The Bureau of Dreams to be Continued by Edward Drobinski - HTML preview
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The Bureau of Dreams to be Continued
Page 445
Child’s First Birthday
The morning sun peeked through gauzy curtains, casting golden stripes across the nursery floor. Today was a day of quiet wonder and joyful noise. It was Maya’s first birthday.
She had arrived one year ago, a bundle of sleepy sighs and tiny fists, and now she stood wobbling on chubby legs, one hand gripping the edge of her crib, the other waving at her reflection in the window. Her parents, Lila and Marcus, had barely slept the night before—not from worry, but from excitement. They had strung paper garlands across the living room, frosted cupcakes in pastel swirls, and blown up balloons until they floated like soft planets above the couch.
Maya didn’t understand what a birthday was, but she could feel the shift in the air. There was music playing; gentle, silly tunes, and the scent of vanilla and strawberries drifted from the kitchen. She wore a dress the color of spring rain, with a tiny crown of felt perched on her head, which she kept trying to eat.
Family and friends trickled in, each one marveling at how much she’d grown. “She has your eyes,” someone said. “She’s already walking?” said another. Maya, unfazed by the attention, was more interested in the crinkly wrapping paper than the gifts