Student's story inspired by `Meadow in Starlight'

I am a seventh grader at Good Shepherd Middle School in Novato. Our class was assigned to write a narrative inspired by the “Meadow in Starlight” GIF published on the New York Times website. Here is what I wrote:

This was mom's favorite place: Out in the meadow where no one could find us, at exactly 10 p.m. on Saturdays. We would bring our handmade blanket from Grandma and lay it out on the dewy lawn. Our backs were on the ground and our eyes gazed up at the sky of stars.

We would bring our dog, Louie, an adventurous white lab, who chased the fireflies until they all flew away.

“You can barely see the houses in the neighborhood from here,” I would say. “What if we get lost?” Mom would chuckle lightly and say, “We can never get lost. We have the stars.”

Now, when I look up at the sky, I don't think of the stars. I think of Mom. I thought if I came to her favorite spot, she would be closer to me, like I could almost hear what she was saying. It has been 28 Sundays without her.

Every night I would think that I could hear her voice, telling me she loved me and missed me. I would look at Louie, who simply tilted his head in silence. Maybe it was just the howling wind. Maybe it was just the buzzing of the fireflies. Maybe it was just the chirping of the crickets. But I knew it was her, whispering through the wind, “I love you.”