*NOT MY PICTURE*

Suzy:
            Mom pulled into the old dirt driveway next to our small country side cottage. The cottage was originally dad's parents' but we inherited it when they passed away. It was the place where dad grew up. I got out of the car and put my suitcase on the ground. The warm summer breeze made the trees lightly sway. The Rose of Sharon bushes that dad had planted many years ago were still beautiful as the moonlight shined on them. We hadn't visited the country side in a few years but the bushes were perfectly trimmed and the grass was evenly cut. Maybe dad came here to tidy up the place for us. I knelt next to a bush and sniffed a rose. It didn't have a strong or distinct fragrance but to me it was the best smelling flower. I picked three flowers from the bush, one for dad, one for mom, one for me, and put them on the old wooden patio fence. I always did this when I came here. Mom said that I started doing it when I was three years old to tell the heavens that we have arrived safely. And so I kept the tradition that I invented alive. I smiled at the three roses that happily sat next to each other.
            Mom unlocked the door and the light. I followed her. Mom dropped her suitcase on the ground along with her jaw as she gasped. I did the same. We slowly turned around in circle as we observed our surroundings. The floor was sparkling and clean. It was always dirty in our earlier visits. The paintings on the wall were aligned perfectly straight. They used to be tilted and askew. The dim light was now bright. The empty blue vase on the table now had Roses of Sharon in them. The plants by the window sill were now healthy and green. It felt nostalgic looking around. Even the my old toys were arranged on the table like how dad used to arrange them. This was how the cottage looked like when dad was still around. He'd passionately clean it and make it look as good as new. He'd always place my old teddy bear named Boxer on top of the fridge. And there Boxer was, sitting on top of the fridge looking out for anyone who tried to steal food in the middle of the night to satiate their munchies. It felt like dad came back and put everything back into place.
            I felt so reminiscent as I looked at all of the little things around the room, the little things that made me feel happy. The drawing of Venus that I drew for dad was on the fridge. The butterfly magnets that mom gave me for my fifth birthday decorated the plain grey fridge. And the most meaningful thing that was also on the fridge was our only family picture. We lost the picture years ago but a saint had found it and put it here for me to see. Tears fell from my eyes as I walked towards it to get a better look. There was dad with his peaceful face and his peaceful smile. There was mom with her sparkling eyes and gentle smile. There was me with my missing front teeth and cheerful smile. I laughed when I saw myself but tears of joy kept flowing. I couldn't stop smiling and crying when I showed the picture to mom, who also had watery eyes. Everything felt so good but something was missing. I felt that there was something other than dad that the room was lacking. I thought hard about what was missing but it didn't come to me.
"The only left to make this moment complete is to brew some fresh coffee." Mom said as she opened her suitcase and pulled out her special coffee mixture that she only brewed here.
The smell of her special summer time coffee. Yes, that's what was missing. Mom quickly began to set up the coffee brewer. Soon, everything was going to be perfect.
            I strolled around the house, looking for more memories to return to me. I carried my suitcase and opened the door to my bedroom. As I walked in, I saw my futon neatly laid out the way that dad laid it out. I slid onto my futon and rolled around on it, embracing childhood memories of it. I laid down and looked up at the ceiling. It had little glow in the dark stars all over it. The last time I saw this ceiling there were only a few stars. But all of the missing stars returned to the ceiling. But, there was something new on the ceiling that I never noticed before. An orange glow in the dark circle was on the ceiling, Venus. It felt strange but it didn't bother me. In fact, this whole situation was strange but it didn't bother me. Dad was resting in peace so he couldn't of have done this. Only a mortal could have done this good deed and I'd gladly repay the mortal. But, I didn't want to take the magic of this occurrence away, I just accepted my notion that it was dad's doing.
"Suzy! Coffee time!" Mom called out from the kitchen.
I put down folded clothes that I was unpacking and walked into the kitchen.
"I don't want to go back to Seoul anymore. I just want to stay here." Mom said as she stirred her coffee.
"I don't want to leave either." I said as I sat down and put my hands around the warm Rose of Sharon decorated cup.
"It feels so magical, everything is back into place." Mom sighed.
The coffee aroma permeated through the air of the small cottage as I reminisced with Mom about the good old times late into the night.
            I returned to my room to sleep. Mom was also getting ready to sleep in her room. I laid down on my futon and looked up at the miniature night sky on my ceiling. There were the twinkling stars. There was the crescent moon. There was Venus with all of her beauty. I smiled as I observed the night sky. Hours passed by but I could not fall asleep. Everything felt so perfect and so magical that I didn't want to sleep, for it might leave me the moment I close my eyes. I counted the stars. I counted the moon. I counted Venus. I heard footsteps pass by my room as I stared at the artificial night sky. It must have just been mom.