After the Hurricane

Image by noamgalai via FlickrAfter tossing and turning in the eerie, humid night, I awoke to the aftermath of the storm. I was too inland to face anything more than harsh winds and blistering rain, but my gut still set uneasy. I walked outside to find leaves covering the ground, almost covering the pavement. I pulled the bent Marlboro box out of my pocket.
“Only two left,” I said to myself as I grabbed a cigarette as an old man would to his cane.
As I stood and watched smoke drift aimlessly with the wind, I noticed a CD was left face up on my driveway. It was only by a mixture of my curiosity and luck that led to me to picking the CD up.
It was mine.
And it was supposed to be in my car.
My “locked” car.
As the cigarette fell from my lip, I rushed to my car. The door opened with ease, and my stomach dropped to my feet. My stereo was ripped out of its place, leaving behind a tangled mesh of plastic. Everything in my glove compartment was thrown around my interior, just like the leaves on the street. The thieves had decided to leave my books, leaving me to guess that illiteracy is a trait that most thieves carry.
As I tried to collect myself, a single thought shot through my mind:
The trunk.
I flew to my dash and pulled the trunk release, dashed to the cargo door, and stood in awe.
There, in all of its own melancholy greatness, stood empty space. It was hard to imagine that two-thousand dollars worth of guitar equipment once sat in what now didn’t even carry a spec of dust.
If it were a diamond, or even a briefcase full of cash, I wouldn’t have been left in such despair. Every piece of guitar equipment in my trunk was given to me by someone I love.
The wah pedal was from my grandmother, who bravely treaded into unfamiliar territory while boldly stating that she needed a crybaby, and “boy, I sure hope it’s not a doll.”
Even the tuner was gift from my father.
So I stood as my fallen cigarette blazed on the wet cement in silence.

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