Bumps, Beeps, and Songs in the Night

When one of my friends recently mentioned noise toys randomly going off in the night, I was reminded of a story I wrote three years ago. I mentioned it to her and then went to my old blog to find it again. And guess what? Apparently the two of us had already discussed the issue, since she was the lone commenter to that story. Ha Ha.

The story is a bit weird, and I don't usually write within this genre. But for your reading pleasure...

 Phantom Child
(Inspired by my children’s toys that turn on and sing all by themselves. Do you have those in your house? Spooky, huh?)

I am Janie. I’m two years old. I live with Mommy, Daddy, Sarah, and Daniel. But they don’t see me. I try to talk to them, but they don’t hear me. I touch them, but they don’t feel me.

They’re not my real family. I was born 20 years ago. I think there was something wrong with me, because the doctor shook his head, and my mommy and daddy cried. I never learned to sit up or crawl or walk. Mommy would carry me to the room she needed to be in and lay me on a blanket. She used to sing to me and tell me I was special. I would cuddle with Daddy on the couch in the evenings.

One day, I felt pretty sick and Mommy carried me to the couch. I stayed there for a week still feeling sick. I must have been real sick, because Mommy and Daddy cried a lot.

I watched them get all dressed up in black one morning. Daddy kept holding Mommy and they cried together. They talked about me being dead and about going to bury me. I didn’t understand them. I called for them, but they didn’t hear me. As they walked out the front door, Mommy whispered, “Goodbye, Janie.”

I jumped off the couch and ran to the door and tried to call them back. But they didn’t hear me. That’s when I realized I didn’t feel sick anymore. I could walk and run. At first I was happy, and I ran all over the house. But then I remembered that Mommy had said “goodbye” and I wondered where they went.

The next day, some strange men came and packed up all our stuff. I watched as they carried my toys to a big truck. I was scared. I didn’t know why they were taking our stuff and I didn’t know where my mommy and daddy were. The last thing they carried out was our couch. I cried. I loved that couch. It was big and soft and that’s where I sat with my daddy.

Since that day, lots of different families have come to live in my house with me. I have always just sat in the corner and watched them. I remember one family that yelled at each other all the time. They scared me. I hid in the closet a lot. Another family had three dogs. They barked at me. But I like this new family. They remind me of my mommy and daddy. But what I like most is their couch. It looks a lot like the couch that Daddy would snuggle me on.

I like their children too. Sarah is my age. Daniel is one. They are a lot of fun. I play with them a lot, but they don’t know it. I sit next to them and watch Curious George with them, but they don’t see me.

They have very fun toys. Some of them have buttons. When you push them, the toy sings or makes noise. I didn’t have toys like that when our stuff was still here. I really like the little piano they have. Today,I went into the closet where it is kept and started to play it while the family was napping. I think “mommy” was annoyed, because she opened the closet door,turned it off, and said, “STUPID toys!!!”

My favorite though is a stuffed dog that has buttons on it’s paws, tummy, nose, and ears. It sings lots of different songs and has lots of different noises. My favorite is the ABC song. One night, I went into Sarah and Daniel’s room when they were asleep and pushed the dog’s button. I wanted to sing the ABC song. It woke up Daniel and he sang with me and clapped his hands. Daniel and I played for about half an hour before “mommy” came in, grabbed it, and took it to the living room. She growled at the dog and told it to shut up. Daniel was sad that he couldn’t keep playing, and he cried. “Mommy” had to come back in and rock him for a while so he would get sleepy again.

I don’t try to make “mommy” frustrated. But the toys are so fun. And since I never sleep like the family does, I get bored at night and during naptime. Speaking of which, I’m kinda bored now. I think I’ll go play with the fire engine. It has sirens.