The Fall

it had indeed become the autumn of his life and he had harshly lost every spring in his step when his wife began to abuse his good faith abandoned him by the way side and the side walk was utterly lonely with the bottle his closest companion he wept an ocean of dry tears she aimed to take all that he had money children and family home put up her shutters and seemed to enjoy his rapid downfall and misery summer sunshine and memories of better times wilted on his tree of life and all seasons were black like anthracite painted on charcoaled paper surrender stuck in his thirsty throat like a death rattle sounding demise his life on an endless loop of agony and apathy like a stuck vinyl record autopilot towards a downward slope as if he could drown any further he was so downtrodden that could not even muster anger or revenge the glass said Jonny Walker but he was not able to proceed any more and in a last attempt to live for another winter he crushed the chalice and tattooed a few shards into his skin just in case he would ever forget that only he could stride on the path ahead one single day at the time the 24th October with frost in his heart and droplets of blood running down his wrist he remembered that inevitable change took courage bravery to conquer himself and resilience to work hard for an outcome of sobriety and serenity and replaced whiskey with Coke Zero and coffee changed his habits and mindset and by good fortune found a new lover one who could think and feel and otherwise as lost as he had become after rehab they eloped against all advice and threw caution into the sea swam with dolphins and fed their demons kindness love and compassion they mixed their blood as good adventures do and stumbled upon gold metaphorical because in any material sense they both had been robbed but given instead the gift of a new beginning for the present and future leaves on oak trees turn golden and red and new buds kindly sprouted they praised the violet beauty of Jacaranda and took on an indigo crown not own of perfection but of progress and cross fertile self actualization every day today is an anniversary of victory over adversity and malice which they are able to forgive because their tormenters do not matter his ex wife had a boob job and is eating her fake smile and her words ‘this fling will only last a few months’ but she overplayed her gamble while the lover’s souls have been augmented by lovemaking and trust she sits alone in her mansion and counts sums in a sorrowful account they are seasoned survivors of booze and depressed mental affliction wear the T-shirt to prove it which they hand painted in orange and pink inscribed the motto ‘if you don’t dare to walk at the fork of the road to an unknown but promising destiny you’ll never know what you missed’ a one way ticket awarded them freedom and unimaginable happiness and the solace that autumn means not falling when real calamity looms 20th August 2020