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Turning 18 wasn't any different than turning 17..or 16...or any other age. So when Ashley woke up that morning in May, it didn't even occur to her that it was her birthday. Greeted by the light patter of spring rain, she laid on her top bunk bed that she shared with her younger brother, looking out through the window. She loved the rain, especially the ones that are not too cold and falls when the suns out. 'What's it called again? Ah, sun showers' she thought, smiling slightly.

The foggy memory of her brother wishing her a happy birthday at 6 in the morning while she was half asleep drifted into her mind. 'Ah, so I'm 18 huh? Well... I can get my drivers license I guess..' , she nonchalantly thought. Suddenly, she heard the voices of her parents talking in the kitchen. It seemed that they were arguing about something urgent as they spoke quickly in their native tongue, Malayalam*. Still not fully awake yet, she grabbed her phone and checked the time. 'Whoah, 11? Her parents rarely let her sleep in like this!' she thought, 'Maybe they just wanted to be nice to the birthday girl?'.

Bits of their conversation drifted into the open door of the room and Ashley, curious to what they were arguing about, listened in. The words too young, not ready, and irresponsible was all she could catch. Ashley groaned, 'Okay, okay I get it, I'll wake up!' she thought, shuffling out her bed as quietly as she could so she wouldn't wake her brother. She climbed down the ladder, making sure she didn't scrape her knees against the computer table that was right next to the bunk bed. Their rented apartment didn't really have enough space, especially for the many things they owned. They had a single bedroom where her and her brother slept. The kitchen and living room were conjoined in another room, where her parents slept.

As she approached the kitchen, her parents suddenly stopped talking. Her mother, a slightly plump, fair skinned woman with kind but tired eyes, greeted her with a smile, "Happy Birthday". Her father, a tall, lean, darker skinned man with a stern look, gave her one of his rare hugs. She smiled at them and shook her head.

It was as if they weren't just talking about her just a few seconds ago.

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In the evening, Ashley reached her cousins house; they always celebrated her birthday with them. Surrounding a small strawberry chocolate cake with one candle lit, Ashley blushed as they all sang happy birthday to her, just like she usually did whenever she gets any kind of attention. Blowing out the candle, she made a wish, 'I hope all my prayers and wishes come true'. Yes, it was a vague wish. She wasn't even sure if something like that would even count, but that's what she had always wished for very year.

Ashley laughed out loud at her cousins and her brother as they joked around sitting on their usual spots on the living room sofa. Sprawling her feet, she cuddled into her little cousin and smiled, not imagining a better birthday. Suddenly, her aunt and uncle walked in along with her parents, holding a large gift bag in their hands. 'Presents?' Ashely thought, 'I thought they decided not to give me presents this year?' They all sat down on the carpet, waving Ashley to come down too. She looked at them curiously as an unexpected air of seriousness grew. Ashley's mother spoke up first, "Here is a special gift for you that we wanted to give you on your 18th birthday." she said.

Reaching into the bag, she took out a large red, box. Ashley's eyebrows rose, curious. 'Isn't that the boxes that usually keep jewelries?'. As soon as she thought that, the box opened, revealing a matching set of dangly gold earrings and a medium length gold necklace. Ashely's mouth opened agape. Her parents couldn't afforded something like this! And as if that wasn't surprising enough, her mom reached into the bag once again and pulled out a large red pouch, carefully taking out half a dozen set of thick gold bangles. Ashley gasped, 'Whaaaaa-?! What's going on?!' And then, as if things could get anymore unbelievable, her mother reached into the bag one more time, pulling out something wrapped in white tissue paper. Taking apart the delicate wrapping, Ashley's mother revealed a deep red cloth with intricate gold designs. 'A-a manthragodi*?!?' Ashely looked up at her mom, as if she was insane.

"Amma* why are you giving this to me!?" Ashley exclaimed. "Well...I told you I would give this all to you when you get older" her mother said, strangely avoiding her eyes. Ashley looked down on her lap at the beautiful ornaments, "Yea, when I get married! I don't need it now!" she exclaimed. After moments of silence, she looked up and into her mothers eyes, catching a glimpse of an emotion she couldn't recognize. "Just-just take it now" her mother said, hurriedly pushing the boxes and bag into Ashley's arms. Ashley looked at her cousins and brother, not surprised to find their confused faces matching her own. She then turned to her father, aunt, and uncle, trying to understand what was going on. However, their faces reflected her mothers, confusing her more.

But she didn't get any answers.

