Neelima was three years old when she saw twins. Everywhere around her. So much so that she looked around herself to check if she had a twin too. While walking down the road, she would tug her mother’s hand, yanking it to share the excitement and wonder that was her world. But her mother was too busy buying vegetables from the twin vegetable seller to take notice.

Neelima was five years old when the words began floating around her. She was a short little girl and so her teacher always seated her on the first bench. When everyone was busy buried in their books, Neelima would sneak a peak at the blackboard and the words would jiggle and do a little dance for her before coming down to float around her head! No wonder that she was a joyful and always smiling little girl. Jiggling and dancing words would put anyone in a good mood!

Neelima was ten years old when she suddenly grew super tall and was sent to the back benches. She looked at her favourite blackboard from the back bench but the words simply would not dance for her. She was sad but also a quiet girl who never complained. So Neelima sat there quietly and looked at what her twin desk mates wrote and copied notes from them instead.

No one knew the secret world the Neelima lived in. She rarely spoke to others, talked only when spoken to and mostly kept to herself. As far as everyone knew, she was a sweet young girl who studied hard and did not cause any trouble.

Neelima was twelve when she saw her sister standing in the apartment balcony, gazing up at the sky in wonder.

Neelima went outside to her to see what had captured her sister’s attention. She gasped as she saw the amazing sight in the sky… there were three beautiful full moons out in the sky, shining in all their glory!

Her elder sister heard her gasp and said, “It really does take your breath away, doesn’t it. Such a beautiful full moon out tonight.”

Moon? Did her sister just say moon? Neelima rubbed her eyes and looked up again. Sure enough, three full moons stared back at her!

It was time for Neelima to finally break her silence. She asked her sister, “You mean you see only one moon up there?”

It was her sister’s turn to be shocked now. “Yes, how many do you see?”

“Three!”

“What?!”

“Yes, three!”

The very next morning, Neelima’s special world came to an end. She finally saw the world as everyone else saw it. No twins on the road, no floating letters. And definitely only one moon in the sky.

Neelima now knew she had experienced a world like no other. She hadn’t even known until that night with her sister in the balcony that she saw things differently from everyone else. Until that point she took it for granted that everyone around her saw three moons in the sky!

But what no one knew is Neelima continued to see things differently all her life. Because all she had to do to see her special three moons in the sky…. was to take off her new prescription glasses!