On a Field Trip Freshman Year

on a field trip freshman year the boy in special classes walked up the muddy trail. he walked on the side, balancing on the dry stones aligning the path. he followed some acquaintances. an old coat and sweatpants with worn elastic warmed his bones in the gray mists. bus pass in his pocket and a few coins, he thought about lunch - not the rocks he would have to climb. his shaven head chilled with drips from the pines above, the path narrowed and inclined between two boulders. he struggled up the path, getting dirt on his snow white shoes.