Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Shit Happens

Shit happens. It happens to all of us. When it does, it is hard to maintain a positive attitude and continue to focus on forward movement. I have a tendency to obsess, playing and replaying self-defeating scenarios that keep me stuck and miserable.

At lunchtime yesterday, I drove to the park near work intending to read. Depressed and unhappy, reading was the most energy I could manage. Instead, I took out my Neo, propped it on my steering wheel and just began typing. Before I knew it, I was three minutes late getting back to work. I couldn’t believe all of that time flew by. And I felt a million times better. That’s why I love to write.

* * * * *

Adam shivered in the cool of dusk. He awoke to the point of a sword. He followed the blade to the gloved hand holding the hilt. He continued up the wrist to the elbow and on up to the face looking at him. The face contained the normal features placed in the normal places with the exception of a mountain range scar beginning at the hair line above the left eye and moving diagonally down the forehead over the right eye across the cheek and ending at the tip of the right ear. The top lid of the right eye was glued to the bottom lid, oozing yellowish crusty bits. The other eye flashed a bright alert blue with each blink. The mouth worked like a bass out of water, all lips and no teeth.

Adam began to speak but stopped when the tip of the sword flicked up and carved a chunk out of his chin. He felt the warm driplets of blood fall on his collar bones. He waited for the sword’s next move.

The sword wobbled slightly in the palsied hand. The head wobbled a bit on the palsied neck. The mouth opened and words came out.

“Ya ain’t got much, have ya?” The mouth closed, the lips working against each other, forming their next thought. “Course, there is something to giving the very last that ya’ve got to give.” The sword rose and etched a cross on Adam’s right cheek. Blood blossomed in petals on his skin and poured down the stem of his scrawny neck. He closed his eyes and gritted his teeth, holding back the squeal of pain that came up from the empty pit of his stomach.

“Come now, ya can do better than that.”

Adam released an agonized scream as the sword sliced off the tip of his right ear.

“Now we are getting somewhere.”

Adam looked into the satisfied eye of his tormentor. Drool dribbled from the corner of the man’s mouth as if he were salivating over a juicy haunch of meat.

Adam watched as the man transferred the sword to the left side of Adam’s face. He clenched his mouth shut as the man sliced off the tip of Adam’s left ear.

“Now ya head will not be lopsided.” The man giggled with a sickening pleasure. “But ya have cheated me of my joy. Perhaps we need to raise the stakes a bit in our little game.”

The man began to slice up the left leg of Adam’s ragged breaches, nicking his thigh in several places on the way to Adam’s groin. Adam tried to suppress his cries and fear but tears flowed from his closed eyes. He sobbed and begged for mercy in mumbled and incoherent phrases.

The fiend cutting off bits of Adam gave a gargled cry and Adam opened his eyes when a heavy weight fell upon him.

The man lay dead on Adam’s lap, a dagger protruding from his back. The man’s blade lay between them gouging a new injury into Adam’s thigh.

Above them sat a man on horseback calming reviewing the scene.

“I don’t think the sheriff will mind much if all of your pieces are not there, do you?”

Two men on foot came from behind the horse at a signal from the rider. One hefted the dead man off of Adam and tossed him aside. He took hold of the sword and slung it into the pack on his back. The other man went behind the tree and cut the ropes binding Adam.

Once released, Adam fell over. The two men hauled him to his feet after binding his wrists and ankles and hoisted him belly down over the horse in front of its rider.

The rider spoke to the back of Adam’s head.

“What say you? I dare say, a nice clean beheading looks pleasing about now, aye?”

21 comments:

  1. And I felt a million times better. That’s why I love to write.

    You found your method of meditation! That activity that relaxes you, where time just seems to disappear. You can spend hours doing something and it feels like seconds.

    Hugs!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dan: I meditate, too, but the effect is not the same as when I write. I love that state of timelessness. It is a break that my mind needs and can't get anywhere else. I know you know what I mean. Thanks for the hugs and the understanding.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ness, I know, I know.

    I wish I could do this.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I agree with Dan...you have found your method of meditation...and I might add your way of purging.

    I enjoyed your visit and my house and studio sure smells good now! :)
    Thank you!!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I used to love to write, now I ponder what I would write if I felt like writing hehe

    That Neo device looks pretty cool!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Jenn: I know. Sometimes it seems so hard just to start.

    Mo'a: I had a wonderful time. You and your husband are so sweet. Your has is amazing and I loved your studio.

    se7en: The Neo makes it much easier to get the pondering out.

    ReplyDelete
  7. That is excellent! It's a shame that life is constructed to keep us so busy trying to be "successful" at so much that doesn't bring our souls any real enrichment...and a simple bit of time to create and follow our heart can be so powerful!

    Good for you, dear. Keep it up and thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  8. C: I keep trying to win the lottery but so far I have to keep going to work; D

    ReplyDelete
  9. Was that an Adam and Eve story? Cool. I'd write but I'm so good at saying nothing right now; why spoil it.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Your story conjured up the picture of ratchety old vikings, trying to survive in less than stellar times...wow! Is all that violence directed toward your place of the daily grind? :-) I like the way you get your thoughts typed so neatly - nifty little machine you have there.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Boy. Tough day for Adam.

    Nice break for Nessa.

    ReplyDelete
  12. I so love being able to inhabit a world I've created. It certainly helps me with having to handle this one!

    ReplyDelete
  13. You took out a Near Earth Object ?
    What is a Neo? I think I need one.
    Glad you felt better. Your words calm me down and make me feel better.

    ReplyDelete
  14. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  15. VE: Yes, it was. Eve is watching from behind the bush. Silence speaks louder than words.

    Tsduff: At first I thought this was totally unrealted to what I was feeling at the time, but obviously I’m good at deluding myself.

    Gawilli: I wonder if Adam’s day ever got better. Should he escape the sheriff’s men?

    Logo: Yes, the real one becomes not so real for a while.

    Swampy: See previous post for Neo link. And I’m glad you feel better, too. Thanks.

    Anon: Stop trying to save me.

    ReplyDelete
  16. I am so happy that you enjoy writing. You are talented and I so enjoy visiting here :)

    ReplyDelete
  17. Yopu could call this Adam's ends.
    Just a note that you won the contest at the Fortress today. Stop by and let us know if you want the prize of the day or what's behind a door.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Ya know, every time me comes here me gets lost among the multitude of blogs you have. This place seems to get the most action, but don't have the pictures that me likes to look at.

    Iffin ya were enjoyin yer lunch break so much ya shoudda called into work and told yer boss that ya got mugged and were at the police station fillin out a report. Then ya could have spent more time on yerself and with Adam.

    STOMP.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Pauline: Thank you so much.

    Dr. John: Yeah, he was real cut up about it, too. Yuck, yuck; D I saw that I won. I am excited. I responded to your email.

    Monster Man: There are cartoons I made on Creationist Thinking and Photos at Wings Unfolding.

    Where you you with your good ideas the other day? I will remember this excuse for the future. Can I say I did the mugging and I was being booked? That would really mess with them.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Oh, my, got out all your hostilities in that one, didn't you?! :-) Good one, Nessa.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Jackie: Better than climbing a tower; D

    ReplyDelete