Homeless
Never had Amy seen the sky so close before. Thousands upon thousands of stars stood out in the night to greet her as if she were the only person in the world.
She stood alone upon the mountaintop with map in hand and the rest of her party sleeping below. It had been a long climb to reach here and Amy hadn�t been all that pleased with the prospect of going on the trip to begin with. All her parents ever did was travel. �It�s our job,� they always said. �We have responsibilities to others not just you. Some day you will understand.� And every summer like clockwork they would uproot Amy and take her on another boring adventure�to the Andes to Cairo to China. Always somewhere where there was no phone no friends and no one to talk to.
This was the first time Amy had ever felt anything on her parents little trips except boredom and the distinct feeling that life was unfair. An amazing calm swept through her as the night wind teased her blonde sun-bleached hair. The world came together in a swirl of life and light and hope. A sense of belonging filled her chest, a gasp escaped from her lips and then she saw the light fill the sky as it filled her. The light unlike anything she had ever felt cascaded through and around her in waves of feeling. First pink then yellow then blue, all the rainbow displayed in all its glory and Amy in the center of the action. No, action was not the word, action was too purposeful a word; this was more like a happening, a cosmic happening, a spiritual renewal.
Just as she felt she might be a part of the greatest event in history one of the camp came up to her and tapped her on the shoulder. Breaking the dream and waking her rudely from the happiness she had found for the first time in her life.
�Want some hot chocolate?� the spoiler asked.
Amy sighed disgruntled and walked away in a huff leaving the fellow camper in complete astonishment.
Why couldn�t they just leave her alone, all of them? Every time it happened she was disrupted by something? The lights that encompass her are perfection embodied, if you can say lights are embodied, and every time Amy starts to be part of them some moron has to come along and ruin everything. Tears streamed down Amy�s face. Hot and stifling against her cool skin. The wind has even abandoned her now, just like everything in her life.
Amy walked as far from the camp as she could on tired legs. She sat on the cold hard ground and pulled her knees up to her chin. Whether she was more sad or angry she didn�t know but she knew she had to do something about it. If she did nothing then all her dumb little life would just continue to fall to pieces like always.
�Well that settles it,� she shouts, �I am going to do something then. I just wish I knew what to do.�
Amy heads back to camp now with a purpose. A new lease on life. Something to strive for. A new start. Or something like that.
The next day Amy marches to her parent�s tent and gives them a piece of her mind. How she hates it here and wants to have a normal life. Her parents look up from their work at their only child.
�What�s wrong sweetie, did someone upset you?�
�No, you don�t understand. You never do. I want a life, a stable life. Just, never mind I will get a ride home myself!� Amy screams and stalks out of the tent.
The very next day Amy is on a flight back to the States not exactly sure this is what she wanted but happy that she got results.
�Now maybe I can be normal,� she whispers.
Arielle Griffin, 5-02