Luigi and I were having lunch at the mall when my phone rang.
"Ana, how are you? Pedro invited me to visit him in Germany, and he's already bought plane tickets for Bela and me. I told him I'd only go if you came too, and he said that was perfectly fine! So... how about Germany?" Lívia asked excitedly.
I stopped eating, stunned as I tried to process what I'd just heard.
"Tell him to buy tickets for Luigi and me too. We're going!" I answered without hesitation.
"Okay! I'll let him know!"
Luigi had been listening eagerly.
"What tickets, Mom?" he asked at once.
"We're going to Germany to visit Uncle Pedro and Helena."
"Yes! I'm finally going to fly on a plane!" he cheered.
A few moments later, my phone rang again.
"Pedro already bought the tickets!" Lívia announced, laughing with excitement.
"Tell him I'll settle up with him as soon as I get home."
"I will. You know... I'm afraid of going and needing help. You've always looked after me. And I wanted you to have the chance to see Europe too. I wouldn't feel right traveling and leaving you behind. That would be selfish."
"We're going to make wonderful memories together. Side by side through the hard times and the happy ones!" I said, thrilled.
Once I got home, I sent Pedro a message thanking him.
"It was nothing. We'll work out the details as we go," he replied.
The following day, Pedro created a group chat.
"Willkommen!"
"Good morning! I love the group picture!" I typed.
"Guten Morgen! It's Neuschwanstein Castle, in Schwangau, Bavaria," Pedro explained.
And through that group chat, we planned every detail of the trip.
At last, the long-awaited day arrived.
We made our way to the airport and, after a while, boarded the plane.
During takeoff, Luigi couldn't stop laughing. He was bursting with excitement and chatted with Bela the entire time. I, on the other hand, was terrified, and Lívia held my hand.
When lunch was served, Luigi ate far too much and ended up throwing up onto his plate.
Gross, I thought, trying not to laugh.
I feel so bad for the flight attendant, Luigi thought.
I hate you, the flight attendant seemed to think, her face twisting with disgust.
I took him to brush his teeth.
Later, we watched movies to distract ourselves.
The plane shook throughout the night because of the turbulence, and I couldn't shake my fear.
We finally arrived at Pedro's house that evening.
Helena made dinner, and we stayed up talking late into the night.
We were happy, excited, and grateful to finally be together.
The next morning, we gathered around the table for breakfast.
"That plant on the balcony... God is telling me to pray for it," Lívia said, pointing toward it with her chin.
It was completely dried out, its branches drooping toward the ground. Only a few shriveled fruits from the previous autumn still clung to its limbs.
"I traveled and was away for a month," Pedro explained. "Since no one was here to water it, it dried up."
"It spoke to me."
All of us stared at her in surprise.
"It told me it was sad... hurt... because it used to be loved and well cared for. Its owner used to talk to it. That's why it withdrew into itself."
Pedro smiled and shared a little of its story.
"Would you believe I actually had to argue to buy that plant? The woman didn't want to sell it to me. She said I wouldn't take good care of it."
"She was right," Lívia replied. "You're always traveling."
"After a lot of arguing, I finally convinced her."
I simply listened.
The children finished breakfast and wandered off to play.
"That plant has been spoken over with words of curse," Lívia said. "That's what the angels are telling me."
"You know who did that, don't you?" Pedro replied immediately. "My friend. He kept making me move the plant from one place to another. Nothing was ever good enough for him."
"The angels are showing me that your friend was bothered because the plant blocked his view. It didn't feel welcome... so it shrank back."
"Is it still alive?" I asked. All I could see were dry branches.
"Yes," Lívia answered without the slightest hesitation. "It's still there."
"I had no idea plants could communicate," I admitted, still struggling to believe it.
"Neither did I. This is the first time a plant has ever spoken to me," she said, sounding just as surprised.
Without another word, Lívia stood up and walked into the kitchen.
She prayed over a small bottle of olive oil, added a few drops to the watering can, then carried it out to the balcony.
As she watered the plant, she prayed, rebuking every evil influence and every spoken curse.
Meanwhile, Pedro washed the dishes while I dried and put them away.
When Lívia came back inside, she looked at him.
"Pedro, you're going to water this plant with this water every day."
He nodded quietly and put the watering can aside.
Then she continued.
"You also need to ask the plant for forgiveness."
Pedro didn't answer.
He simply stood there, thoughtful.
I have to admit, I was still struggling to believe any of it.
Ask a plant for forgiveness? I wondered.
Has my sister lost her mind?
Afterward, we got ready to go out.
Beanies, gloves, thick socks, boots, scarves, and heavy coats—we were fully prepared to face the one-degree weather.
"Do you think we'll see snow today?" Luigi asked excitedly.
"We might. It's certainly cold enough," Helena replied.
"Pedro, pull over! I want to take pictures!" I pleaded.
He stopped by the roadside so I could admire the beauty of the Black Forest.
Snow blanketed the ground.
"We finally get to play in the snow!" Luigi shouted.
Before long, we were in the middle of a full-blown snowball fight.
We laughed every time someone landed a hit.
Luigi grabbed a huge chunk of ice and threw it at Bela.
"I'm going to get you now!" Bela yelled, hurling another piece right back.
Luigi collapsed onto the snow laughing before scrambling to his feet and running from her.
The landscape looked as though it had stepped straight out of a fairy tale.
Some pine trees were deep green, while others had turned white beneath the snow. The ground was covered with soft, damp brown grass that sank beneath our boots.
A powerful wind swept through the forest, filling the air with a low, haunting hum.
I drifted away from the others, wanting to listen more closely.
I longed to walk deeper into the forest, among those distant trees.
"Ana! Come take a picture with me!" Lívia called.
"I'm coming!" I answered, as though waking from a trance.
The forest is alive, I thought. Alive with something vast and powerful.
"Lívia, I just remembered that prophecy—that God would put boots on my feet so I could walk paths I'd never walked before."
"That's right," she said, slipping her arm through mine. "And He fulfilled that promise."
"I'm so grateful."
The sky glowed with countless shades of orange, and the scent of the forest lingered in the crisp air.
On the drive back, Pedro glanced through the windshield and said,
"It's strange... by this time of year, we should've had a lot more snow. Everyone keeps saying the real cold hasn't arrived yet."
"I asked God not to let it snow too much," Lívia confessed. "I know that was selfish."
"Very selfish," Pedro agreed with a laugh.
"I was afraid it would get so cold that we wouldn't be able to go sightseeing," she explained. "God granted my wish."
Helena turned on some music, and we sang all the way home.
The next morning, after washing the breakfast dishes, Lívia quietly went into her room.
"Are you okay, sis?" I asked.
She lay down on the bed, resting one hand over her breast.
"I just had every exam imaginable, and everything came back clear. But now there's a lump. Feel it."
I placed my hand where she indicated.
It was small.
And hard.
"Maybe it's nothing," I said, trying to reassure her while hiding my own concern. "When we get back home, make an appointment with your doctor."
Silence settled between us.
"So..." I finally said, "shall we get ready to go out?"
That day we finally visited the magnificent Neuschwanstein Castle—the very one in our group photo.
Built during the second half of the nineteenth century, it was the inspiration for Sleeping Beauty's Castle.
And, to our delight...
it snowed.
Only lightly, but enough to fill us with joy.
"Did you apologize to the plant, Pedro?"
"I did," he replied, nodding.
And every single day, Pedro faithfully watered the plant with the blessed water.
"I hope you get better..."