A balancing act
It's been two days and my toes are still swollen from Saturday night. Every time someone takes a step they are tittering 'on the brink of' catastrophe, I think it was.
About eleven years ago, my sister and I were at my cousin's house and we were standing outside by the neighbor's fence. My sister decided to semi-climb the fence so her arms were stretched out, hands tightly clenched to the wires, while her feet dangled below her. And then I remember the tears streaming down her face accompanied by her loud wails of pain. The only other person I can concretely recall being there is another cousin and the presence of other people blend into the background of my fading memory. And we asked and asked her what was wrong, only to be answered by her cries. Finally, someone pointed out her bloody toes, torn up the bottom ends of the fence. It turns out that when she placed all her weight onto the fence, her toes got caught on the sharply cut wires and they received no mercy from the metal incisors.
Even years later, the most vivid image of that experience that lingers in my mind is the pain I saw etched onto her face.
About eleven years ago, my sister and I were at my cousin's house and we were standing outside by the neighbor's fence. My sister decided to semi-climb the fence so her arms were stretched out, hands tightly clenched to the wires, while her feet dangled below her. And then I remember the tears streaming down her face accompanied by her loud wails of pain. The only other person I can concretely recall being there is another cousin and the presence of other people blend into the background of my fading memory. And we asked and asked her what was wrong, only to be answered by her cries. Finally, someone pointed out her bloody toes, torn up the bottom ends of the fence. It turns out that when she placed all her weight onto the fence, her toes got caught on the sharply cut wires and they received no mercy from the metal incisors.
Even years later, the most vivid image of that experience that lingers in my mind is the pain I saw etched onto her face.
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Sometimes, I wonder about the seldom moments when I work 'so hard' despite the growing apathy. And then I remember; and this is why.
