Below is part three, the final segment of the story Sound of Silence,
one man, one dog, one virus. It is as described, both conclusion and
confusion. If you missed the first two parts of the story, they appear
below...just scroll down and you will find them. I hope you enjoyed
the story.
Jacob put the bike back up on both wheels,
retrieved the bag
with the
radio and continued his way back home. The road home
was always
much better…the decline was in his favor unless
an East wind
would develop, but that was never very often.
A few
minutes later Jacob turned the bike into the driveway and
started up
the first yard road to the house. Looking up ahead he
spotted
Rufus, laying down on the porch making his impression
of a tough
guard dog. Ha, thought Jacob, a lab as a watch dog?
Jacob had
only made ten feet or so up the drive when he was
spotted by
his canine friend who leaped off the porch in his
direction.
Moments later Jacob coasted to a stop as Rufus
started his
‘your home’ bark, all the while stretching on the
clothes line
to which he was tethered.
Jacob placed
the bag with the radio on the ground which
automatically
started an inspection by Rufus. “Sorry boy,
nothin’ in
there for you today…store was closed…the radio
is a borrowed
gift from Ben up on High Street. He said it will
keep us in
touch with what’s going on right now…the store will
be open
again Wednesday…and then I’ll bring you home a treat.”
As he
started to engage the kick stand, he had the feel of something
running down
his arm, and he glanced quickly to see a new line of
blood running down from the scrape. “Worse
than I thought
it was” he
said, as Rufus pushed into him, his tail now wagging
intently at
his masters return. Jacob picked up the radio and
headed for
the steps, Rufus leading the way in a furry.
Inside
Jacob pulled
out the old medical kit which he had put together
years ago.
Bandages, scissors, some insect repellent and his
all time
remedy, Bag Balm. Used by farmers the world over,
and probably
more moms, the balm was the best for
scrapes,
scratches,
bites and even slight burns. Jacob
washed his injury
at the sink,
applied the balm and then a two by two bandage
over the
wound.
“Rufus,
let’s go plug that radio in and see if we can hear what’s
goin’ on out
there.” Under the watchful eye of Rufus,
Jacob
placed the
radio on the bureau and plugged it in and watched
second hand
starting it’s sweep just as a dim light inside the
front window
illuminated ‘Western Auto.’
Jacob moved
the tuning dial from left to right, at the same time
rotating up
the volume. After a few seconds of crackle and static,
a deep
voiced man came into the speaker announcing,
“We’ll have
more on the virus in a few moments.”
Success
thought
Jacob, and a smile stretched his thin lips as he uttered,
“How ‘bout
that Rufus, we’re now connected to the world again.”
And with
that success Jacob and Rufus made their way to the
kitchen.
Time to brew some new coffee…and maybe even put
a few
biscuits in the oven. Biscuits were a real treat for both of
them…Jacob
remembering how his mom would mix up real
dough from
scratch when he was a kid. Sitting in the kitchen
watching his
mom work away and smelling that wonderful
aroma
lofting from the oven. How long ago was that……
fifty, sixty
or more years? Time is an odd commodity…you can’t
add to it,
subtract it, you can’t alter it in any way, shape or
form, you just
have to deal with it and what it delivers to you
on an hourly
and daily basis. Jacob thought
immediately about
going to his
journal and making some notes about what he had
experienced
and felt this day. Maybe in the future someone would
read through
his scraggly handwriting and try to feel the
sensations
he had experienced in his ride to town and back.
Jacob spend most of the day with Rufus
doing their morning
chores and
housekeeping, all the time contemplating what
would become
of their town in the next week, month and beyond.
After a
quick supper of eggs and toast, they had made their way
to the back
porch to watch the daily ritual of seven or eight white
tails
emerging from the woods at dark to feed in the new grass.
Rufus had
always spotted their movement first, raising his head
and giving a
slight whimper to let Jacob know the deer were
again on the
prowl. The deer would come within fifty or seventy
five yards
of the them, lift their heads from time to time to keep
Jacob and
Rufus in sight, then again go back to their browsing.
“Sure
different then the view up Fifth Avenue uh Rufus?”
He had only
been in the city once in his life, and although totally
amazed at
it’s size and complexity, Jacob knew it was not a place
that he
could ever live in. Too many people, too little space, too
little time
to relax. It was indeed another world.
