Chapter Three: Watching Over
Please read this blog from the older entries to the most recent, or from the older archives to the most recent.
It was 3AM in the morning when the boy awoke for no particular reason. Lately he had trouble staying asleep once he managed to go to bed, and he had been waking up in the middle of the night for quite some time now. He didn't know the exact cause of it, but he had a pretty good idea that it had to do with his emotional state as of late. He had been feeling himself slip further and further with the passing of the last few weeks, and tonight he was just about ready to cave. The boy questioned lots of things that night. He wanted to know why it was that he was chosen to act out these saving-grace acts and be some sort of savior. From what he could tell about himself he was just an ordinary kid, and if anything (although he soon regretted the thought) it was even harder on him because he was trying to support himself. But that feeling only brought up a more prevalent problem in his life - his lack of close relationships.
The boy knew that he had a very good relationship with God. Something in his heart just told him this. But he also knew that in order to be a happy person he must reach out to others and accept them in to his life. Even though he saved many people during the last few months, he never followed up and spent time with any of them. He was now lying in bed with a pillow half over his head, as he stared out his bedroom window to the night sky. He stared at the stars, and wondered how many people out there were staring at the same stars, and wishing they had someone to be with at this very moment. He even went as far to wonder if maybe he was meant to live this life of unahappiness, so that he would in turn be able to keep on saving people and try to better the world. But all that thinking of things on such a large scale caused him to become unnerved. He liked things close and relevant, not distant and hazy. Before managing to fall asleep, he sent out a simple prayer: "God, please help me find a way to resolve these hectic problems in my life. Please show me that what I'm doing is a good thing, and that in the future I can find happiness if I have faith and believe. Amen."
---
He woke up the next morning, and was not surprised to see that there wasn't any sign of a new newsletter. He didn't really understand at all the kind of pattern they arrived in. Sometimes he'd get seven in a week, and other times it would be weeks before one arrived. "Maybe other people are getting them too", he thought, "And I just get one when they are all too busy or something". He shrugged, knowing fully well that he wasn't going to be trying to crack the mystery of the newsletter any time soon. He got dressed to go working at the convenience store where he normally worked in his pits of boredom, and headed out the door. While at work only one topic plauged his mind. Sleep. Each night now it had gotten progressively worse. It wasn't that he had trouble getting to sleep. Every night he would lie down in bed, his heart would become twenty times heavier, and he could feel it sinking in to his chest. Each night it hurt him to crawl in to that lonely bed, where he knew in a few short hours he'd wake up to only himself. He tried to shake this horrible thought away, because the more he thought about it, the more the day seemed to drone on and on.
He was walking home on the same path that he had that night several weeks ago when he had rescued that girl from the two strange men. He was still sore in some places because of that night. But he didn't die, and if someone had asked him that night, "Are you willing to be a little sore in the future, in order to protect the most important thing that a young woman possess?" he would of course said yes, and hoped that any other person would have done the same. He thought when worded like that, it's amazing to see how simple a "heroic" act may seem. He arrived home at about 7PM, and was just as depressed as he thought he'd be. He stared in to his bedroom, where the sheets lay thrown about and unorganized. He stared at the couch, where he imagined some sort of girlfriend might take naps with his fleece blanket while he was away at work. "Honey, I'm home!", he said to himself. But thinking of those things only made it worse. It was like he had to force himself -not- to think about something that he wanted more than -anything- in the world. If only there were people in his life that he could hug a couple times a week, or a friend to eat dinner out with. But he had nothing.
---
He was lying belly-down on his bed, wondering whether he should try the sleeping pills he bought at the store where he worked. The images of having someone to love, being loved in return, smiles, happiness, bright futures, and more were all swirling around in his confused head. He was about two seconds away from crying, when he heard something from the television in the other room:
"Yes, that's right, he came out of no where!", some girl was saying on T.V. He got up to go take a look.
"And then what happened?", asked a news reporter.
"Well, he ran up to me, right past those two guys, and said it would be okay", she said.
The boy recognized her as the girl he had helped protect several weeks ago. They were actually doing a news story on this?
"Right. I see. And then what happened next?", the reporter asked.
"Well, you know, they, they, started beating him and stuff. Really bad too. I really thought that he was going to die.", the girl continued on. "The whole thing, it was, it was just so, so incredibly shocking and terrifying that I didn't even know what to think. All I could do was keep crying, but this stranger who was there helped me."
The female reporter turned to face the camera now. "Well, there you have it folks. A Miracle Man of the modern day, to be sure. Perhaps our city has its own superhero: Ordinary man by day - Protecter of the Streets by night! Now I'll turn it over to Chuck, who has profile information on the two assailants of this poor young woman. Should you have any information which may lead to the arrest or capture of either of the individuals, please....", but at that point the boy was too dumbstruck to hear anything else.
