On Sunday

a non-poem/narrative prose in under 250 words

We ascend the trail in silence. I find comfort in the cadence of our footsteps. His jaunt a lilting quick-step, slightly ahead. And I struggle to keep pace.

I didn’t sleep well. Awoken with a sudden flash of all things unspoken, all tasks undone. My backwards count, cascading into a restful state only to be jolted alert again.

It seems too early now to be outside. The sun still lingers behind gray and lavender mountaintops. But we continue on, leaves crinkling beneath our feet.

A crow recites soliloquies from its lookout above our heads. I fixate on the caw. A harsh but friendly greeting.

He stops, turning back, asking if we should trek on.

“Go,” I reply, like a crow.

He picks up the pace, and I lumber along, my thoughts returning to today’s to-dos.

As we reach the pinnacle, the sun, ringed with wisps of yellow clouds, tips its crown above the majestic peaks. I am awakened, uplifted. I breathe in the morning.

He peers at me, watching as I take in the view, and I wonder what he’s thinking. But I begin our descent without a word. He follows after me, traipsing at my heels.

We step inside. His energy has drained into me. I am ready to work, charged, my laptop open.

He is asleep in seconds, head on my hip, the scent of earth emanating from his fur.

Were you surprise by the reveal at the end or were you with us on our walk from the beginning? :)