to the sky once more.
That made my heart almost burst out of my chest.
Kennedy’s eyes watered over as a smile fell against her lips. “Yes, sweetheart. You and your sister can be the stars.”
Every single day we told Elizabeth the stories of her loved ones. We told their stories to keep them alive forever, and it warmed my heart knowing that Elizabeth understood that even though people passed away, they were never truly gone—not as long as we held them close to our hearts. That night, our loved ones were close to us. I could feel them in the wind. I could feel their love and protection every time I looked up toward the sky.
That night we sat beneath the sky, and the stars all shined so bright.
