Flight to Heaven

Flight to Heaven

    Hundreds of paper swans were born from her grief and despair as she contemplated the reality of what she was facing. Harsh coughing sounded from the other room, causing Sanya to fold faster and faster. She continued doing the only thing she knew of to release the torrent of pain flooding through her. Desperately she tried to ignore the words that repeatedly flashed through her mind.
    “My mother is dying and there’s nothing I can do about it.”
    To whisper the words brought the reality crashing down, and that was something Sanya refused to accept. In an attempt to avoid the situation, she remained focused on her folding. Eventually her eyes slid shut and she reluctantly drifted into an exhausted slumber.
    As the clock chimed the midnight hour, an odd feeling crept into the air. A dim light began to emanate from the paper swans scattered about the room, giving life to the carefully folded forms. They flapped their wings and lifted into the air as a cloud of white, disappearing into the room from which coughing had sounded.
    If one were to look at the small house that night, they would have witnessed an amazing sight. The group of paper birds exited through an open window and soared into the night sky, circling steadily upward until they disappeared into the stars.
    The coughing that had echoed through the house slowly dwindled until peaceful silence enshrouded the building. When Sanya awoke the next morning, the swans and her mother were gone. She searched desperately, but the woman wasn’t to be found.
    Although Sanya’s mother was not well-known in their town, a few attended her funeral a couple days later. Sanya placed flowers upon the casket as it was readied to be lowered, feeling more alone than ever before.
    People were gathered around, murmuring soberly, but they seemed so far away. Sanya knew they didn’t really care.
    As the young girl stepped back she spotted a small, delicate paper swan on the grassy earth. The intricately folded form seemed to be full of ancient mysteries and secrets.
    Sanya picked up the bird and held it in her palm, wondering how it had gotten there. Suddenly, the small paper creature flapped its wings and lifted into the air. Alarmed, Sanya glanced around, but no one seemed to notice the floating phenomenon.
    The young girl lifted a tear-stained face to watch the bird ascend to the sky. As she peered up she saw a lone, puffy white cloud drifting against brilliant blue. It was in the shape of a graceful swan in full flight to the heavens.