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Grave HappinessLoading...
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By: Noor Nauman
Grave Happiness
By Noor Nauman
By Noor Nauman
Every day while driving up the hill we would pass by the graveyard. I never paid much attention to the place or even gave it a second glance. And then the pandemic hit and we had to go in to lockdown. Many people lost family members and loved ones. In the meantime, I was going about living the life of a teenager (who had just turned 13 during the pandemic). I had such big plans on how I wanted to celebrate my birthday. I was really upset that I wasn't able to celebrate such a huge milestone with my family and friends. My parents and siblings went all out to make the day very special by baking two cakes, doing video calls with family in other states, and giving a lot of gifts. I plastered a fake smile on my face and hid my tears. We decided to go for a drive as we couldn't do much due to the lockdown. And for the first time in the 5 years of living in Basking Ridge, I was so aware of my surroundings. It was the same graveyard, but it seemed much fuller. Was I mistaken? I asked my parents and they confirmed. It suddenly struck me that I was so fortunate to be surrounded by those that matter the most….my parents and siblings. We stopped at the red signal and while I was gazing at the graveyard the hues of the sunset felt so mesmerizing. It was as if I was engulfed by a cloud of tranquility and it was at that moment I understood how lucky I was to have such loving people in my life. This feeling of serenity calmed the noise inside me as I heard my name and the laughter of joy echoing in the car caught my attention.