"The wings my dreams live on"

The wings my dreams live on

As Emma started her car that cold morning, she thought to herself “there is more to life than this”. Emma is a 30-year-old who works just to make ends meet and to help keep her PTSD in check. Working for her is a way to keep her mind off that afternoon when life would change her forever. She used to be a bubbly, fun-loving person, and now she can barely leave her room and when she does, it’s just to go to work. As she sits in her car as it warms up, she is hit with a flashback of the attack and in the center of the flashback, his face. His face haunts her and it’s been almost 10 years. She has struggled since then to get her life on track the way she wants. But today, she has decided that that all of it changes.

“Hey Emma, wait up!” called out Brianna, Emma’s best friend. Emma turned on her heel to smile at Brianna and wait for her. “Hurry up, it’s bloody cold out here” she said to her as she waited. As they walk into the building of the marketing firm they work at. Emma is a receptionist and Brianna is a marketing genius. Brianna was the type of girl that no matter what she did, it was done perfectly, and she could do anything so effortlessly. Emma was creative but too much in her head and had such low self-esteem, that she would never put herself out there to move up from receptionist. As she settled into her desk and getting into the emails that no doubt has flooded in overnight, she thinks about how she could change her life.

“Emma, come to the farm tonight and take some pictures for me. I want to start utilizing the farm more and make money! I know you know how to work that social media thing. So, if you are not going to put yourself out there, I am going to push you out and make it work for the both of us” said Brianna with that smile on her face that Emma could not say no too. “Bri, I don’t know why you think you I have this amazing creative gift, I don’t.” she replied. Brianna looked at her, rolled her eyes and said, “You know I know about that hidden folder on your phone that you keep your creative content hidden in”. Emma slouched down in her chair as she finished her lunch as quickly as she could, so she didn’t have to listen to this anymore. “You know I will be there” she said to Brianna as she picked up her lunch to throw it out. Brianna smiled and flounced away.

That night at Brianna’s farm, Emma pulled into her driveway. With camera in hand, she walked into the horse barn, where 9 times out of 10 you could find Bri and her dog. The dogs excitedly jumped on Emma as she closed the barn door. “Hi puppers, where is your mother?” She asked Odin as she turned the corner towards the horse stalls. “I’m in the last stall!” Brianna yelled; Emma walked to the last stall to find Bri mucking the stall. “What do you want me to take pictures of?” She asked. Brianna put down the rake and turned to Emma. “Emma, I wanted you to help me with this because I know that you are struggling with everything. I know that you are constantly thinking about everything that’s happened. The trafficking, the attack its always on the forefront of your mind. I know you are not happy, in any sense of the word” She spoke. Emma looked at her as she was talking, but she wasn’t really looking at her, she was kind of looking past her. She was anxiously fidgeting with her keys in her hand as she listened to Brianna. “It’s a hard thing to just let go of no matter how much counselling I try” She replied. Brianna walked towards her, and they both walked out of the stall. “I know, I know you better than anyone else. I know you aren’t happy doing any of the stuff you are doing right now. I know how creative you can be” she said to Emma. “I want to take this barn, land and try to make it an event place or a photography set location. I want you to help me start the social media, website and what not” Brianna explained. Emma listened intently and, in her brain, started to work. “Bri, were you in my mind this morning? I know I can’t keep going on this way and if you really want to do this, let’s do this!” She spoke. Brianna looked at her and smiled and said “Em, I am here to tell you that WE are going to do this, and WE are going to change our lives”. Emma looked at her and with tears starting to form in her eyes, she said “let’s do this”. The two of them looked at each other smiled, but both of their heads suddenly shot up at the sound of a barn owl flying away. “That is our past flying away and the change starting.” Said Brianna with a smile and her arm around Emma’s shoulder. Emma smiled through the tears in her eyes, she said “those are the wings that my dreams live on”.