Flash Entry January 1 - 290 Words

The old man bent over, hands on knees. He had walked a long time. The strain was almost too much to bear. He raised his head slowly, breathed deeply and looked ahead.

“Wow,” he sighed. “Too close to give up now.”

He straightened, collecting his thoughts, slowly stretching his back. It was sore, but he knew if he plodded ahead, there would be rest.

His left foot moved forward and he was walking again. He knew he would get there. That thought alone drove one foot ahead of the other.

He kept his eyes fixed forward, drinking in the soft glow before him. It was the glow of promise, the glow of the future. He moved onward, each step becoming more labored.

“Damn this old body,” he cursed. “How did I get so old?”

But he kept moving, upward now. The thick grass soon gave way to a well-travelled path. He felt relief wash over him as his foot took its first step onto the crunchy smoothness of the path.

“I have this licked now. Almost there.”

He labored upward, scrambling over larger rocks. He stumbled but caught himself, his face stopping just inches from a sharp rock. He gathered himself and kept moving.

The path took one more sharp turn to the left and suddenly he was there. The baby looked up at him and smiled.

“Hello there little feller. I am damned glad to see you!”

He moved closer and tore off a piece of his robe. Kneeling, he wrapped it around the naked child. The baby reached for him, but the old man stood up, shaking his finger slowly.

“Sorry, you are on your own now. It’s 2014, your time to shine. See you next year!”