More Than Just Sweat

His feet slam the pavement as his stress balls up in liquid form and roles off his powerful body, left behind him forever. The burn marks from painful words begin to heal and erase with each step. The fear of inadequacy has lost its grip because each hard breath builds his mind stronger. The frustration from life that squeezed itself into his muscles begins its journey out and away from its victim, for now the victim has become the survivor.

The dim echo of cheering whispers in his ear. It builds as he rounds the last kilometer; finish line in sight. His gifted body carries him to the end as the crowd cheers louder and louder.

Running; some do it for fitness, some do it for everything else.

--Stevie

Fallen Half

Joy sat in the pew staring apathetically at the coffin that caressed her grandma. When she first received the apologetic news, she felt overwhelming angst to the point that she was inconsolable. 

            Joy was absolutely enamored with her grandma ever since she was born. As a baby when she would cry, her grandma would rock her in her red wooden rocking chair so passionately that she would fall asleep every time.  

            Joy felt jaded and powerless to carry on without her grandma; her other half. The only thing that pulled her through each day was the memories of her grandma she had repeating in her mind. 

Her beautiful grandma was always bubbly and joyous no matter the circumstances. Her embarrassed smile could be mistaken to be lewd when she blushed after doing something facetious. Her candid personality caused her to be a little credulous at times, but it was always with the best intentions. 

Since her grandma’s passing, Joy has simply been going through the motions of life. She hasn’t been bellicose but she has been easily annoyed. At times when she used to get excited and loudly express it, she now seems to be introverted instead. 

Who can blame her? A grandmother to one person can be just a grandmother. To Joy, a grandmother was a best friend.

 



--Stevie

Wooded Whispers

She runs along the dark wooded road. Her breath crystallizing as she quickly inhales and exhales.

What are you chasing?

The wind runs its fingers through her loose hair that is just as dark as the night sky; her eyes glistening as bright as the stars above her.

Her feet come to an abrupt halt.

Don't do this to yourself.

She whips her head around quickly, looking into the thick wooded trees surrounding her, her heart painfully pounding. Helpless and afraid, she falls to her knees and cups her head in her hands. "Please don't leave me," she whispers. The words nearly write themselves out in her breath.

Her heart feels heavy and her body is paralysed with unsure emotion.

I won't let you give up.

She completely lies down in the dirt on the side of the gravel road. Her eyes drift from one star to the next. Her heart slows down, beating every...so...often...She filters the dirt through her fingers, feeling how infinitesimal each granule is. She feels just as small, compared to the universe above her.

Tears accrue in her starry eyes and begin to escape down the sides of her face.

She closes her eyes and allows the tears to slide down one by one as the dry dirt beneath her head imbibes the pure liquid in a quick fashion.

A soft thumb brushes the side of her face, wiping away the moist streak her tears left. She frantically opens her eyes and sits ups. But no one is physically there.

A moment that should have panicked her, feels calm and comforting. The thumb she felt wipe her face was strong, yet gentler than anything she's ever experienced.

You know that I am with you.

Slowing standing to her feet, she looks back up towards the stars, clasping her hands together and pressing them against her heart. "Thank you," she whispers.




--Stevie