The Athorvisesa Prayer

By her twenties, the prayer was just like a reflex. I would say it some nights before bed, and when i was home with my family, it would roll off my tongue without thinking. Five years ago, i was 28, living a version of my childhood dream life. And then on july twelfth, two thousand 13, i was out running errands in my neighborhood. The hospital was a blur of tests. Eventually they said i should go home. It was so jarring entering my apartment for the first time. My morning coffee cup was still in the sink, my pyjamas still on a chair in my bedroom,. Everything, including me, looked normal from the outside,