“’Cause the prophecy says that Layla and her kind before her, they don’t last long here on this Earth, ‘cause they are holdin’ a light that most folks are afraid of.” Mama’s voice trailed off as she sat back down in her chair and then looked me in the eyes and said, “Mr. Jim, I want you and Maggie to let Layla be close by my family so that she can give what she came here to give. We knows who she is, we all know. We been waitin’ for her for 300 years.”

I looked at Maggie holding Layla and said, “Maggie and I have a lot to talk about, Mama, but I promise you we understand and I agree we are going to have to protect her from the outside world.”

Maggie said, “Yes, Mama, we understand.”

With that we all stood up and hugged. Layla was awake now and saying “Mama and Mommy.” We all laughed and made our way to the front door.

Another silent walk home ensued and, accompanied by Layla’s rapidly expanding vocabulary, we were both silently smiling as our child was learning how to communicate with us. She was learning several new words a day now.