And soon with the night filled with karaoke songs, a good mystery movie, and delicious snacks, she momentarily forgot the looks on their faces.

It wasn't until much later when she would realize what it actually meant...

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The sun had just begun to warm up the day when Ashley was awoken to her mom urging her to get up. She groggily looked up at the clock hanging on the wall. "It's only 7..." she mumbled, drifting back to sleep. But her mom started pulling her up from her arms, "We need to tell you something, quickly!" she urged.

Ashley groaned as she sat up, her hair sticking up in several different directions. She didn't sleep that well last night, she had a strange dream. She could only recall bits and pieces of it. She remembered being caged in a beautiful garden. Even thought she had loved the flowers, she still tried to break free. But a figure was with her in the cage and the weird part was that she didn't even remember the persons face. She just remembered being unusually comforted by their presence.

'That had to have been Jesus...' she guessed as she waited in the dining room for her parents, '...and the cage must represent the world. Even though it is filled with beauty and happiness, it can never bring ultimate satisfaction. And God is the only one that can help us through it' she theorized. She often had thoughts like these. She knew it was strange since most people she knew didn't wonder about such things. But Ashley was a fairly religious person and also enjoyed occasionally thinking about philosophical things that included the world and the people in it.

Her thoughts were interrupted when her parents, aunt and uncle walked in and all sat down in the table. The serious mood reminded her of last night, causing her tiredness to fly out the window. The adults all continued to look at her strangely, no one saying a word. "Can you guys please tell me what's going on?!" Ashley exclaimed, having enough of this atmosphere. Her dad sighed and looked into her eyes, "Ashley mol*, tomorrow, your going on a trip". Ashley tilted her head slightly to the right, wondering what they were talking about. "A trip? But I have school tomorrow", she said. "Don't worry about school." Her aunt replied quickly, waving to her dad to signal that she was going to take over. Ashley looked at her parents, worried as to why her parents were acting so...gloomy? Her aunt continued,

" You've always wanted to go to Japan right? Well...tomorrow...that's where you'll go. Your flight is at 6 in the evening",

she said, unusually fast. Ashley gave them a blank stare, waiting for them to laugh; to say it was all a joke and that she needed to hurry up and study. But no one laughed. No one whipped out a Chemistry book. "What??" she asked, never more confused in her life. "Is it our vacation?" she asked, remembering how they went to India just last summer. "Um, no. Y-you are going alone" her mother spoke up. '...WHAT?!?...' Ashley thought, beginning to feel a bit light headed. "Mol*, your going to Japan tomorrow" her uncle said, more firmly and slowly. Ashley blinked a few times, her mind completely empty. It didn't matter how slow or how many times they could tell her, her mind was going to continue to reject what she had just heard. Her? Go to Japan? JAPAN?!? HER?!?

"But why?!?" she asked. Sure, she had always dreamed of going to Japan. Tasting authentic Taiyaki*, trying on a kimono, visiting shrines and bath houses...but only when she was old enough to buy her own ticket! She had never even imagined going with her parents paying! NEVER!! The adults looked at each other, then her father spoke up, "...Well, there's a special program there that will help you with your studies...". Ashley sighed, well that made A LOT more sense! Education was always on her parents mind, twenty four-seven. 'But still, why would they send me ALL the way to Japan for that?!' she thought. Her parents have always been protective and very strict over her. She was still, to this day and age, not allowed to walk outside the apartment alone. In fact, she couldn't even go to the grocery store that was 15 feet away from her apartment by herself! So the idea that her parents were sending her on a plane ALONE to a unknown land was impossible. But here they were, telling her just that.

"Don't worry, a friend of mine will pick you up from the airport and drop you to where you will stay" her father said. "You have a friend that lives in Japan?!" Ashley asked. It was almost as if she didn't know who her parents were anymore! "Yes I do. He's a very good friend of mine. Now we've already packed your things in a suitcase in the garage. We are going to go out now and prepare for tomorrow so take care of everyone..." he said as he started to get up from his seat, along with her mother, aunt, and uncle. But there were still so many unanswered questions she had like, where had they gotten the money to send her from, what exactly was the education program, and why are her parents letting her go to Japan just for that? But most importantly...

"When am I coming back?"

Ashley called out as the adults were about to go out the house. They all paused at the front porch. But after a few seconds they all continued walking towards the van, not turning back to respond.

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*Mol: a term of affection used for females in Malayalam

*Malayalam: a language used by the people in Kerala, a state in south India