The field seemed to stretch forever, its tall grass shimmering beneath the afternoon sun. Dogs of every size raced through it, tumbling over one another, barking and chasing butterflies. Biscuit was among them, his crooked ear bouncing as he ran alongside Isabella, occasionally looking back as though he wanted her to follow.

The warmth of the sun, the softness of the grass beneath her feet, and the sight of so many happy dogs made everything feel wonderful. Until a voice called her name.

"Isabella!"

It sounded familiar, but where was it coming from? Perhaps it was time to go home.

At the edge of the field, the grass gave way to several roads stretching in different directions. None looked familiar, and the voice had disappeared. Biscuit was nowhere to be seen. Dogs continued racing past, their barking growing louder as Isabella searched for that crooked ear among them.

Far in the distance stood a sign she recognized. Relieved to see something familiar, Isabella started running toward it, but no matter how quickly her legs moved, the sign remained just as far away.

Was she even moving?

She tried running faster, pushing herself harder, but it was as though she were sinking into quicksand, struggling to move forward.

Where was Biscuit?

Her mouth opened to call his name, but no sound came out. Again, she tried to scream, using every bit of strength she had, yet the silence remained. Her legs kept moving without carrying her anywhere, and the roads seemed to stretch farther into the distance. There was no Biscuit, no voice to guide her, and no way to get home.

Panic rose in her chest. Then she woke up.

Her cheek was pressed against her notebook, and for a moment, the familiar shapes of her bedroom seemed almost as strange as the roads in her dream. Slowly, the racing of her heart began to settle.

It had only been a dream.

The notebook lay open beneath her, exactly where she'd fallen asleep while writing to Katherine the night before. And with the memory of writing came everything that had happened yesterday. Mother Mary holding her son. The names of the children in the square. The girls laughing in the shops. The silver bird.

How could the world hold so much sadness and still go on as though nothing had happened?

Outside, birds were singing as the morning sun rose over the rooftops. From downstairs came the familiar sounds of breakfast being prepared. Everything seemed so ordinary, as though the world had already forgotten the past.

Did birds have feelings? Did they know what had happened to those children, or did they simply sing because the sun came up every morning?

The notebook was filled almost to the bottom of the page. Last night, there had been so much to tell Katherine that not even the usual three blank lines remained.

But between the pages, something unfamiliar caught her eye. A small piece of paper, yellowed at the edges and folded into four squares, looked much older than anything else in the notebook.

It hadn't been there before. Isabella was certain of that.

Carefully unfolded, the paper revealed a map. A river wound through a forest, a mountain rose in the distance, and twelve tiny symbols were scattered around the edges. At the center was a small heart drawn in faded gold ink.

Beneath it, four words appeared in handwriting that looked strangely familiar.

You know the way.

What way?

The other side of the paper was blank, and a search through the notebook revealed nothing else.

Could Katherine have left it?

That was impossible. Katherine didn't actually exist.

Or did she?

Every letter was still there, every question, and every set of three blank lines waiting for a response. Except for last night, when the writing had reached the very bottom of the page. Maybe Katherine had been answering all along, just not in the way Isabella expected.

The map went carefully into her pocket, her secret until she could figure it out.

Downstairs, a scratching sound came from the front door. When Isabella opened it, there stood Biscuit, his leash trailing behind him.

"Biscuit?"

His tail wagged so enthusiastically that his whole body seemed to wiggle. The moment Isabella bent down, he jumped up and planted a wet kiss right across her nose.

Laughter burst out of her, partly from surprise and partly from the sheer relief of seeing him after the dream. But it didn't last. The children in the square came back to her. The mothers who never saw them again. Mother Mary holding Jesus.

How could she be laughing?

Biscuit had no interest in such questions. Before Isabella could stop him, he slipped into the kitchen, discovered a sock on the floor, and raced away with it dangling from his mouth.

"Biscuit! Give that back!"

Around the kitchen table they went, Biscuit changing direction each time Isabella got close enough to grab the sock. At the stove, her mother turned around to find a dog racing through the kitchen.

"Blu! Isn't that the dog from the coffee shop? How did he get here?"

"I don't know. He was at the door."

Her mother shook her head, smiling. "Well, we'd better get him back. Someone will be looking for him. But maybe Biscuit could use a treat?"

The word treat worked like magic. Down went the sock, and Biscuit sat perfectly straight, ears alert and eyes fixed on the stove.

Isabella just smiled. A few minutes later, Biscuit was enjoying a belly rub, with Isabella sitting beside him on the kitchen floor. Of all the places he could have gone after escaping his leash, he'd somehow found her house. And after a dream in which she'd been unable to find him, here he was.

That was pretty cool.

For a moment, nothing else seemed to matter.

On the way to school, they stopped at the coffee shop, where Biscuit's owner was relieved to see him and explained that he'd slipped his leash that morning. One last scratch behind his crooked ear, and it was time to say goodbye.

The folded map remained in Isabella's pocket as she continued toward school, its edges brushing against her fingers with every step.

Twelve symbols, a river, a forest, and a gold heart.

What did any of it mean? And where could it possibly lead?

For the first time in weeks, there was something to look forward to.

At school, the girls were still talking about their shopping trip. One had bought a bracelet, while another complained that her mother wouldn't let her buy the shoes she wanted. Their conversation drifted around Isabella, but for once, being left out of it didn't seem important.

At lunch, a quiet spot beneath a tree offered the perfect place to study the map again. One of the twelve symbols looked like a bird with its wings spread wide, similar to the silver bird she'd seen in the shop window.

Isabella wished she'd bought it. But the more she pictured it, the more she realized that owning it hadn't really mattered. There had been something magical about simply standing there and looking at it.

That small connection brought a sense of peace, as though something bigger might be watching over her. There were no words for it, just a feeling that there was more to life than she understood.

She couldn't wait to write to Katherine. Which was weird, because Katherine didn't even exist! None of it made sense, and yet, it made her happy.

Above her, the branches swayed gently against the blue sky, their leaves rustling in the breeze. The memory of the children in the square returned, bringing with it the same sadness she'd carried since yesterday.

Then a leaf floated down and landed directly on her nose. The sneeze that followed was so loud that a girl walking past jumped in surprise.

"Scuse me!" Isabella said with a smile.

Their eyes met, and suddenly they were both laughing. This time, the laughter came without guilt, and Isabella felt it.

That evening, she opened her notebook to a blank page.

Dear Katherine,

I found your map.

I don't know where it goes, what the symbols mean, or how you managed to put it in my notebook. But I think it was you.

Last night I had a dream that I couldn't find Biscuit, and this morning, Biscuit was at our front door! We gave him a treat. I hope he comes back because he makes me happy. You make me happy.

I still feel sad about the children who never got to grow up, though.

Is it normal to feel happy and sad on the same day? Sometimes even in the same minute?

I want to find out where the map goes.

xx Blu

The map was folded and tucked safely between the pages. At the bottom of the letter, she left three blank lines. Then, just before turning out the light, she whispered the words to herself.

You know the way.

Maybe she did.

~

Joy is one of the tools in the Love Map.

Sometimes joy shows up when we're not looking for it. And sometimes we need to intentionally add it to our day. It can be something small, but it has the power to bring us back to the moment we're in.

We don't have to wait for everything to be okay before allowing ourselves to feel happy. That's one of the gifts of joy. It doesn't ask us to have all the answers or to make sense of everything we're experiencing. It simply invites us to enjoy what's right in front of us... being alive.

What joy are you adding to your day today?

Until next Friday,
Jenn