My parent's room had a bookshelf in front of their bed. Here they stored books and had a TV in the center. The shelf right above the TV was made of glass and would hold one or two photos of family members.

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Power shutdowns are still common in the city. They were more frequent when I was growing up. My mother would send my sister and me to light candles all around the house. One night, as we sat together in my parents’ bedroom during a blackout, my mother placed a long candle on top of the TV, where it would illuminate the most.

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I knew the candle would break the glass shelf just above it and I watched as the heat slowly stained the belly of the glass. Shortly after, the glass broke in half with a dry noise and the portraits fell to the floor.

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I claimed it was my fault. Sometimes I know things before they happen.

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April 2018