Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Ticket To Heaven

Little Joey woke up today and he had a smile on his face. He'd been waiting for this day for a year. He hadn't seen his grandmother since exactly one year ago. He spent the entire year waiting for this day. He marked it on the calendar and worked hard to save money so that he'd be able to make the trip to see his grandma.

He remembered the last day that he saw her. She slept peacefully in the box in the front of the room. He remembered she looked so beautiful, so calm. He asked his mom why Grandma was sleeping inside the box.

"Grandma is just taking a little nap. She'll be awake sometime soon." She explained to him.

He smiled and went out of the room looking at all the crying faces around him. Some hiding their faces in tissues and others carrying on conversations with those standing nearby. A lady, she was in a red dress, stopped him and picked him up. It was his aunt. He remembered his mom telling him who she was. He hadn't seen her in a long time and had to be reminded.

"You ok, Joey?" his aunt asked him.

"Yes." He smiled. He saw the streaks from her eyes. "Are you?" he questioned her in return.

She sniffled and nodded. She gave him a big hug and replaced him back on the ground. He looked up at his aunt. "Mom says that gram is just taking a little nap. Do you think she'll be awake soon? So I can play with her again?"

She gave a half huff of a laugh and smiled. "It might not be soon, hun. But you will get to see her again and spend all the time that you want to with her. She's taking a trip though."

"Where is she going?" He asked.

"Well..." she paused. " She's going to Heaven. It's very far away."

"Oh...ok" he said when something caught his attention and he ran away from the lady in the red dress.

He thought on this idea that Grandma was just taking a trip and that she would return. He wasn't sure where Heaven was, but he knew he wanted to surprise his grandma and visit her someday.

------------------

A few months later Little Joey sat outside on a nice day at a table and sold lemonade. He saved his money in an old coffee can. He remembered everytime that the change jingled inside how his grandma used to drink this brand of coffee. He smiled.

"What are you saving for, Joey?" one of his customers asked him.

"I'm saving to visit my grandma" he said with a smile. "She went on a trip, and I want to visit her."

The lady put a few extra dollars into his coffee can. "Thank you!" he expressed with a really big smile.

----------------

He had a few more lemonade stands throughout the rest of the year and saved all of the money he was given for his birthday and holidays. The coffee can was just about filled to the top. He carried that can with pride down to the kitchen, where his mom was preparing his breakfast before he had to go to school.

She laughed when he placed the can on the table. "Honey.. what is that for?"

"Today's the day Mom." His excitement couldn't be contained. "I want to go see Gram... Can you take this and buy me a Ticket to Heaven?"

His mom stopped what she was doing. Tears built up behind her eyes and pushed forward. "You don't need all of that to see grandma, sweetie. Grandma is in your heart. She's with you everyday, you just can't see her. She is there, though. Every decision you make and every moment that you smile it's because she's right there with you."

He looked at her confused. "But I want to see her."

"I know you do, baby. But where Grandma is.. we can't see her there. Where she went, she became a superhero. She's invisible now. That's the power she was given so she can watch over you wherever you go."

"So I don't need a ticket to Heaven?"

She tapped him in the heart as she said. "No, Grandma is with you right here."

He smiled at his mom as her tears still streamed down her face and he hugged her tight. "Now, go get ready for school." He nodded and started to walk out of the room.

As he walked through the doorway he looked around only seeing the walls around him. He looked back at his mom and then turned back around. "I love you, Gram" he said to the empty room. Just as he finished saying it, he felt a breeze ruffle his hair a bit. "I'll see you again, someday"