Destiny Awaits

Destiny Awaits

"Destiny awaits us all, but, what form shall she take?"

Sunlight tiptoed across the floor and kissed Destiny awake.  Raising her head and squinting against the brightness, she shivered.  There was a definite chill in the air this morning.  She lay shivering and blinking for several moments more, then heaved herself from her bed and lumbered outside to sit in her favorite sunny spot.  As the sun warmed her, she surveyed her domain and contemplated her day.  Up with the sun, breakfast, then her morning constitutional- a leisurely stroll around the yard to assure her that all was well.  It was the same every day.  A ritual Destiny followed with the precision of a palace guard.

Anxious now to begin, she gulped her breakfast.  Careful not to deviate from her self-imposed agenda, she made her way first to the pond.  She held her breath as a pair of ducks emerged magically from the reeds and slid silently across the pond's mirrored surface.  Moving on to the paddock she observed that the horses were already engaged in their relentless pursuit of the freshest, greenest grass.  Their lips made soft plipping noises as they moved their heads over the emerald blanket of the meadow.  Destiny looked for the colts.  She delighted in watching them frolic on their long, spindly legs, flipping their switchy little tails into the air.  She yearned to leap and jump with them, imagining her short legs and plump body to be lithe and agile like the colts.  But alas, today there were no colts.  Instead, there was the crisp touch of fall in the air.  Destiny sighed and moved on to the orchard where the apples hung heavy in the trees, a blush of ripeness creeping over them.  She stared longingly at the apples, her mouth watering in anticipation of their sweet juiciness.

Completing her tour, Destiny returned to her front yard, relaxing again in the warm sun.  Wrens and sparrows that had come to dine on the crumbs from her breakfast provided cheerful symphony, and her thoughts drifted pleasantly.  When the crows came, and began to bicker raucously, she rushed at them, sending them off in a boisterous flurry.  That was part of the routine, and Destiny loved routine.  Rather than finding it dull and monotonous, she found it reassuring, a confirmation that all was right with her world.  She smiled to herself.  It was a good life.  The best. It was all she knew, and she wouldn't trade it for a thing. 

Footsteps and the chink of the gate roused her from her reverie. Ahh, the next favorite part of her day was about to begin.  Her friend Andy, who lived in the white house up on the hill, took his coffee break at this time, and always stopped by to visit with her if he was nearby, sometimes bringing donuts or cake or other sweet treats that he shared with her.  He was a nice man, with a slow, soothing way about him that added to her sense of peace and well being.

"Morning Miss Destiny.  Beautiful day, ain't it?"

Destiny was surprised at the effort it took to hoist herself up to greet Andy. She'd put on a ton of weight since the kids left home, and mentally added a weight loss diet to her routine.  Nearsightedly, she approached her friend, pleased to see that he had brought donuts this morning.  He'd brought something new too, something she'd never seen before, something long, and shiny.  Andy moved it behind his back.

"Don't you worry about that, Miss Destiny.  It has nothing to do with you.  How about a donut?"

He held out the donut and suddenly Destiny realized how hungry she was.  Why, she was absolutely salivating at the thought of that donut.  She forced herself to take the donut from Andy gently and tear off a small, bite size piece.  Absorbed in her restraint, and the sweet taste of the donut in her mouth, she didn't notice the cold prick of metal against her forehead.  When Andy reached out and began to message that spot on her neck, she closed her eyes and leaned into him.

The crack of a rifle shattered the still, autumn air.  The horses paused their grazing to lift their heads toward the sound.  The ducks rose from the pond in a ballet of synchronized flight.  Destiny never felt the bullet as it pierced her brain, nor did she hear the crack of the rifle.  She was beyond hearing as she slumped peacefully to the ground.

The horses had resumed their infinite search for food, and the ducks had returned to the glassy surface of the pond by the time Andy reached down and felt along Destiny's neck for a pulse.  She was dead.  He unsheathed his knife, and with a prayer of thanks for a bountiful harvest, Andy began the ritual of the fall butchering.  He whistled as he went about the routine, thinking of the hams, bacon, and chops that would sustain him and his family through the coming winter.  He smiled to himself as he went about this autumn routine.  It was a good life.  The best.  It was all he knew, and he wouldn't trade it for a thing.