A mother’s intuition is a powerful thing, so even though Miss McKnight kept trying hard heal from the wound of having lost a daughter, something inside her kept telling her that she was still alive. On some days, the wound would feel like it was healing nicely, and on others it would bleed anew.

Tony did not do any justice to Miss McKnight’s wound, though. He and his sister eventually grew up, and after a good number of years, Tony became good at crafting and developed a passion for it. He kept having dreams of a cute girl crying, and every time in his dreams, the cute girl would cry. He thought the girl was Cosima because she looked just like her.

One day, Toni decided to pay attention to the girl’s face and paint her. As usual, she came in his dreams and, after waking up, Tony painted her. It was in the middle of the night, so when Cosima woke up and saw the light in Tony’s room, she went to see what was going on.

“Tony, it’s only been a few minutes after midnight. What are you doing?” Cosima asked.

“I saw this beautiful thing in my dream, so I thought I should paint it while I still remember every single detail about it,” Tony replied.

“Whatever it is, I hope it’s worth it because tomorrow is school day,” Cosima said. “See you tomorrow.”

“Sure,” Tony said. “By the way, what are you doing up at this time of the night?”

“I couldn’t sleep, so I thought I should have a cup of tea with honey, and maybe that will help,” Cosima responded. “Mommy always says it helps, and that’s when I saw the light on in your room and came to check on you.”

“Ok,” Tony said. “Carry on, tea lady, see you tomorrow.”

“Don’t call me that,” Cosima said, then they both laughed and Cosima made her way to the kitchen.

Before they knew it, it was the crack of a new day and Tony was still sleeping, which only meant he was going to be late for school. Cosima had to wake him up, so she rushed to his room and screamed “Oh my God” out loud when she went in. Her mom, after hearing her scream, asked what was going on.

“Mommy, Tony painted me,” Cosima shouted. “He painted my face, only I have dimples. I think he painted Sara.”

On hearing her daughter’s shout, Miss McKnight came rushing to Tony’s room and saw the most beautiful painting Tony’s had ever painted, which made her break down in tears.

“Mom, what’s going on?” Cosima asked.

Tony was awake at the time, and he had already realised he must have over slept because Cosima was already in her school uniform.

“Tony, who is this?” Miss McKnight asked. “Where did you see this because I don’t even have a picture of her?”

“Oh, that must be Cosima,” Tony said.

“Me, no,” Cosima said. “I don’t have dimples.”

“Ok then,” Tony said. “It’s this lady I keep seeing crying all the time in my dreams. I thought that if I painted her, she would stop.”

“Tony, this is Sara,” Miss McKnight said. “I remember this mark on her nose. Oh my God, this is my daughter. Tony, you painted her.” She then embraced the paint and cried even more. “I believe she’s trying to communicate something to you. What did she say?” she continued.

“She doesn’t say anything,” Tony responded. “She just cries all the time.”

“Mom, don’t tell me you believe in the dead talking,” Cosima said to her mother. “Sara is dead. The nurse said she died, so please don’t torture yourself. Tony, we’re going to be late for school if you don’t bath now.”

“The tea lady is right mom,” Tony said. “You should listen to her.” He then headed to the bathroom.

“I thought I told not to call me that,” Cosima said. “And I’m going to leave you if you’re not out of that bathroom and done eating breakfast in the next 20 minutes.”

“You’re evil, and I hate you right now,” Tony said.

“The feeling is mutual,” Cosima said, then they both laughed.

After her children were gone, Miss McKnight spent the day in Tony’s room, looking at the painting of the girl in her son’s dreams. She spent the day with a lot of things pacing the corridors in her mind. Things like whether Sara was dead or not, and how come she appeared to Tony as a pretty little grown up? She also thought about things like why she didn’t believe in her heart that Sara was dead?

“I mean, I’ve never believed she was dead,” Miss McKnight thought to herself. “I’ve never made peace with the fact that she died. The wound of her death still bleeds, and I can feel it in my spirit that she’s still alive. She has to be alive. If she’s still alive, where is she? Does she need saving, maybe? Maybe she appears crying because she needs help. Maybe she’s in some sort of trouble. I know it, I know she is not dead. She’s alive, I can feel it”

Tell us: What do you think Toni’s dreams about his sister crying mean about where she is now?