Ella and Nadya

Ella asked me today to write about Nadya, her first friend. I've written about Ivor, her brother who was also Ross' true first and best friend. So here it goes. Nadya and Ella were 3 when they met and there was a bond right off the bat. They took to another very well, and looked so much alike that others thought they were sisters. They loved another, and played generally very well, but like sisters, they had their fights too. And quite often, they both needed a nap to melt their frustration with another. Ella would curl up on Nadya's bed, and they would take turns flipping through pages of bedtime books, and tell each other stories. Sometimes they would actually fall asleep, with a baby blanket, often a quilt Heidi had made, wrapped around them.

One day they got into a lot of mischief. Ella stayed behind at Nadya's house and while I was away they managed to get into paint and painted the carpet as well as themselves. It took a while scrubbing it out of Ella's hair and off her skin but I can't imagine the time it took for Heidi to scrub it off her carpet and anywhere else it had gone.

We often referred to the girls as twins. They were so much alike. They loved to dance when they were together. They would take turns turning up the volume when listening to Heidi's radio and dance. Sometimes the music got too loud and turned a little into a battle of wills.

The last time we saw Nadya, we turned on one of Ella's favourite songs, Dancing Queen. Ella grabbed on to Nadya's hand and they danced and looked so happy to be together doing the thing they loved most..to dance. I was a little heartbroken..because I knew Ella was having so much fun, she hadn't been this happy since seeing her friend months before. I was heartbroken knowing that this happiness would turn to sadness when she would have to see her friend leave once more for her home in a different province.

She often compares other little girls to Nadya but they are not the same. And this lack of sameness is so hard for Ella. She dreams of her forever friend and looks forward to a time when they will dance.