Story #3~Rude Awakenings
~Estelle Series ~
Story #3
Rude Awakenings
Estelle's experiences so far with her visions had not been welcoming. For a little 9 year old girl they were downright frightening, but only after she was able to comprehend them, which was usually long after they'd occurred. Especially seeing Wells, because she thought he was as real as the cup of coffee in front of her. Disillusioned or crazy were words her parents whispered but never spoke aloud. So Estelle prayed every night that God would make her a bit more normal.
And for awhile, she didn't really encounter much...but little things continued to happen. A small feeling here, a shadow there, and sometimes a sinking feeling would envelope her. These more subtle things didn't bother her as much, because they were nudges and she could choose to ignore them, most of the time.
The first memorable "nudge" she felt was in late August. Her mother was very far along with her 5th pregnancy and it seemed she should have had this child months ago. Estelle walked out into the kitchen, where her mother was scrubbing everything she could get her hands on. Estelle noticed an unusual glow about her mom and remarked, "Mom you look like a glowing star, you're bright and beautiful." Her mom was not one to listen to anything but plain speak and she just muttered something about being hot and sweaty and not enough time to clean the kitchen.
That night, Estelle's nudges were more like shoves.
Whispers surrounded her that night as she slept. She really didn't understand what exactly she was listening to, but it sounded like a hundred crickets or a hundred cat scratches filling her ears. To make sense of what she was listening to wasn't possible, there was no sweet rhythm or beat to it...more like a continual hum. You could listen to it without going crazy but you wouldn't want to hear it all the time. Just as the noises finally lulled her into a false sense of sleep she heard a very audible "Get UP!"
Immediately Estelle sat up and looked around the room. She couldn't tell you if the voice was male or female...just that it was. Her eyes could only focus on so much in the darkness. Her spirit was too unsettled to ignore what she heard or to even attempt to go back to sleep. Estelle just waited. When she listened she heard a scream.
At that Estelle raced out of her room. She ran to her parents' room but only her father was in bed, and her mother was not to be found.
"Help Me!" came the next cry. It was from outside and Estelle raced through the kitchen out the back door to see her mother on the ground with fear riddled on her face.
"Momma" she cried as she took flight across the wet grass. "Momma, what's the matter is it the baby?" she asked.
Her mother panted and in between moans grumbled, "Quick, get your Father and then grab Misty and ride and grab Mrs. Schrock. It's time."
Estelle saw the pain in her mother's eyes and then stood up to run and grab her Dad, but not before she noticed a crow perched atop the outhouse. She found it odd it would be there this early in the morning, as it beckoned for her attention. After waking her father, she ran as quickly as she could to the stable and got Misty their half-breed and had her racing to waken Mrs. Schrock.
As Estelle left the stable she saw once again the crow perched atop of the outhouse seemingly watching her every move. She gave Misty a good squeeze and trotted by as quickly as she could out of the driveway. As she passed by, the crow took off in flight, circled over their home and flew away.
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