Seagulls streaked across the cloudless sky, which gleamed a deep azure in the midmorning light. Perched on a rocky outcropping overhanging the Atlantic, Sam stared up at them. They seemed so far away. She raised her left arm high .....
stretching her fingers as far as she could ..... but she didn’t even come close to touching them.
They flew so far that they almost completely vanished into the distant horizon, but then abruptly changed course and came back her way. For a time, Sam concentrated entirely on the birds and their ostensibly random flight patterns.
She emptied her mind of everything else.
Per had remained behind in the house while Sam took a walk out to Burnt Coat Harbor. He knew that more than anything right now, she was in need of some time alone. Standing at the kitchen counter making coffee, Per closed his eyes for a moment and clearly saw what Sam saw. He wanted to go to her, but knew he could not. She could only come to terms with what was about to happen by herself.
There was nothing more he could do for her right now.
Eventually, Sam tired of watching the gulls. They seemed to compose images of peacefulness and serenity. All false, of course. Nothing in this world would ever be peaceful or serene again. There would be no more chances. Per had been clearly emphatic about that.
Reluctantly, Sam turned her thoughts inward, replaying in her mind Per’s harsh words of judgment from the day before. The thing was, as desperately as she would have liked to, Sam could not find a strong basis to dispute his opinion of mankind. If anything, if she were to be absolutely objective about it, she would have to agree with his assessment. Over all, mankind sucked. Period. Oh sure, every once in a while a Buddha, Jesus Christ or Mother Tereasa would pop up and do a great deal to revive your opinion of humanity for a time. But soon enough it would be back to the usual dictators and despots, interested only in squeezing the proverbial lifeblood out of their own people simply in order to get theirs.
However, Sam realized, if she were completely honest with herself she would have to admit that Per was accurate about something else as well. Horrendous as your run of the mill dictator could be, this was only one person out of thousands or millions at any given time ..... and it was the thousands and millions who should have counted.
It was the world community itself who was in the wrong ..... and always had been.
The human race, with all it’s marvelous scientific and technological achievements, would never be able to put down all their differences and learn to work together in order to solve their issues. Let’s face it, she thought, achievements of the heart were merely not considered important enough for the collective benefit of man.
Grabbing up her sweatshirt, Sam headed back to the path that would take her home.
She picked her way carefully over first rocks and then brambles until she had reached the top of the cliff that looked over Burnt Coat Harbor. She stood for a moment in order to catch her breath and gazed out at the beauty of the scenery for miles before her.
There was one more thing that she still needed to face up to. When she had asked Per ‘will it be today?’ and had continued to press him for an answer, he had at length given her one.
Shit, she thought, this could really ruin your whole day if you let it.