The Girl who Talks Non-Stop

How I stumbled on this quote is too far in the past to recall. Maybe I related to it a little too much. It was on some tacky picture in girly cursive writing: the same girl who smiles and talks non-stop, is the same one who cries herself to sleep at night.

I wasn't always that girl. When I was in the third grade, my best friend called me a chatterbox on the playground during recess. I cried. Right then and there. For some odd reason, Little Nao found that comment very mean.

Little Nao isn't all that little anymore, even if her height suggests otherwise. She rides the bus by herself, and goes to a big school with 50,000 students. The buildings everywhere are too tall and the depth of the nearby ocean is a little overwhelming for her. She knows too many big bad secrets and it makes her sad. She is strong, but fragile.

Even on the most lonely and rainy day, she will greet you with a smile. She may not always be successful at hiding her sadness, but you will not see her cry. Behind that wall is a whole different world, where only a few are welcomed inside. And if you do encounter her tears, know that she trusts you with all her heart and wishes you stay in her life for a long time.

I want you to stay in my life for a long time.