Page 51 of Wildflowers and Wide Receivers

“Where is he from?”

“Originally, I think Jacksonville.”

“So he grew up fishing?”

“Yes.”

After finding a suitable spot, Sophie helps me spread out the large blanket, and we each settle in and lie down. Vivi is between us, her head right at about shoulder height for both of us.

“It’s so peaceful out here,” Sophie says as a breeze blows over us. “The last time I looked at the stars, I was in high school. We used to stay up late to see the northern lights. Do you know what those are?” she asks Vivi.

“No. What are they?” Vivi asks.

“They’re streaks of blue-greenish lights that swirl through the night sky, almost like a river in the sky.”

“Can we see that here?” Vivi turns to look at Sophie, eyes wide.

Sophie looks down at her. “No. The light gravitates toward the North and South Pole. You’ll learn all about it soon in your science class.”

“Okay,” she says, accepting that answer.

“Vivi, what do you see?” I ask her.

“The summer triangle. It’s right there. Do you see it, Sophie?” Between us, I can feel Vivi turning to look at her again.

“I’m not sure. Why don’t you point out what I’m supposed to see?”

Vivi scoots a little closer to Sophie and points at the sky. “That bright one right there is called Vega. It’s the brightest one. Do you see it?”

“I do,” Sophie says, a little animatedly for Vivi’s sake, and it has me turning to look at her, too. The profile of her face with her hair scattered all over the blanket—she’s so beautiful it hurts.

“What’s next?” Sophie asks her.

Vivi’s arm slides a little until she’s pointing at another star, but I can’t seem to look at the stars anymore. I just want to look at the two of them. Mainly Sophie.

“And then the last one is there.” Her arm slides again.

“How did you know how to find this constellation?” she asks.

“Uncle Jonah uses an app.”

Sophie turns to look at me, her brows raised in question. “An app?”

“Yep.” I slide my phone from my pocket and open SkyView. I hold it up to the sky, it reads the stars in the sky and then draws the constellation to identify it for us. At this moment, there is Ursa Major and Ursa Minor.

“That’s really neat,” Sophie tells us.

“When Uncle Jonah travels, he sends me the stars so I can see that we’re looking at the same ones.”

“I love that,” she says.

“Ms. Sophie?” Vivi asks.

“Yes, darling.”

“Do you have a mom?”

Shock and then sadness slip over Sophie’s features as she thinks about how to best answer her question. We both understand what she’s asking and why. I just hope Sophie phrases it in a way that might bring her some peace of mind.