Moth

People will go about their daily grind. Without defined purpose, many say, we aren't human. With defined purpose, we risk our humanity.

I watched as strong coffee dripped into the pot. It was a quiet night, and the moths that loved to bang on the window were going about their monotonous ways. With the smell of coffee filling the kitchen, I stepped onto the porch and allowed the natural light of the moon to relax me. Despite the time, the old couple next door was still picking up the aftermath of their recent festivities. The woman, a wrinkled and tired looking character, seemed to be bitterly scolding her husband. As they walked back into their home, the man kissed her on the cheek, inciting a sheepish grin.

Feeling that I was now alone, I walked down to the front of my house, as I did every day, to check on my roses. I very much enjoyed the way the blueish moonlight complemented their crimson pigment. The health of my roses reminded me that my sister had once cared for a grand rose garden at the house of a famous business owner from California. She had shown me pictures of the beautiful flowers, all around the mansion of an undoubtedly genius man. Perhaps one day, I’d work my way up to being wealthy enough to own a display of roses as magnificent as that. The comparison that this drew saddened me, and I quickly turned my attention away from the roses and started towards the door. However, a terrible view from across the street forced me to halt.

Billowing out of the house closest to mine were tall flames accompanied by dark pillars of smoke. The small house was falling apart quickly as a result of the fire. The children were standing out in the street with their parents, backs to me. A man yelled emotionally at a woman who was on the phone, presumably with emergency services. One child sat on the ground, sobbing, while the other screamed out the name of her sister, whom I now realized was missing. When the man yelled at his daughter to quiet down, she exploded in a flurry of anger and started to run towards the house. Her father caught her by the hood as the woman burst into tears.

I had only recently met this family. They were present at a grocery store while I waited in line for the cashier to ring me up. As I remember, the children were irritating me quite a bit, thrashing about and singing assorted songs from movies that I knew were marketed towards kids. They had no discipline, and their parents just stood there, smiling at one another. How ignorant some people are to the needs of others.

Having justified my actions to myself well enough, I quietly slipped through the dark doorway at the front of my house. Before I shut the door, I discerned the old couple from next door quickly hobbling over to the family with the burning house. “It’s a shame.” These were the only words I had heard this evening, and they were my own.

I rubbed my neck and walked up the stairs, towards the coffee. I poured myself a large cup and added the same amount of cream that I always did. I enjoyed coffee at night. It was a relaxing beverage, for any time of the day. The unorthodox manner of this thought made me chuckle. These simple and solitary thoughts were of the sort that too many people didn’t understand.

Sirens blared in the distance, and the moths were rapping against the window, just as they always did.

Reviews

[Kelsey Schadt]

Interesting piece. I was disappointed that the man didn't help, but I believe that was your intention. I enjoyed how the pieces concluded as it began, with the rapping of the moths. I can get a lot of information about your speaker from his thoughts and actions. One suggestion would be to, at times, work on showing, rather than telling the reader what's happening. For instance, when you write,"With the smell of coffee filling the kitchen" consider adding more imagery to show, not tell the reader. Be specific, what does coffee smell like. Or," The woman, a wrinkled and tired looking character, seemed to be bitterly scolding her husband." How does this look, how did he know. Just some suggestions, but overall a really good piece.