troubled youth

.


ok
so he was 54 not 14
but it felt like familiar territory
flying upside down
unable to determine the horizon
raindrops obscuring
what's up ahead
hold on
this isn't in the manual
take another drink
throttle up
bank and roll
it could be another crash landing
it could be another dream
hey
isn't it about time
lessons were learned
injuries avoided
o
ok
hit the ejector seat
and hope the
parachute
doesn't malfunction





.

The light from the exploding star had been travelling for almost as long as everything had been. It had crossed unimaginable distances as it passed through one solar system after another on its way to the edge of the galaxy and beyond. Now, a single photon from that immense explosion reached Jimmy’s right eye as he gazed up into the night sky with his Tasco refracting telescope. Of course, he had no idea that this remarkable interstellar traveller had arrived on earth, and not just in his immediate vicinity, but inside his optical nerve. It was too infinitesimal to make an impression upon his life. This fantastically rare event went unnoticed. Jimmy twisted the little black knob to bring the true object of his attention into focus: Saturn. There it was, this little blob of light, with a tiny visible ring, beckoning Jimmy to dream big. It allowed him to imagine that his life wasn’t going to be the same, forever. That his grandmother’s decrepit mobile home wouldn’t be his only home, that Ms. Swenson would reveal a little more than just her thigh the next time she shifted her legs while sitting in front of the class, that his sister wouldn’t need to wear diapers and be spoon fed even though she was seventeen. Saturn promised something better. This little blob of light ignited his imagination and caused his heart to leap. He hoped the night would never end.