Sighing, Melissa went to rescue what flowers she could. Picking up a broken marigold stem with the strong but gentle astringent scent surrounding her, Melissa had the strangest notion. She imagined the flower stem standing strong, healthy and unbroken. The tingle of chi in her fingers pulsed and flowed. With the sun behind them, the marigolds seemed to glow. Startled, Melissa almost dropped the stem, but the energy wasn’t done with her, as if the plant was drawing what it needed from her fingertips, from some reserve she was now conducting, and healing itself.
It was all Melissa could do to breathe in, her eyes dazzled by the sun or the chi. A minute or two was all it took before the energy stopped.
And the marigold stem stood tall and healthy, unbroken, almost defiant.
Melissa gulped i
