I don’t know how long I was asleep before I woke up, but it’s still dark outside, and I’m still snuggled up against Aunt Sandy with her arms around me, although I now have a leg thrown across her in addition to my arm.

Since it’s still early, I attempt to fall back asleep, but I can’t for some reason. Finally, I give up and begin wondering how much I’ll eventually be able to remember about my past. Honestly, since I woke up, I’ve been rather busy, so I haven’t had a chance to think about it. Of course, that also means that I haven’t had time to focus on the fact that I lost my parents. Try as I might, I can’t even picture their faces, and that’s upsetting. I can’t remember anything about them, where we lived, or any friends I might have had. Nothing. It’s a complete blank other than the mere raw knowledge that I had from my parents. It’s far too much to expect a 6-year-old to deal with emotionally, and I again erupt into tears, which wake Aunt Sandy. She holds me tightly against her and rocks me gently while she allows me to simply let it all out.

Aunt Sandy's gentle voice startles me awake. “Good morning, Sweetheart.”