Worry always ruminated inside the parents’ minds. They worried about their girl, Gabriella, since they found out she was a special child. The doctors reassured them frequent speech and reading therapy sessions would get her speaking and reading just like her peers. Seven years had passed, and they still headed to the therapy center each evening on the dot, with their faces carrying a tense expression. There hadn’t been a clinic left unvisited, a doctor they hadn’t consulted, and they scoured the internet for advice until bloodshot eyes and sagging cheeks began to show up on their bleak canvas-like faces.

They didn’t know what their child felt, and couldn’t even know if the therapy worked. At first, they aimed for sentences and phrases, but now, the thought of forming basic words seemed obscure. Her parents worried deeply about her education. Quite justified when they couldn’t even tell if their child absorbed any of the information, or even comprehended the whirlwind of sentences the teachers hurled at her. There still hadn’t been her “first words” moment. As for friends, they came and went. The neighborhood kids were fine, but their parents stopped them from socializing with the girl. Some of them would even ask “is she dangerous”, like a firecracker with a short fuse, waiting to go off at any minute. But the parents didn’t seek sympathy, they hoped for progress. They even played songs and speeches at all times when at home, in the hopes she would recite some words at least. They even bought a Walkman online, which her mom kept in her bag, for the occasional car ride and outdoor shopping sprees. But what they saw at her school would be, putting it mildly, progress.

Her parents came to pick her up from school, as always. Her teacher handed them the flyer for the annual talent show, asking if their child wanted to participate, already half-heartedly knowing the answer as the question stumbled off the teacher’s lips and hung like an unwanted cloud of fog in the room. The parents decided to go, not for seeing their child participate, since she wouldn’t be. In order to perform in a talent show, you first need to understand what talent you have. The parents wanted to believe that Gabriella had talent as well, but it was becoming harder with each passing day. Instead, it was one of their numerous, sometimes disastrous attempts at getting their child to socialize among her classmates. So, on Friday night, they packed themselves into their Fiat 500, admittedly more of an impulse purchase than a practical one, but at least it’s not a Peugeot. The car started much more smoothly today, without inciting an appalling racket from the engine. The air felt damp, having just rained, with the sun peeking hopefully out from the clouds, and the sun’s rays breaking through the clouds and the moisture hanging around in the air. The slightly cool outdoors and the amount of sunshine they received meant good weather was ahead. A rarity when living in the north of the U.K. Her parents used to believe in omens and astrology, but now they began to believe in miracles for their child.

They arrived at the school parking lot and sat down in the auditorium, a little late. After a few of the slightly cheesy acts, another student hopped on stage, with the itinerary listing “joke-telling” as the next act. Some started droning out, and others politely struggled to muster as much laughter they could from the depths of their lungs. Gabriella’s parents began to engage in conversation with another group about the new community recreation center. All of a sudden, Gabriella ran on stage and managed to get far enough because of her parents’ small talk. The teacher on stage organizing the event noticed Gabriella bouncing on her feet and dashing wildly. The parents began to head to the stage, trying to remain as calm as one could when speedwalking in tight jeans. Onstage, Gabriella eagerly reached for the teacher’s microphone. The teacher, amused by the child’s curiosity, handed her the mic. “Come on, what do you want to say to the audience?”, the teacher prodded.

To the parent’s shock, their girl began to sing. And to everyone’s shock, she sang amazingly well. 

At that moment, all the parents took back their mental accusations and assumptions.

At that moment, did all the kids forget about the times when their parents called her a “special kid”.

At that moment, did their parents stop worrying.

Even the kid telling jokes stopped, turning around to see the person that managed to usher a blanket of quietness caused by awe over the entire auditorium. Everyone got off their phones and abruptly halted their small talk.

Her parents did continue the speech therapy, but they quickly added on music classes offered by the local recreation center, as well as the assorted courses they found online. They no longer carried a tense look on their faces like a burden. So-called natural talent came naturally for everyone, the parents began to believe, in some way, shape, or form. Her parents became so worried about her inability to talk, but their fears had been settled by her extraordinary ability to sing.