Being Present
Photo by https://pixabay.com/en/wet-glass-rain-drops-thunderstorm-350235/. |
Clenching his jaw, he became even more determined never to go back, silently
thanking the owner of his shelter, hoping that the unconsciously kind person
didn’t discover him squeezed between the push mower and the rakes, shovels, and
other implements. His back was pressed against the small shelves where the
potting supplies and other tools lived when they were not in use, and he knew
that he would be feeling the kinks from being crammed into that space—but it was
better than being soaked and cold. He sighed, realized that he was tapping his
foot against the floor and stopped—although, it would start again as soon as he
stopped thinking about it.
His stomach reminded him that he had not eaten all day, so he felt around
in his pack until his fingers crinkled the brown paper bag with the last of the
sandwiches he had found in a dumpster behind a gas station. The use-through
dates had expired, but as far as he could tell, the sandwiches were still
edible. He hadn’t died.
Lightning flashed and thunder cracked in quick succession, so close that
Larry nearly choked on his mouthful. Resuming chewing, he peered up to the small,
semi-transparent window: the landscape was still blurred out of existence by
the pounding H2O. He swallowed, closing
his eyes, taking a deep breath, the half-finished sandwich trembling in his
hand as he sat, hypnotized by the nearly continuous flashing of indigo and
rumbling of nature’s artillery.
After finishing the sandwich in a few more bites, he twisted himself into
a fetal position. Using his bag as a lumpy pillow, he tried to catch a bit of
sleep, which eluded him for a time, but the flashing and booming subsided,
leaving him with the steady droning of the rain…
His eyes opened; the rain had stopped and the sky was clearing. With a
little effort he stood and kicked open the door, knocking over the tools and
quickly fixing them, then closed the door and sat the lock on the handle—like
he had found it.
Stopping a moment to stretch the kinks out, he felt more refreshed than
he expected.
A chorus of birds heralded the sun as it broke
through the clouds, which dissipated before his eyes. He took in deep breath
and smiled, then started on his way, jumping over the puddles that had taken
over the now muddy path. He didn’t know where he was going, but at the moment,
he wasn’t going to worry about it.
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