My mother stopped to get gas at a station in a little strip center across the road from a large park. She handed me the keys and left without shutting the door. I absent-mindedly let them fall in my lap, forgetting they were there when I idly parted my legs. I heard the keys jingle as they fell against my seat with a thump. I looked down and picked them up to examine them. There were two tags and a golden cross attatched to the ring. The first tag was blank, and I pushed it aside to reveal bold text carved in the second. It read:
HOPE
EVERY DAY IS A NEW BEGINNING.
Just then, I felt as though I should look out the window. There were cars passing swiftly on either side of the road, but across this raging river of smog and steel was the peaceful, desolate park known as Veteran's. It was a beautiful park, or at least its meadow was thus. My eyes continued to move to greet places farther and farther out, until they fell upon a distant tree. The tree was marvelous, though it held an eerie aura of sorts, and seemed to mask some malignance. As I examined its form more closely, I noticed that a large limb that extended from its base had been cut down. Part of this disembodied limb had been positioned beneath the tree itself for a convenient sitting place for passers by. I suddenly felt a strange sensation, as I looked upon it, and began reminiscing of things long since passed...
~:~
Beka and I were taking a pleasant stroll through Veteran's Park. It was a bright and sunny afternoon. A few clouds drifted by overhead, urged onward by a gentle breeze which occasionally brought us relief from the sun's caresses.
As we left the wooded area to greet the park's meadow in all of its splendor, we noticed a large tree in the very center of it. Beka and I merely turned occasionally to watch it move slowly as we followed the concrete trail. It so resembled that of a magical tree. The kind in stories, where it held the forbidden secret of some mystical realm. Like a gateway, or a portal. Or perhaps it was a spring from which all life drew its sustinance.. We looked to eachother and grinned, before breaking away from the path to meet it. The wind rang in my ears as I ran. It was blowing against us. Whether it did this forebodingly, or whether it was merely a coincidence was a mystery to me. One which did not occur to me at the time. We were like children again, though we contained ourselves, for fear of being thought of as "childish" by the other.
As we ran, I thought repeatedly to myself that we should have already reached the mysterious landmark, though it seemed instead to grow larger rather than nearer, as time passed...
Finally, we had reached our destination. The tree was much larger in person; each branch extended several feet above me; some were at least three times my height. Beka and I looked from the tree to eachother, but it didn't take long before Beka decided to scale it. The trunk of the tree was gnarled in places, and one branch protruded from the very base of it which offered a good foothold, making it easy to climb. I watched her every step as she made her ascent. She stopped at the top of the branch and carefully positioned herself to sit, smiling broadly at me from above. I knew this was a challenge, so I quickly plucked up the courage to do the same, though much more slowly...
At last, I had made it to the apex of the branch. Very carefully, I raised my torso, placing both hands beneath me for support, and turned myself over so that I was at least lying in the right direction. No sooner had I done this did I hear a voice from below,
"Hey, you guys!"
I quickly turned to face the ground below me and saw a man of about 35, bald, in a white wifebeater and bluejeans. For a split second, my curiosity overtook my fear and I wondered how it was that bald men always had shinier heads... Beka's response, however, brought me back to reality, "Hi!"
I smiled nervously out of politeness.
"Hey! I saw you guys across the field." (I noticed by this time how desolate the park was)... "Shouldn't you be in school?"
"Oh, we're homeschooled," Beka, once again, replied.
"Ahh.. Homeschooled," he paused for a moment, before abruptly introducing himself (though I can't recall his title) and asked, "What's your name?" From the looks of it, he was inquiring this of both of us, though his grammar said otherwise. I was still smiling awkwardly and looked unsuredly to Beka, though was taken aback by the sound of her answer, "I'm Beka, and this is Ashley."
The man nodded and muttered a half-hearted response, as he absent-mindedly scanned the field. He then looked upwards once more and asked, "So.. Can I climb up there with you guys?" He held up his hand. I noticed a tattoo of black thorns snaking around his wrist.
Once more, I turned to Beka unsuredly, praying that she would not reply. I was relieved when she turned to face me with the same nervous expression. We both turned back to face him, though this time, I was the one that spoke, "Well... It's pretty hard to climb," I said dryly with the same grin. He turned from us to the field and began walking, as though he had suddenly lost interest in us. One could only compare this action to that of a predator who had been attempting to coax its prey into its midst before simply realizing that it was not worth it, and moving on to its next victim. Beka and I sighed in relief and waited several minutes before descending...
~:~
My mom shut the car door, as she climbed in and robotically reached for the ignition, though there was nothing to turn. I watched her before offering the keys, which she accepted. As we pulled away from the station, I looked back at the gnarled tree with its missing branch and smiled optimistically...
THE END
[Faelan] · Wed May 23, 2007 @ 05:12am · 6 Comments |