The sky a bowl of blue, dotted with birds. The air so warm it caressed the skin. And everyone smiling, taking photos, and holding hands. Which how-to-get-over-your-loss book had told her to live in the present? Ella had consulted so many that they all blended together. Notice. Be present. Stay centered. She tried. She really tried. She focused and noticed the statue in the middle of the fountain, the way the angel seemed to lift its wings to the surrounding water. And beside the fountain, the pink petals that dotted the putty-colored sidewalk. There were benches, too, curved iron ones that circled the angel and the pond. A man and a woman sat together on one of the benches. They were huddled together, almost burrowed into each other. Two as one. He stroked her hair. She wound her fingers through his belt loops, draped one pretty leg over his lap. Of course she was jealous of this couple. Their world went on even as hers had halted. This was as close as she’d come to acceptance, and the small victory warmed her.
