“I don’t know what will be used in the next world war, but the fourth will be fought with stones.”
- Albert Einstein
Sometimes I wonder if Albert Einstein had any idea. If he knew what would happen. Or if he ever thought for a moment that his worst fears would become self-fulfilling prophecies.
I, for one, didn’t see it coming. The inter-war period was difficult. Humanity’s problems apparently survived. But it was the people who survived that made it all worth the difficulty. The men and women who came together in the aftermath became my family forged out of the ashes. We laughed, we loved, and we truly lived. Until one day when we were asked to fight and die for what we believed.
A division rose up and tore our world apart, again.
Albert Einstein was wrong though. We fought with more than stones.
“When you hear of wars and revolutions, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.” Luke 21:8-10
Part 1
Staring out the window, time began to slow until I swore it stood still. Birds flitted about in eerie patterns as if they could feel the apocalypse that had gripped our world. The trees bent and swayed under the pressure of the wind as if begging for mercy from a master who had no mercy to give… (read more).
For that brief moment, as the sun rose serenely over the fruited plains, I almost forgot that anything in our world had changed. The warm rays bathed my surroundings and lifted the heads of the flowers, trampled by the night’s rain. The shower had pushed through without leaving a single cloud behind, though a low haze from far-off explosions and far-reaching devastation dampened the glory of the morning… (read more).
They fostered hope on that warm breeze, making those voices inestimably valuable that empty morning. I didn’t recognize them; they didn’t call my name. Nothing natural made the voices special. And yet I was drawn to them. Something deep within my spirit longed to find who the voices belonged to… (read more).
Conversation seemed like a long lost art form. Long lost into the void of time we called yesterday. Sitting around the embers of a night-old fire, gnawing at difficult pieces of jerky, the three of us sat in silence. They stared at me. I stared at them. They pretended not to be staring at me. I pretended not to be staring at them. Each of us gnawing at our difficult jerky… (read more).
The hopelessness of the moment overwhelmed the conversation and drowned the three of us in its emptiness. Jackson remained standing. His searching gaze shifted from me to David as if expecting an answer, and then he turned towards the horizon in silent rejection. With his hands on his hips, he stared into the distance in full defensive posture… (read more).
End Part 1
The heat of war burned in our hearts and souls that morning. No matter what price we would be asked to pay, we would not lose. I rose early. Before the sun. And stepped out of my tent… (read more).
Part 2
“We’re lost! Hopelessly lost.”
“Shut up, Jackson! You whine worse than a 2 year old.”
“Yeah, well I wouldn’t be whining if we weren’t LOST in the middle of nowhere, would I be, David?”… (read more).
I slid into the passenger seat as Karl Hensley helped me up. The boys rocked the cab as they jumped into the trailer. Karl came around the back and shut up the tailgate.
“I won’t be going too fast, and it’s not very far from here. But there are handles here on the side if it gets bumpy.”… (read more).
David was at my door before I had the seatbelt unbuckled. He opened the door and offered his arm to help me down. I took it and jumped down onto the gravel driveway. The excited shrill of a little girl broke through the air, and quickly pulled Karl back into a better mood… (read more).
Life was full of simple pleasures that day. A cold shower, a hot meal, and fresh clothes. After the sun set and the kids retired, David, Jackson and I went out into the field behind the house where Karl had started up a fire… (read more).
Mornings came, and afternoons lazed by. And we helped the Hensley’s with the upkeep of their home and ranch. After a while, it began to feel like home for us too. Things were almost like we were use to having them. The generator kept the refrigerator running and the microwave and the pantry was stocked with non-perishable food. I started doing most of the cooking, everyone generally agreed that I was least-bad at it, and it gave me something to contribute… (read more).
One night, as the spring nights grew warmer, we found ourselves sitting around the fire again. We did often, always in the same arrangement. David on my left, Jackson on my right, and Karl across the fire from me. Our late-night talks under the stars were usually spent discussing theology, philosophy, political theory, or any other topic of interest over an open flame and an open Bible… (read more).
True friends are one of those few things in life that you never forget. Those people that changed your life and you never want to let go of them. But like everything else, we are eventually asked to give them up, either to time, distance, or death. The next day shocked all of us to our cores… (read more).
Morning came and found Tyler asleep, leaning against the tree. I watched from the kitchen window as Jackson went out to wake him. He walked slowly, and Tyler heard him coming and his eyes fluttered open. Not wanting to rush him, Jackson sat down next to him and waited for him to say something. A long time passed before he did… (read more).
“Dan!”
I rolled over, groggily. Only to slip back into my sweet sleep.
“Dan!”
Blinking a few times, and rubbing my eyes hard, I leaned up. Desperately trying to wake up. The sun’s rays were leaking through my window, welcoming me to the day everyone else had apparently started without me… (read more).
The boys were still in the process of cleaning up David’s chicken-related disaster when I returned empty handed. Not wanting to slow their progress and not really interested in scolding David at the moment, I slipped away to the shed to put together an edible breakfast and returned to the kitchen to cook it. Not that anyone had an appetite left after the morning’s adventure… (read more).
The supplies were packed. The kids were too. Anticipation hung in the air. It was early. And when the sun rose over the Hensley homestead, it found no Hensleys to shine upon. We were moving, hopefully, for good. We were heading east to Canton… (read more).
The landscape, though beautiful and multicolored, never seemed to end. We continued riding. Mile after mile. Hill after hill. Day after day. Resting every few hours to give the horses a breather and to stretch ourselves. Then we would set up camp when the sun began to dip below the distant plains, and we would start again when the sun rose back over them… (read more).
Roaring with laughter, he galloped ahead out of my reach.
“You’re not funny, mister!” I called after him.
He brought his ride down to a trot and looked over his shoulder at me, “Oh, yes. I am.”… (read more).
The day dragged on. But the excitement built. Tomorrow we would arrive in Canton. The night came closer. The temperature dropped. And we made camp for the night. The fire roared to life. The sleeping bags were unrolled. And we settled around the fire in the twilight and ate dinner… (read more).
Jackson carried me back to camp. David ran ahead to get the kids and the horses ready. To pack up camp. We were going in to town tonight. I was bleeding. Drifting in and out of consciousness… (read more).
David and the doctor raced around getting things prepared. Dr. Perry woke up his assistant who lived a few houses down and a nurse who lived a street over. All the commotion began to wake up the neighbors who soon stirred and hovered around the busy people… (read more).
But redemption didn’t come. The depths of darkness sucked me inwards, downwards, hellwards. My body burned. My thoughts churned. And somehow I knew my time was short. Images, memories, dreams, and daydreams wrapped themselves around me as I sank… (read more).
End Part 2
Don’t worry! The story isn’t over yet! Parts 3 and 4 coming soon…
