Nahno McLein

Judy Garland

After creeping further down the steps, I sneak into my dim-lit basement.

One marmalade jar, just something to mix watercolours in - can’t be too hard to find down here? “If you’re watching, Mom, you’ll see that this stuff is useful after all.”

Rushed, I fumble around, finding ugly glass vases, old Power Ranger action figures, a rustling bag with electronic wires…

A flicker and the grim room disappears in blackness.

I revolve and throw my back against the shelf, a fierce grip on the board. Next, an ear shattering glass strikes the nauseating stillness.

What’s happening?
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Normally, you receive these kinds of things from your boyfriend or your girlfriend, but sometimes, only ever so often, does a friend, a very close friend, feel obliged to do you a similar favour. When I look at this photograph, I can’t help but visualize the smile that is hidden behind the paper heart my friend is holding up.

I still remember the thoughts that I had when I received these pictures. First, I wanted to know what weird occasion had triggered this idea. For months I haven’t heard from her, for I was abroad for a while. Then, suddenly, she sends me this lovely series of pictures. The second thought was about how typical this way of communicating is for her. Everybody knows that she is arty and likes to step out of the normal boundaries as often as she can. Instead of saying she misses me, she holds up papers which express how she misses me. The odd thing about that is, it is much more effective, just because it’s so individual and embodies everything she is.
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