9.36pm.
an instant. a moment.
an immense sense of calm.

god has picked up my heart,
dusted it off,
and returned it lighter than before.

my boyfriend is quoting scripture to me. my sister is singing in the next room. the rest of my family is silenced by the flickering tv screen. i can hear voices playing with each other next door, drifting through windows, muffled by walls. i can smell the night. i can feel the wind coming over and sucking up the heat. bellies are digesting dessert and eyes are starting to droop. clocks are speeding towards monday while parents tuck in five year olds and argue with fifteen year olds who don't want to admit that the day is over. the lonely get lonelier, the happy get happier, as tiredness sets in and the world becomes jagged with too-sharp contrasts.