The World We Know

Not many survived what the still living see as the end of all life as we know it. Unfortunately, I did. I mean sure, we’re still living and breathing. But is that really what constitutes a life? There are no more restaurants, concerts, movies, or anything of the sort. All we have left are books, which is especially difficult for me as I have a hard time focusing whenever I try to read. Thankfully, comics still exist. They are the only thing that I have left in this world that allow me to escape the harsh reality that has become my life.

Sometimes I feel guilty that I survived when so many did not. But then I think about how the world is and realize that they are actually the lucky ones. I still miss my family sometimes, especially around Christmas. Well, the time of year that used to be Christmas. To tell the truth, there have been moments where I’m tempted to join them, but I can never seem to bring myself that far. I don’t know if its fear or if its cowardice, maybe a combination of both. Maybe it’s neither.

I really do miss them though.

I usually start my day at the crack of dawn. I never thought I would have to start my days by starting a campfire, but here we are. How else am I supposed to boil these generic store-bought coffee grinds? Or heat up these frozen breakfast pouches? Thankfully the generators at the store down the street kept these puppies frozen long enough to still be edible. I carry a few boxes of them in a freezer bag, along with some ice packs to keep them good for a little while longer. The biggest pain is having to find a place to freeze the packs once they begin to melt. Not everyone is so trusting these days with the use of their resources.

You know how in movies the people in an apocalypse at one point band together to try and gain some sense of community? Yeah, that didn’t happen. That’s a fantasy and it’s honestly laughable that we used to think humans were capable of such a thing. Instead, the folks who survived natures culling have decided to hold up in their homes, sometimes even barricaded in to protect themselves from others. I suppose it’s not a whole lot different from what you would have seen in the Midwest or the south. You would just think that people would want to help each other, seeing as this is all humanity has got left.

What’s interesting to me, is the idea that outside of this hellscape that I call my home are countries that were actually prepared for something like this. Are their places left in the world that look and feel intact? I’m sure they must know about what’s going on here, but do they even care? Should they? I’d like to believe if there were still civilized people out there in the world, that they would want to come over here and help us. But then again, this is all hypothetical as its more than likely that they are dealing with the same tragedies that we are.

I do think it’s pretty funny how it only took a world ending apocalypse for the world to finally be on the same page.

When I was a bit younger, pre-end of the world, I always wanted to work in the film industry. I thought movies were the coolest thing. Visual storytelling is something that I always had a passion for, probably because I couldn’t read all that well. It’s really tragic to see something you always wanted to do get wiped off the face of the Earth. I guess it just goes to show that books are a timeless format. Good for authors. Too bad there won’t be anyone left to read these books in a couple of years. I’m sure that if people somehow survive this apocalypse, it won’t be too much longer until humanities hubris creates another one.

What a concept, huh? We spent so many years trying to save this planet, while the bigwigs in charge of these corporations wanted to capitalize space itself. It’s always been a money game. But what good is money if there are no goods or services left to spend it on? I wish they all could have realized that sooner.

Anyway, where was I? Right. After I’ve eaten and packed up my stuff, I normally move on and travel whatever direction feels best. I have had several run ins with folks who, for whatever reason just want to take my stuff. Luckily, I have been fortunate enough to look tougher than they are, so they normally back off. I’m sure that one day I will stumble upon the wrong person or group of people and things probably won’t go well for me. Maybe that’s the day I am reunited with my folks.

I really, really do miss them.

The only thing I have left from them is this necklace. The messed-up part about it is that it wasn’t even given to me. I found it in my parents’ bedroom, about a week after I realized that I was never going to see them again. It was something my mother would wear whenever she and my father went out. She used to tell me stories about the time they shared together before they got married. She had a lot of them. Apparently, he bought her this heart-shaped locket because it has a blue gemstone embedded in it. He would say he bought it because he loved how blue her eyes were and wanted something to represent that. My old man was a real Casanova.

The weirdest part about all of this is how fast everything happened. It feels like only a few years ago we were just getting used to having computers in our pockets. You could play music on your phone through the speakers in your car, without any cables! Stuff like that blew my mind. That was only 8 years ago. In the short amount of time, it took for technology to advance how it had, in only a fraction of that time it all became irrelevant. We don’t have the resources to power our homes or devices. Gasoline ran dry, so we have nothing to run generators with anymore. I am beginning to think that this is actually it. I don’t actually know much longer I can live like this. Whether my demise is of my own design or if I am attacked in the middle of the night by some poor, desperate soul. Either way, I take comfort in knowing that I will get to see my family again.

And I just miss them so damn much.