🌞 Sunbeams Always Come Back
- Serafina Baldacchino
- Feb 25
- 2 min read
Updated: Mar 6
Issue #5
Feb 25, 2026
by MaiTai & ZuZu
MaiTai
Every time a plastic bag makes a crinkly sound, I become alert.
It might be treats.
It might not.
But it might.
So I prepare.
ZuZu
When she washes our bowls, we know good things are coming.
We wait.
With dignity.
Mostly.
MaiTai
We know the sounds of food and hope.
They are often the same.
She says, “Places” as she brings out our meal.
We meet at our spot.
The special spot. I go left.
ZuZu goes right.
We have done this since we were very small.
Some things remain reliable.
ZuZu
When Mom says, “Where is the dot?”
We appear immediately.
Magic still exists.
We have evidence.
MaiTai
It is red.
It is fast.
It is impossible.
We chase it anyway.
ZuZu
Every morning, we check the windows.
We look for the warm squares of light.
The places where the sun decides to land today.
Sometimes they are there right away.
Sometimes we have to wait.
But they always come.
MaiTai
When Mom and Dad talk at dinner, their voices get intense.
They talk about what isn’t fair.
About people being left behind.
About kindness disappearing.
About safety being taken apart piece by piece.
They talk about division.
About how easy it is to forget each other.
They talk about compassion.
About why it still matters.
Even when it’s hard.
Especially then.
ZuZu
They are paying attention.
They refuse to become numb.
That matters.
MaiTai
That is its own kind of hope.
ZuZu
After dinner, she moves slowly through the kitchen.
Like small rituals still matter.
MaiTai
They do.
They are proof.
ZuZu
That matters when everything else feels uncertain.
MaiTai
On heavy days, we bring toys.
We start games.
We demand laughter.
This is not optional.
ZuZu
Joy is resistance.
MaiTai
In the afternoon, the sun moves.
So do we.
From chair to rug.
From rug to pillow.
From pillow to floor.
We follow the light every time.
ZuZu
Even when clouds hide it.
Even when it disappears for a while.
We know better.
It always returns.
MaiTai
Hope is not loud.
ZuZu
It feels like a warm spot finding you again.
It sounds like a bowl being set down.
It looks like light on the floor.
Sunbeams always come back.
We trust this.
So should you.
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