As the sun began to set over the tall
maples in the west, Jacob
summoned
Rufus and they were off to a good nights
sleep.
He was
tired, as much mentally as physically…and he was hoping
that sleep
would come quickly. The big goal for him would be to
alleviate as
much of the day from his mind as possible….often times
thinking of events
of the past would allow his mind to
release his
body to much needed sleep.
As usual, the next morning dawned, and Rufus
was at his masters
bed…advancing
the slight paw and pull action to arouse him for
the
day. As Jacob and Rufus moved around the
dimly lit kitchen,
he thought
about popping on the radio, but thought, well, there’s
all day to
discover what happened overnight, no need to rush things.
Grabbing his
coffee and heading for the front porch, he paused,
thinking he
heard a car in the distance, approaching from town.
Yes! A quick
glance to the left resulted his eyes seeing the
mail
delivery car and it’s owner Mavis heading to his mailbox.
Mavis had
delivered mail for years, taking over from her husband
Henry who
had died twelve years before from a heart condition.
Jacob placed
his coffee on the stoop and headed for the road,
his legs not
what they used to be, but at least he was upright
and moving.
He yelled at Mavis as she closed the box and was
within
moments from pulling away.
“Mavis….Mavis…hold
up!” He was just a few yards from the
interception
when he saw Mavis giving a nod, acknowledging
his request.
Out of
breath from just the short run to the road, Jacob leaned
against the
Mavis’s mail car. “Boy am I glad I caught you…mail
is early
today isn’t it? How’s everybody in town
today? Andy
new word
about the sickness?”
“I’m not
sure I know what you’re talking about Jacob…sickness?
Whose been
sick that you know?”
“Well you
know… the virus….I was in town yesterday..pedaling
by seven new
graves at rural…talking with Bill about the store
being closed
down….”
Mavis cocked
her head, her eyes squinting at his intent face,
trying to
get a read on his demeanor.
“Jacob…everything in
town is
fine…there’s few people moving on main street…all
looks quite
normal to me. Are you feeling alright? I could come
back later,
pick you up and take you to get looked at somewhere.”
Jacob
stepped back, a look of confusion on his face…trying to
sort out the
response that Mavis had given him.
“No , no,
I’m fine. I’ll just go sit a bit and collect my thoughts…
good seeing
you Mavis..thanks for the mail.”
Within
moments Mavis had pulled away from Jacob and his
weathered
mailbox….light dust trailing her car as she made
her way down
the road.
Jacob
returned to the house, not even checking the box to see
what had
been delivered. Grabbing his coffee cup
and sitting
on the top
step, he greeted Rufus who pushed his way between
his chest
and upper left arm.
“I don’t
know boy….for once in my life I’m…..well, I’m not sure
what I am
right now.”
As he sipped
his coffee Jacob thought to himself. Had all of
this happened
in a dream? No, he HAD been in town
yesterday,
he had SEEN
the graves, talked to two or three there and
returned
home.
But Mavis
said everything was normal there… no sickness…business
as usual.
Jacob gave
more consideration to the dilemma now facing him.
The radio….
and the bike! Turning around quickly and
squinting
through the
screen door… he could see the radio that Ben Shanks
had
loaned him..it WAS on the bureau where
he had placed it.
Jacob
quickly put down the coffee cup and ran to the bike….
hurriedly
inspecting the rear bumper…..the dent, the scratch..
the paint
missing….it DID happen yesterday…it wasn’t a dream.
Jacob
returned to his seat on the porch, Rufus, his ever loyal
friend at
his side. Should he go back to town
today to see
for
himself…maybe another stop at Rural cemetery on the
way? Perhaps.
As Jacob and
Rufus sat on the porch, nothing was for sure.
Is it
possible that somehow, Jacob was caught in some type
of time warp?
Was he somehow halfway between today’s
reality
and some event in time that did, could
or might
actually
take place? All good questions.
Jacob sipped
the coffee. Good coffee made all things
a
lot less stressful.
Jacob turned
an ear to listen to the nature around him.
The sound of
silence. He……… his dog… and maybe a
virus?
Here he was,
stuck somewhere in a place and a time that
he could not
define.
I hope you
all enjoyed the story…stay safe, stay well. SS
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