Talia Lights the Second Flame — Every evening, Talia trimmed the chapel wicks and counted the basket’s offerings by touch: ribbed pumpkin, cool corn silk, papery wheat. Read the full story →
Every evening, Talia trimmed the chapel wicks and counted the basket’s offerings by touch: ribbed pumpkin, cool corn silk, papery wheat. She had promised herself she would light the taller candle, then the smaller one, without calling across the stone aisle. One night, a draft slipped under the door; leaves skittered, wax sighed, and the first flame leaned hard. Because of that, she cupped both hands around it; because of that, her own shadow steadied on the wall. Finally, the second wick caught, small and real, among ribbed pumpkin, cool corn silk, papery wheat.
