By Laurie Howard

Word Count: 843

Rating: G

Summary: Three cousins enjoy their new kites in the summertime.

In the early spring when the winds came up fast and the winter air had receded, and the sun shone as big white puffy clouds fought for position in the ever-changing sky, it was perfect kite-flying weather. Children ran to the store to pick out and assemble their new kites. Not many lasted through one season. Most of the kites crashed and broke in pieces by time the heat of summer approached.

The best place to fly kites was down at the schoolyard. It was free of trees, and no wires passed through the field to snag a wayward kite.

Three cousins scrambled to assemble their kites and find old strips of rags to tie to the tails to help them fly. They helped each other bow the center pole to put a curve into the kites. Gently, gently, so they would not snap the fragile wood. They attached a long roll of string to their kites and ran the two blocks to school. Some of the older kids had beaten them to the best places, but they spread out and prepared to let them fly.

A strong, southerly wind caught them up as they ran into the wind with the kites at their backs. The cousin with red curls, Beth, got hers up first, followed by her tall and intelligent sister, Tess. The remaining cousin, Mara, was too impatient and stumbled in the schoolyard in her race to be first. Always first, she had to be first. Why?

Oh, the glorious scene of the multi-colored, diamond-shaped kites against a blue sky as they dipped and turned to catch the wind! The children ran from each other as the wind blew the kites dangerously close. If the kites entangled, they would come crashing down and probably be broken.

The afternoon wind died down and the kites slowly sank to the ground as their long tails wobbled beneath them. The children quickly wound in their strings to keep the line taut, but as the wind subsided, the kites looked tired from their long day.

The three cousins returned the next day when the breeze blew strong. Many of the other children had not come yet, so they found the best spot. It was one of those wonderful kite-flying days when the wind was steady and perfect. The kites didn’t dive and fight for placement; they hung solitarily in the sky and slowly quivered as the wind shifted.

The green grass had grown thick, and the land was dried by the sun. The three cousins held their kite strings and lay down on the grass on their backs, grinning at one another as they barely adjusted their strings. The three kites floated in the sky a safe distance from each other, smiling down on their owners.

Mara lay between Beth and Tess, and whispered, “Let’s take our guardian angels for a ride on our kites.”

The two laughed at her imagination.

Gazing into the sky, she called out, “Go on, Angel, have a seat on the kite! What’s it look like from up there?”

Her kite seemed to answer her as it flew left to right and then came back to the center. Her angel had taken a seat, and Mara laughed. All three imagined their angels riding up in the sky on their kites. They passed the day that way until the wind went away again.

Each time the three cousins came to fly their kites that spring, they imagined their guardian angels taking a break and riding up in the sky.

One day, Mara asked the sisters, “What do you suppose it’s like up there in Heaven?”

Beth brushed her unruly red hair from her eyes and replied, “It’s made up of ice cream and kittens and anything you want.”

Her serious sister laughed and said, “No one knows what’s up there. God saved a place for each of us and it’s up to us to get there. If you listened to your guardian angel more, maybe you wouldn’t get into as much trouble.”

Mara remained quiet. She watched her red and yellow kite and saw her angel waving to her. She smiled back and was contented to just lie there as a silent communication passed between the two. Mara understood what her angel was saying. After a while, she rolled over and faced her two cousins as they planned the rest of their summer together. The thought of being first had lost its importance, and it brought peace.

Kite-flying season came to an end as the hot, still summer days left the kites silently waiting to fly again. Beth’s kite had crash-landed one day, so only two remained.

Fall came and winter arrived, to be followed by another spring. On a perfect kite-flying day, the two sister cousins walked solemnly to the schoolyard. They flew their kites, but it wasn’t the same.

Mara’s guardian angel had come for her. It was quiet and sad for a long time. Only two kites would fly together again.

Mara had been first.