On a hot summer evening in August, a soft warm breeze sweeps across the backyard as dusk rolls in. A little girl with curly sandy blond hair plays hide and seek in an evergreen tree, as her grandparents pretend to thoroughly search the rest of the yard. Her brother hides next to the vegetable garden, his white and navy striped overalls clearly visible through the tomato vines. His small little body suddenly gets to its feet. the little girl uselessly motions for him to stay hidden. He points to the sky and a grin spreads across his round face. Curiosity overtakes his sister, who pushes her way through the pine branches to look at the sky. Off in the distance, high above the houses and trees float three hot air balloons. The little girl settles herself down on the grass, and her thoughts soar up as high as the balloons. her grandparents wander over, secretly thankful for the change of entertainment.
Age is a funny thing. The old and the young often think alike. When we are young our thoughts and understanding are very simplistic. At some point after that life makes things more complicated for us, or perhaps we make life more complicated. But as we near the end, we somehow find that simplicity again.
Time to go inside, as the balloons drift out of sight. The brown eyes of a girl and boy watch them for as long as possible even after the screen door is closed behind them.
13 years later, a tall girl with sandy blond hair climbs the ten flights of stairs up to her university apartment. Another tuition payment is due, her roommates keep her up all night, she's overwhelmed with school work, and although she'd never admit it, she's beginning to miss home. Four floors up she looks out a small window. Perfectly framed in the soft orange sky floats one hot air balloon.
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