A girl, walked down a dark alley.



She could not see the end of the damp, foul smelling alley. It seemed endless.


She didn't hum to comfort herself, she didn't talk to an imaginary friend, she talked to someone much more important than that. She spoke to her Father walking silently next to her listening intently, His eyes never leaving her face.

She spoke freely as if talking to herself saying her thoughts, even when it interrupted the story she was telling. She spoke about her days at school, she spoke of her troubles and she thanked her father for coming with her on her journey.


You see, the girl was traveling to a place no one but her could go to. It was a place like heaven and it was a place that could only be reached with God.



The young girl smiled up at her Father. Her golden hair jostled on her shoulders as she bounced along next to her Father, excited about her coming life with Him.

The Father smiled back down at her. His smile was angelic and seemed to be from a different land, His teeth were white and as clean snow and His skin was flawless. But, the most amazing part about His smile, is that it lit the alley were His silent feet fell.


A door opened a little ahead of them and two hulking figures entered the ally. They looked at the girl, they couldn't see the Father where He stood holding her hand.

She looked up at her Father, He grimaced and nodded to her. He let go of her hand and disappeared.



The girl looked at the two men, "Go away!" She said to them.





The two men backed away from the little girl and ran the opposite direction of her.

The Father reappeared and they continued on as they sang a song together.

Matthew 18:3-4: "Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. "

*The previous night*

The girl had died in the middle of the night while she was asleep. She was awakened by her Father and they left together never to return.

The girl had shed one tear before she left her home, her brothers, her sisters, her mother, and most regretfully, her world.

She kissed her mother good bye while her mother slept soundly in her bed. Her earthly father had died some years ago and the little girl couldn't remember much about him, only that he had been a drunken man.

The next morning the children awakened to find the youngest child dead in her bed.
The mother had never had one of her children die before not even in child labor, they were always healthy and happy babies, so was this little girl she had lost, a healthy, happy, and beautiful girl.
But not anymore, she was a dead, cold, stiff, and pale corpse now.



The mother stopped crying as she realized it wasn't going to change anything. It wouldn't change how much she loved her little blond girl, not how much she wanted her baby back, and it wouldn't change how much she knew she was somewhere better.




Then the mother brightened at the thought of her child running through fields of long grass with flowers blooming all around, and the sun lighting up the child's golden locks of hair as they flew around by the sides of the girls rosy cheeks and pale green eyes.






But, then the devil crept into her heart and gave her a very sad thought. The green eyes full of light and happiness were never going to open again, and the rosy cheeks would never again stretch into a beautiful smile as the girl would run and jump into her mother's arms. The hair would never be seen flowing in the sun ever again and the long a eyelashes would never be seen batting away tears.


At that the mother shed one last tear and never thought of the girl again, except as a dream child she lost one November morning.