humanity
For better or for worse, relationships reveal the core of the human condition.
Devil May Care
“Excuse me sir? You can’t smoke here.” Malice snapped his lighter closed. Slowly looking up at the nurse standing in front of him, clad in pink scrub pants and a white scrub top adorned with little kittens in various states of play . A warm friendly smile spread across his face as he pushed off the wall. “Oh I don’t smoke, truly filthy habit if you ask me, I just find the mechanics and the sounds of the lighter to be very soothing.” Hey said as he slipped the lighter back into the pocket of his black satin vest buttoning up his black suit jacket. The nurse smiled back at the demon of vengeance politely nodding. “Well that's alright then, just please be mindful of the no smoking and no open flame signs, we have a lot of patients on oxygen on this floor.”
By Greg Metro5 years ago in Humans
The Unknown
As the morning began, my body spilled out of the bed like the morning cup of joe that would splash the bottom of my favorite mug. The dim sunlight from the slits in the blinds peeked into my dark room, slightly illuminating the sleeping faces of my daughter in bed. She turned onto her side as I headed for the bathroom. I hated to leave her in the morning. My job as a Teacher's Assistant hardly paid the bills, but made sure to take up most of the day that I could be spending with her. My wife moaned softly as she opened her eyes and murmured, "good morning." I groggily uttered a loving reply. My days were robotically repetitive, ranging from getting up in the morning at 5:30 am, making my usual cup of joe in my thermal mug that I've had for five years, to bagging my lunch in a plastic bag before hustling to work. Getting home at late hours was normal for me. Midway attempting to lock my front door, a bird, -maybe a hawk,- skimmed the clouds. A rare appearance indeed.
By Eliman Jeng5 years ago in Humans
The simple things
It was a lovely sunny day when Aahan went out to take a walk. He loved the outdoors, possibly as much as he loved life. It just was such a sensory place to be. Relaxing, whilst also stimulating all of the senses all at once. He couldn’t adore the sunrays on his back, the beautiful array of colours and the birdsong more than he already did. He was constantly in awe of the beauty and because of this his eyes were always wandering when he was outdoors, absorbing all that goodness. That was why, that one fateful day, he spotted in the long green grass, slightly hidden from sight, a small black book. It was hidden from anybody that was just walking past, not really paying attention, but for Aahan, it was obvious as day. He looked around to make sure that nobody had dropped it, and leant down to pick it up. He gingerly opened it, not knowing what to expect. Inside it, were some stunning drawings of this exact landscape with colours translated almost exactly as what he could see. He flipped through the book, and every picture was this identical backdrop, but with different lights and seasons. There were sunsets and sunrises of every colour, there were deep and ominous clouds, there were storm scenes, there were blustery autumnal days and beautiful spring flowers, there was snow and there were rainbows. It was breathtaking. He sat down in the grass and kept looking at these amazing miniature drawings to try and understand how somebody could have left something so special behind. It almost looked as though it had been placed gently, but surely, nobody would leave this fabulous artwork behind on purpose. His name meant the first ray of sunlight, so the sunrises had him especially mesmerised and he was taking his time admiring each and every one of them. As he was looking at one of the pictures with a sunrise, a piece of folded paper drifted out from the book. He almost didn’t see it because he was so taken by this particular image that had deep hues of orange and red, with stunning, almost fluorescent pops of pink. He picked the piece of paper up and with shaking hands went to unfold it. He didn’t really know why his hands were shaking, but he just felt as though he had stumbled across something massive. He opened the folded piece of paper, and it was an unmarked cheque for $20,000. He flipped through the book quickly in case the owners name was in there, so he could return this large sum of money, but all he saw was a beautiful flip book changing seasons. He checked the front cover, and there was nothing. Maybe, he would have to go to the bank to see if they could return it back to its owner. He checked the back cover, which was where he found a tiny bit of paper, sticky taped in. It said “To whoever found this, I wish to gift you the book and this sum of money because I believe that there is power in the outdoors. I wish more people were able to look past themselves and appreciate the beauty we have around us. Please, just pass it forward in any way you can, and we can slowly make the world a better place. Kind regards, Beni.” He looked around, thinking, surely this was a joke. This was his life philosophy and he couldn’t believe that somebody could do something like this, because he never had had the means to do something quite so generous. He silently wept into his hands. He didn’t know why he was weeping but he just felt a special connection to this person, whom had never met. He just knew, in that moment, with absolute certainty, that it was worth appreciating and revelling in the simpler things in life.
By Chandni Kantaria5 years ago in Humans
Trapped!
I think that maybe those who like to throw around the phrase “I live life without regrets” in all actuality have them in abundance. In the words of Marilynn Robinson, “There’s a lot under the surface of life, everyone knows that. A lot of malice and dread and guilt, and so much loneliness, where you wouldn’t really expect to find it, either.” Agreed. I’ve had my fair share.
By Rick Adventure 5 years ago in Humans
Muse On Napkins
The last $100 Bill hit the table like a Queen settling down for a checkmate. I couldn’t believe it. $20,000 sitting in front of me in stacks of benjis. I don’t know if it was the kombucha or the mood of the room, but here was the sum of people’s resources converging to further a dream.
By Nolan Recker5 years ago in Humans
Shouts and Whispers
Carrie leaned over to Lucy and nodded toward the church organist, “You have to love someone who has something on the inside that makes them so beautiful that your eyes see right into the heart. Of course, I think almost everyone is beautiful on the inside. Most folks just don’t know it.”
By Sue Anne Morgan5 years ago in Humans
Beneath Wood and Stone.
The library was a sprawling conglomeration of wood and stone. A maze of towering bookcases filled the space, with ladders twenty feet high needed to reach the tallest of shelves. Lucy wasn’t afraid of heights, not after working in the library for so long. She pushed the trolley across the stone floor, leaning on the handlebar. She listened to the squeak of the old wheels turning and the echo of her footsteps bouncing off the stone floor and echoing up the walls and the beams and the bookcases. Lucy found herself in the center of the library, a circle of biographies rising around her, spiraling inwards to the middle of the room. As she always did, Lucy looked upwards to the great glass skylight so high above her. Today it was raining, and for just a moment she listened to the peaceful patter of precipitation above her. From the biography section the library branched out in a number of directions. It was an ancient building with arches and crevices, and rooms of different shapes and sizes, each now filled to the brim with thousands upon thousands of words.
By Luke Hickling5 years ago in Humans
Karma
Growing up in poverty, I placed very little value on money. I stumbled through life having very little and focusing on experiencing life, rather than being fiscally responsible. As naive as this sounds, it worked out well for me for years. It was not until my house burned down that I realized that money may not buy happiness, but it does buy survival. Having no family and very few friends, I did not have many options for shelter. Eventually, I swallowed my pride and ended up at a homeless shelter in Pittsburgh. Shelters were overcrowded during this time, so I landed in a repurposed factory with roaches and rats that scurried around at night. Day in and day out, there was an old man with a grey, scruffy beard that sat in a dark, damp corner alone. He had only the clothes on his back a small black notebook that he held onto for dear life. I studied this man for months before finally approaching him. On his old, rusty cot, I sat next to him studying the worry lines in his eyes. The old man looked at me with his kind eyes, as if he had been expecting me. His name is Carl.
By Jessica Gilmore5 years ago in Humans
