The Diary of Joy

Peace

5. Peace, the year of the Phoenix

Dear Angel,

My whole family is awesome but I think the one person with whom I get along the best is Peace.
He is the most perfect brother anyone could wish for, and he shows that every day, including today.
You see, I often have these amazing ideas about fun games that we could play, and they are awesome, but not all my siblings agree.

Today I made the most amazing game ever where we would have to do many challenges to finish the game which was like a huge board painted in the ground.
There was a start and then a lot of different obstacles we had to go through as well as different challenges we had to fulfill to win the game.
It was the most wonderful thing I have ever made.

A huge playing field with beautifully decorated squares that marked how far we have gone in the game and the challenges themselves were very well-made, but some of my siblings thought it was too hard and not fun enough.
What is not fun in wrestling with a monkey and going through the Great Waterfall of Fairy Peace?
There were a lot of different, fun things to do and the winner would get The Enchanted Strawberry of Joy, what more could one ask for?
If you were wondering, The Enchanted Strawberry of Joy is my own invention and it the most perfect thing ever.

Instead of admiring me for being a genius who put together a game that would be both fun and healthy, Chatterbox dared say that it was the most ridiculous idea he had ever heard.

He said that no one had ever done something like that.
I would have tried to explain to him that only because it was never done before it didn't mean it shouldn't be done if I hadn't been so angry with him for trying to crush my dreams.
New things can be fun and exciting, trust me, I know.

Besides Mischief, I am the greatest adventurer in our family, but of course, my way of exploring the world is much safer and I usually listen to mom and dad, unlike Mischief.

Upon seeing my crestfallen expression, Peace came to me and hugged me tightly like he rarely did, but it meant so much more when he did do it.
"It sounds like an awesome game to play, and I am sure mom and dad will think so, too." Peace told me.
That, of course, brought back the smile to my face, and I was once again back to my cheerful and energetic self.

Of course, dad was thrilled with the idea and I think even mom was equally excited about it, but she did her best to be an adult and keep us all safe and sound.
I could see that she wanted to let go and enjoy herself, but she was too worried about us to do so.
That was when I came up with another great idea.

"Dad, why don't you two cast a protection spell over the whole field. That way both you and mom can enjoy the game without worrying about us," I said.
Mom gave me the most grateful smile I have ever seen and that made me even happier that I came up with that idea.

As you can imagine, my idea turned out to be the most fun thing ever, as we kept running around dodging obstacles, solving puzzles and generally having a lot of fun.
Of course, the obstacles were adjusted so that even people without magic could pass them with a bit of effort.

It was funny to see Mischief trying to cheat by skipping one field and only to end up in a small pond nearby, soaking wet.
The look of irritation on her face was priceless.
After magically drying her, we went on with the game.

Dad had the most difficulty in Catch the Magical Bird Challenge where he kept falling down, nose first, in the mud through which he was supposed to chase and catch the mirage of the magical bird.
No matter how many times he fell down he always got up with newfound strength and eagerness to win the game.

Peace, however, took his time.
In every field there was at least one challenge, or puzzle and Peace would always take his time to think through his actions, what the best way to approach that particular field would be and only then would he act.
Then he would go through the field without a hitch.

One of the fields was crowded with different things that he had to avoid, mostly animals, such as snakes, bears, and so on and Peace finished that field in a matter of seconds.
He did it by jumping above them, around them, hanging from the high trees. You name it, he did it.
Who would've thought that anyone could be so flexible and strong? I sure had no idea Peace could do all that.

It was good to see Peace having fun. From all of us, he is the one who has fun the least.
I am not sure why that is the case, but often times we catch him being sad and of course we do our best to make him feel better.

I guess that has to do with the fact that he wasn't dealing so well with what happened to him and Chatterbox when they were smaller.
We found the twins when I was just a baby, well actually I found them.
Mom always likes to say that my curiosity was the thing that brought our family together, as it is right now.

We were taking a long walk in the woods and I used my wings to make my escape, at least that's what mom says.
The next thing she knew, I was dusting the twins I had found with rainbow-colored fairy dust (my signature dust right now) while the twins giggle excitedly.
There was this instant bond of kinship created between us and although Chatterbox can sometimes be a bee in my rose garden, I love both of them dearly.

Once mom and dad brought them home with us, Chatterbox was able to get used to his new surroundings fairly quickly, but Peace still had some problems.
No matter how much love and attention mom and dad gave him, he seemed afraid of them or maybe just cautious, I am not sure.
With us children, he was okay, but for months he didn't leave his brother's side, as if he was the only sure thing about Peace's life which he probably was at the time.

What was worse, he would wake up in the middle of the night screaming and crying, but when approached by our parents he would recoil from touch as if they might hurt him.
Even his brother couldn't help him so much because he couldn't understand his behavior, his fears, because Chatterbox didn't share them.

Desperate, my mother asked her animal friends for help and surprisingly enough Peace reacted best to uncle Marselius, my mom's dog friend.
The reason that is so surprising is since uncle Marselius is the grumpiest dog I have ever seen. Mom says he was like that since he was a puppy.
If I were sad or scared I would definitely want by my side someone as positive as aunt Clementine, not someone as grumpy as uncle Marselius.

However, from the moment they met, Marselius and Peace seemed to share a special bond of understanding and trust.
For the first time, we could see Marselius allowing someone to pet him and actually enjoying it, as was usually expected of a dog.
Marselius has never been what you would call a 'usual' dog, but there he was letting Peace pet him and actually playing with him.

He was the only one who could calm Peace down after a terrible nightmare for a long time, until he finally started fully trusting mom and dad, accepting them as family, accepting us as a family.
Still, even to this day Marselius and Peace have a special bond that none of us can understand.
I think it's because Marselius had some similar issues as Peace since he was abandoned in the forest when he was just a small puppy.

They probably shared similar fears and pains and that bonded them in special ways that were difficult for others to understand, even Chatterbox couldn't understand.
Having such a different type of personality, he quickly forgot everything that happened before we found them and just enjoyed life as it came.

Oh, here is Peace now. I better get to hiding you since he shouldn't know I am writing about him.
He would be embarrassed or sad even.

Your friend, always.

Joy