The Man by the Campfire - A Short Story

The man sat by the fire and watched as the plumes of smoke float into the night sky. This was his getaway. His sanctuary. Out in the woods at his cabin that some might be ramshackle, but he would call rustic.

This is the place that he comes to when he feels the weight of the world on his shoulders, which is more often than it should be. Bills to pay, relationships failing, and his own shortcomings are what weigh him down. Truth be told, he can never really escape.
He can just deal with his thoughts in more solitude. He can let the sounds of the woods interrupt his self-flagellation and replace the chaos with calm, if only for a short time.

He throws another log onto the fire and sips his drink. In these woods he has made plans. He has made promises to himself. He has made amends and he has wept at the thought of what is behind and ahead of him. The unfortunate thing is that when he returns to his normal life, the goals, the plans, the tears are forgotten and he settles into his usual patterns.

When will the time come that the time for talk, and thought, and punishment, and escape are over? When will he finally realize that this whole exercise means nothing without action? Will he ever figure out this one key fact? This is what happens when you are locked in a routine and a pattern and struggle with a fear to break free. You stagnate.

The man took another gulp from his drink and tossed some branches onto the fire. The flame leapt higher and licked at the sky as the smoke billowed forth. It seemed like the smoke was sending an S.O.S. Like the man himself was calling for help. He finished his drink and sat there telling himself that tomorrow....tomorrow it would all be different. He will start anew and do all the things that he should have done today. He had a renewed energy and vigour at that moment, but he knew full well that it would most likely be temporary.

Tomorrow would tell if he was ready to break free from his self-imposed prison and move forward. Could he do it? Sure. Would he do it? Even he wasn't optimistic.

We'll see, he said to himself. We'll see.

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Images are courtesy of Pixabay.

I am Scott. I write poetry and lyrics and sometimes I write about life. Please upvote and follow. Find out more at my website