July 27th, 1983
Zürich, Switzerland

‘Lola, dear! Supper!’ Lola stopped playing in the snow and ran back to her warm log cabin she called home.

Lola stopped inside the door, shrugging off her jacket and kicking off her boots before her mum could yell at her about bringing snow inside. She ran upstairs to wash her hands and then came back down to see her parents, grandparents, and her best friend, Paige , sitting down about to say grace.

‘Come on, Lola, don't stand there all day. The chickens getting, cold’ her grandma said in her kindly old voice.

Lola slowly walked to the other side of the table pulling her chair out and plonking down on the seat. Taking Paige and her mother’s hand, she bowed her head for grace.

‘Dear God, bless the food that has been set before us. Bless the hands for which have prepared and grown the food, and bless the people around this …table’ Lola peeked one  eye open to see everyone else still concentrating on her grandma's words. She shut her eyes and bobbed down her head, not wanting to be seen sneaking a peak at the roast again. ‘Lord, hear our prayer, .Amen’ A chorus of amens went around the table. Her father started to cut the chicken and served the meat to everyone, except for her.

Lola hated eating meat, and thought that it was cruel to kill a cute little chicken or a fluffy little lamb just so that they could eat it.

She sat quietly while eating her pumpkin soup while Paige asked her mum whether she could stay the night. Her mum agreed just Lola knew she would. Her mum treated Paige like another daughter and always helped her no matter what.

After dinner Lola and Paige went upstairs to play with the stuffed toys that Lola's grandmother had made.

‘Let's play tea party’ Lola held up a teacup. 
Paige frowned  at Lola's suggestion, not wanting to play tea party again.

‘But we played that, yesterday’ Paige whined, making Lola grow frustrated at Paige. Still, Lola knew better than to argue so she let it go.

‘Fine, then. What would you like to do?’ Paige thought it over and then had an idea.

‘Let's play Hide and Seek.’

Lola had a reply ready on her lips wanting to say no but she was raised better. Besides, Lola didn't even know what hide and seek was, yet alone how to say no.

She nodded her head. ‘Alright.’

It had snowed heavily that night and in the morning the snow was waist high. Lola’s mother didn’t want the girls to be out for fear of losing the girls in the snow, but little girls being very persistent and throwing a tantrum or two got their way.

Lola’s mother persisted on the girls wearing red cloaks though so that the girls could find each other if they ever got lost.

The girls ran straight out as soon as they had their cloaks on ‘be safe’ Lola’s mother whispered as the girls ran off.

As soon as Paige was sure they were far away from the cabin she took off her cloak.

‘What are you doing?’ Lola asked holding her cloak tight around her.

Paige looked over at Lola ‘taking off my cloak’ Lola looked dumbfounded at Paige.

‘But my mommy said to keep them on’ she whispered. Paige looked at Lola like she was stupid.

‘Lola, if we keep the cloaks on it will be easier to find each other and the game won’t last long’ Lola just looked at Paige blankly, Paige sighed ‘do you even know how to play hide and seek?’

Lola shook her head slowly, not exactly knowing if this would be fun anymore.

‘Okay all you have to do is find somewhere to hide while I count to ten, okay?’ Lola nodded her head eagerly.

Paige started counting and Lola ran off knowing where to hide.

‘Zero, ready or not here I come!’ Paige ran around the house to see if Lola had hidden there.

Nothing. She then went to the barn and checked the hay stacks inside and out.

Nothing. Paige decided to go to the well near the woods because that’s the last place there was to hide that they were allowed to go to by themselves.

When Paige got to the well she saw a red cloak and ran towards it.

‘Lola! I found you! Now you count and I’ll hide’ Paige got closer to the cloak and noticed that Lola didn’t respond, ‘Lola?’

Paige saw that the cloak was just on a branch with no Lola.

Paige started crying because she knew that if Lola wasn’t here she wasn’t anywhere.

Present Day

                                                                                Melbourne, Victoria

‘Thank you, Ms Grace. I’ll be sure to give my mum the flowers’.

Ms Grace, smiles softly at me ‘take care dear’. I walk off with the violets in hand smiling to myself.

The doctors said that mum was finally getting better after four months of chemo with no results. I walked to my car and opened the door, sliding in. I put the keys in the ignition and swung out of the park space driving off to the hospital.

I was listening to the radio on the way to the hospital when my aunt called, pulling over onto the side of the road I answered the phone, ‘Hey Aunt Paige.’

‘Hey munchkin, how are you?’ the bubbly voice of my Aunt says, telling me that she’s in a good mood.

I smile happy to hear my Aunts voice, ‘I'm good just about to visit mum. Doctor Martin said that she was starting to get better.’

‘Oh, honey, that’s great news! I don’t want to hold you up so I’ll call you later alright’

‘Okay, Aunt Paige. Love you.’

‘Love you too munchkin. Bye’ I hear the click as the phone hangs up. I put my phone back in my bag and start the car again. Pulling back on the road I drive to hospital.

‘Hi, I’m here to see Narelle Williams’ I tell that nurse at the reception desk.

The nurse smiles kindly ‘Okay, let me just see which room she’s in’ the nurse types into the computer ‘she’s in the west wing, room 224, but she’s having surgery at the moment’

‘Oh, okay’ I say not knowing that mum would go into surgery today. The doctors said they would call prior to her going into surgery. I walk outside to my car and sit inside, deciding to call back Aunt Paige.

The phone rings four times before she picks up ‘Hey munchkin, how’s your mum?’

I sigh ‘I don’t know. They took her into surgery before I could say hi’

‘Oh, Cara. I'm sure she’ll be fine’ She pauses for a second, ‘You said that this would be her final surgery, right?’

I nod even though I know she can’t see me ‘yeah, the doctor is hoping to get all the cancer out of her lungs.’

‘Well, then we have a cause of celebration. Tell you what kiddo,’ She pauses and the sound of keys rattling can be heard in the background ‘I'm heading to the hospital right now and as soon as I get there we’ll grab a cuppa and talk about how you’re doing’ another pause as the sound of a car being unlocked is heard ‘sound good?’

I smile, my aunt has always been the optimistic one of the family, even when mum first went into hospital she was looking on the bright side of things.

I looked at my aunt who had a grim smile on her face ‘Don’t worry kiddo’ her smile brightened a bit ‘your mum will be fine. They found the cancer early, didn't they?’

I nodded my head and looked back at my aunt trying to figure out what she was getting at.

‘Well, then that means that she’ll be out before you know it’ she smiled the biggest smile I’ve ever seen ‘until then we get to spoil her rotten’

I smile remembering that day. Aunt Paige managed to bring a smile to my face even though I thought I would lose my mum that day.

I'm torn from my thoughts when a car honks at me. I look up and see my aunt smiling at me, gesturing for me to get in her Jeep.

I walk up to the car and jump in, buckling my seatbelt into place.

‘I hope you don’t mind, but I had to bring Heather along’ it’s only then I notice the two year old toddler in the back seat.

I smile at Aunt Paige ‘I don’t mind. You know how much I love my cousin, right Heather?’

Heather smiles and points at her mum ‘momma.’

I giggle at her, she’s just so darn cute.

Aunt Paige turns her head to me with a big bright smile on her face ‘guess she loves me more.’

I stick my tongue out at her, but she just ignores me and drives to the café.