he tries to yell for help , but the words will not come out of his mouth . but it ca n't hurt to make sure , right ? as long as he forgot it had once been a person . christmas was a celebration of birth-one birth in particular . i just met him out in the swamp . he ran his hands through her hair , feeling its smooth weight ( like rain , he thought , rain with weight ) , then took her shoulders and kissed each of her cheeks . 