Existential Change

 

 Sometimes, against what you believe is your better judgment, you turn left instead of right; and life surprises you by taking you on an unexpected beautiful adventure that changes you forever. When those moments happen, you might think that it was fate, or destiny, or divine intervention, but, no matter what you call it, your left turns out right.

Keep your focus on the finish line.

You gotta do this, you gotta do that!

No time for the present, no time for the past.

The alarm jolts you awake.

No fair, it's still dark.

Your feet hit the floor before your eyes even open.

In ten, you'll be out the door.

No time for breakfast.

The car is cold. The future is waiting.

Blasting through the yellow lights.

Put it in park; the first bell blares out. 

Running through the halls, past the PE teacher's office. She yells, "Going for a record for most detentions, Baxter?" I hate that she always calls me by my last name. I roll my eyes and keep running. Turn the corner and up the stairs. 

And there he is. 

Smartest boy in the school.

Just sitting, writing poetry, and could care less about the clock. I give him a weary smile and skip over his backpack in my rush to get to class. 

I almost make it to the top of the stairs when he calls out, "Hey" He has my attention. "Wanna go to the beach?"

His glassy green eyes, highlighted by his dark lashes and black hair are easy enough to get lost in.

"What? Don't you have some place to be?"

 "Yeah, the beach." he answers.

I pause, and the second bell goes off. I hear the classroom doors closing, amplified in the empty halls. 

"Tempting... but no. I have to get to my history class to prepare for my future", I smirk. 

A smile lights up his face, "Maybe I am your future, and we should make our own history."

I smile at the thought. "Well... that's a compelling argument... Your car or mine?"

 "Mine, I want to get there in one piece." 

It was the best day of my young life and the beginning of a friendship that lasted a lifetime. 

RIP my dear friend. If Einstein is right, we are out there somewhere still having fun.