Resuscitation

 Day 12: Write a story on the theme of Resuscitation

 

Every Saturday morning, Jon and Mallory stayed in bed drinking tea, reading, planning the weekend and discussing friends, books, news.

"I wonder if it is worth it to even get up," Jon said. He'd been looking at the headlines on different news sites on his laptop.

She rolled over, touched his arm. "Why?"

"The state of the world. Think about it. Climate change, BLM, violence, refugees, China, shortages, masks, Covid, inflation..." His list went on as he added details of where and how these problems seemed to be escalating around the world.

Mal had seen the same headlines and agreed. She thought about how they had to straighten out the bank problem not of their making, the boiler with the leak, the wifi cable that took regular work breaks. 

What she wanted was a weekend with the man she loved, raking leaves to music, a nice lunch at their favorite brasserie and to see friends for a nice game of bridge that night. She had thought about baking two pies, apple and pumpkin -- well maybe one. She wanted the smell of their cooking to fill the small house where she felt a sense of peace.

She got out of bed and opened the curtains. Their bedroom window overlooked their garden. The maple tree had outdone itself with its red leaves, redder even than last year. Unlike the other nearby trees it held onto its leaves longer making its color stand out even more. 

Yes, the world was a mess. The country was a mess. Their town with the school board fights and raising Covid numbers was a mess. The tree knew none of this. It went on sharing its beauty. It resuscitated a tiny glimmer of hope.