Sunday July 29th, 2012

The exercise:

Write a little something about: the ridge.

Slept in big time to start the day, which was definitely needed. Not much happened after that until we realized we'd forgotten about the ten pounds of blueberries we bought at the market yesterday - that's when the washing and freezing began.

After dinner I cleared out most of the monster weeds that had been closing in our blackberry bushes, as those are starting to ripen. We'll see how many are out there tomorrow, but hopefully at least some of our box program customers will get a pint this week.

Mine:

Legs burning, the straps of his backpack threatening to tear through his shoulders, Lucas tried to keep his focus on the path beneath his feet as he trudged upward. Looking ahead was too disheartening. All that he'd find there would be more hill and the easy, relaxed stride of Matthias, his younger brother.

When had the balance of strength and endurance shifted between them? Lucas couldn't be sure. It seemed like only yesterday he had been the leader of their hikes, forever at the side of the trail waiting for a sighting of Matthias' bright red, sweating face.

Getting old was not something Lucas liked to think about, and he wasn't about to start now. He returned his focus to moving onward and upward. And not keeling over from a heart attack.

Without warning the ground leveled out and he brought his gaze upward. They had finally, mercifully reached the ridge and the view was breathtaking.

"Not bad, huh?" Matthias asked with a wide smile.

"Spectacular." Lucas wanted to say more but he couldn't find the oxygen for it. Maybe something about all that torture being worth it. Instead he reached for his nearly empty water bottle and began to think fondly of the return journey they were about to commence.

"I know, right?" Matthias laughed, sounding as though he could recite Moby-Dick without pausing for breath. "Just wait until you see the view from the next ridge!"

3 comments:

Greg said...

You managed to forget about ten pounds of blueberries? That would take up so much space in my kitchen I'd be thinking about it all day!
Good luck with the blackberries too! I made lemon and raspberry muffins last night, and they're proving extremely tasty :)
I'm delighted to say that unlike Lucas I still don't feel like I'm getting old and I can easily tire out people ten years younger than me. I'm not looking forward to the day I do feel like Lucas though....

The ridge
The wind blows the sand into scallop-shapes,
Caressing it like the hand of a lover.
Standing here on the desert ridge,
Looking out to the brazen bridge,
I can almost remember the sea.

Cathryn Leigh said...

Feeling a little lazy today, and it's what I thought of when I saw the prompt. I don't think you've gotten this far in Phoenix Rising Marc, but here's a teaser from <a href="http://www.protagonize.com/story/phoenix-rising/108773>A Fortuitous Encounter</a>


<b>Ridge</b>
It had rained just enough last night to cool the air and wet the ground; ground that was covered in slippery leaves and mud. Both Sarah and Adam had lost footing at least twice while climbing the slope before them. If only there was a way around she thought as she grabbed a tree to keep from sliding backwards, but going around would take more time than they had.

Cresting the ridge, they heard voices. She and Adam immediately dropped and crept carefully forward through the brush to get a good view of the valley. Sarah smiled as she spied the two people below.

“You sure you don’t want to check the Splinter Your Highness?” the scout spoke as he ambled along behind the Prince.

“No,” the Prince used his sword to hack at a branch in his path.

“We need to warn them!” Adam started to stand.

Sarah placed a hand on his arm as the scout below looked up the ridge. “Wait,” she hissed as the pair came closer.

“The Splinter would tell us to go over that ridge.” The scout gestured towards where Adam and Sarah were hiding.

“Smith,” Adam looked at her puzzled, “Scout Brian's seen us and we have to tell them.”

“Of course he saw us, and we are going to tell him, but we're going to follow the rules. I’ll engage the Hopeful while you talk to the Scout."

Sarah noticed that the Prince, though he’d protested, had begun climbing the ridge. She watched as the two came closer. Scout Brian was clearly aiming for them while the Prince was still unaware there were others out here. Timing it just right Sarah jumped and slid down the ridge only to grab a sapling and stop directly in front of the Prince.

Marc said...

Greg - in our defense, it was our day off. Also, they were in the downstairs fridge (there certainly was no room for them in our main fridge!).

Great final line to your poem.

Cathryn - no, I definitely have not. But you've got me intrigued with this little snippet!