The other day I was coming home around sunset. The roads were empty except for the occasional speeder. The sun was setting in front of me. It was as though wheels of time screeched to a crawl as the sun settled into its nightly routine radiating a peachy aura across the tree line. Travelling that lonesome country road was like the journey all of us take through life filled with ups, downs, and the occasional pot hole.
The crackling of empty airwaves was overpowered by a familiar song. A song that reminded me of her. I hated that song. Not a day goes by when I don’t think of her. This particular day had not gone well, so I changed the frequency trying to get the thought of her out of my head and away from my ears. A few moments later, the same song started on the next radio station. “Am I cursed here or what?” I questioned myself in cerebration.
I started thinking about the promises I made and how I unintentionally broke them. I was instantly reminded of making a promise to myself when I was a kid that I’d never break a promise like so many had done to me. The morning I left her promising to return flashed through my thoughts, as I tried to concentrate on the road. And, the teary phone calls caused my eyes to water.
Distracted, I glanced over into the opposing lane of traffic and caught the glimpse of brown and white blur running across the road. As it stopped in the median, I realised it was a white tail deer. Its silhouette against the sunset was breathtaking. I looked in awe, as it leapt into my lane. I slammed the brakes to keep from hitting it. It stood and stared in the middle of the road for a second, as smoke billowed from my tyres skidding from 70mph to almost 0mph. Then, it hopped on across the road like nothing was wrong.
The struggling tears welling up in my eyes dried, as I began to laugh uncontrollably. “It’s going to be alright”, I cogitated.
A great smile overtook my face, as I dropped down into low gear and sped away from the scene. The rest of the ride home was filled with good memories of the times we had, her strange sense of humour, and the all night talks about the oddest things. It gave me a sense of peace, so to speak. Holding onto memories is grand, but not when we hang onto the wrong ones. Since that evening, my life has changed for the better, I believe.
