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We All Fall Down And The Permission Of Marina Mcduff

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We all fall down
(Inspired by true events. Used with the permission of Marina Mcduff.)
When Sarah’s aunt told me this story I thought she was being silly. A long time ago Jane had a new baby, a new house, and no husband. She was lucky when her sister Eloise offered to come stay with her and help out, until her husband returned from working in Alberta. The sisters had almost finished unpacking, but Eloise found one small box, labeled “for the baby,” that sat alone in the dark hallway.
“Jane, what’s in here?” Eloise asked.
“I can’t remember,” Jane said, looking at the label. “Kate’s got so much stuff. Open it, and have a look.”
Eloise got a knife and carefully sliced through the red packing tape, and lifted the box’s lid. Inside lay a number …show more content…

“Jane did you put on one of the tapes?”
No one answered her.
Eloise figured Jane had already gone back to bed. She crept into the room, and looked around for the tape player. The music had already stopped, but Eloise looked around the room anyway.
Kate looked like a cherub asleep in her cot. Black curls fanned her pillow, and Kate pursed her lips together in a little frown.
“I know,” said Eloise, stroking Kate’s cheek with her finger. “It’s cold, but we’ll get that sorted.” Eloise pulled a blanket off a chair, and lovingly covered her niece with it. She then went back to her own room, and promptly fell asleep.
The next morning Eloise sat with her sister, while Jane fed the baby pureed carrots. Kate resembled a jack-o-lantern, her face was caked in orange and she was smiling naughtily.
“Jane, did you put on one of the tapes last night?” Eloise asked.
“No, why?”
“I thought I heard music last night.”
“You must have been dreaming,” smiled Jane. “I wish I slept that well.”
“I must have been, I thought I heard a little girl singing.”
“Well, I generally prefer more adult dreams, but I guess any good dream will do. I only get pockets of sleep these days.”
“It didn’t feel like a good dream,” Eloise said.
“Was the little girl trying to kill you?” Jane teased, wiping the baby’s mouth with a cloth.
“No, but it sounded odd. Too pretty.”
“Well at least the kid wasn’t crying,” Jane said.
“Yeah,” Eloise said, biting her bottom lip.

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