Nefretiri
The carousel slowed but didn't stop completely.
My eyes fluttered open as I awoke from the vivid dream. I knew it was a memory, but the strangeness of seeing the world from my toddler self and still having the comprehension of an adult was disorienting. It's easier to think of it as something dreamt than reality because that little girl felt whole where I wasn't. She could see the world as she wanted without being told and knew who she was.
More than that, little me knew she was loved and protected.
