Back and forth she swung. She wondered if she was too old to cry out in delight, but decided that inhibition was silly. What did she care if someone heard her laughing shriek? Who was around to hear her, anyway?

The man across the street, watering his lawn? The woman on her knees, pulling weeds? They wouldn’t notice a child’s laughter. It would simply blend into the idyllic summer afternoon.

The day was glorious. Sunny and warm with a slight breeze. The friendly neighborhood was pleasant. Even the grass and the trees seemed relaxed, letting the wind gently move them as it hurried along its way, enjoying the sun too much too get annoyed.

This day, this time in her life…it was all so perfect. She was young enough to be unplagued by the limits of responsibilty, at least today, but old enough to truly think, and really appreciate all that lay around her.

She smiled and laughed aloud, for she realized that it was here in that idyllic symphony that her shriek belonged.