He wanted to laugh out loud. Miracle Man? Then he did laugh out loud. "Oh man", he said to himself, "People think I'm some kinda hero or something!! Miracle Man! Ordinary man by day - (then he half covered his face with the fleece blanket, as if it were a cape) - Protector of the Streets by night!" The idea of him being someone supernatural or of some other world was just
so ridiculous to him that he couldn't help but laughing. In the end he gave a warm smile at the television, and was turning to go to bed when suddenly he saw that, at some point during the night, he had received a new newsletter. "At this time of night?!", he thought.
But the contents of the newsletter was not something tragic that he had to go stop. There was no house on fire or young girl trapped in a warehouse.
"Center for Single and Abused Mothers Opens This Saturday"
"The Thompson's Center for Single and Abused Mothers is planned to open this Friday in West Hall County. The center aims to give not only emotional aid but financial aid as well, to any single mothers attempting to raise a child. Members of the community are encouraged to support any family or friends they know that could benefit from this center, and if at all possible to help the growth of the center by offering donations. If a person wishes, they can send a personal donation (anonymous or signed) to a specific member of their choosing."
"Jessica.", the boy whispered. Her face immediately popped up in his head again. He remembered that look on her face as he was holding her stomach. He remembered the way her eyes seemed to light up as she looked down on her precious baby daughter. He threw the paper away, because he knew he could simply get another one tomorrow. He didn't know if Jessica received the mail or not, but nonetheless he'd pick up an extra copy and mail it to her.
Just then he thought that he'd finally be able to get some peaceful sleep in that night. He stared at his ceiling as he thought to himself how something (or someone) was really looking out for him today. He knew that he didn't catch breaks all that often, but when he did he made sure to get the most out of them. He laid down to sleep, closed his eyes, and was drifting soundlessly asleep. Then suddenly, his phone rang.
"I knew it was too good to be true", he told himself. He let the answering machine pick up the call.
"Hey! Umm, gosh, I guess I never did quite get your name before. It's me Jennifer! Well, um, I was calling to say 'thanks alot!' again, and that, if you ever wanted to hang out, you know a movie or something, to just give me a call! Look forward to it! Bye!"
Looks like he actually might have friends to spend time with after all. For the remaining thirty minutes that he remained awake, he prayed and talked to God from his heart. He wanted to apologize to God, and ask for his forgiveness. He knew that he was somewhat selfish this past week, and only thought of himself and how miserable he was. He never took the chance to reach out and grab a hold of something. After all, if you're alone in this world, then it is up to you to fix it. God can't give you friends or a loving family, but he can give you a way to meet them. At this thought his mind drifted back to the newsletter. He had some strange feeling that he'd be getting one in the morning, and he was ready for it. The boy once again thanked God for allowing him to find some sort of inner strength, and vowed to never doubt his ways again.
It was 3AM in the morning when the boy awoke for no particular reason. Lately he had trouble staying asleep once he managed to go to bed, and he had been waking up in the middle of the night for quite some time now. He didn't know the exact cause of it, but he had a pretty good idea that it had to do with his emotional state as of late. He had been feeling himself slip further and further with the passing of the last few weeks, and tonight he was just about ready to cave. The boy questioned lots of things that night. He wanted to know why it was that he was chosen to act out these saving-grace acts and be some sort of savior. From what he could tell about himself he was just an ordinary kid, and if anything (although he soon regretted the thought) it was even harder on him because he was trying to support himself. But that feeling only brought up a more prevalent problem in his life - his lack of close relationships.
The boy knew that he had a very good relationship with God. Something in his heart just told him this. But he also knew that in order to be a happy person he must reach out to others and accept them in to his life. Even though he saved many people during the last few months, he never followed up and spent time with any of them. He was now lying in bed with a pillow half over his head, as he stared out his bedroom window to the night sky. He stared at the stars, and wondered how many people out there were staring at the same stars, and wishing they had someone to be with at this very moment. He even went as far to wonder if maybe he was meant to live this life of unahappiness, so that he would in turn be able to keep on saving people and try to better the world. But all that thinking of things on such a large scale caused him to become unnerved. He liked things close and relevant, not distant and hazy. Before managing to fall asleep, he sent out a simple prayer: "God, please help me find a way to resolve these hectic problems in my life. Please show me that what I'm doing is a good thing, and that in the future I can find happiness if I have faith and believe. Amen."
---
He woke up the next morning, and was not surprised to see that there wasn't any sign of a new newsletter. He didn't really understand at all the kind of pattern they arrived in. Sometimes he'd get seven in a week, and other times it would be weeks before one arrived. "Maybe other people are getting them too", he thought, "And I just get one when they are all too busy or something". He shrugged, knowing fully well that he wasn't going to be trying to crack the mystery of the newsletter any time soon. He got dressed to go working at the convenience store where he normally worked in his pits of boredom, and headed out the door. While at work only one topic plauged his mind. Sleep. Each night now it had gotten progressively worse. It wasn't that he had trouble getting to sleep. Every night he would lie down in bed, his heart would become twenty times heavier, and he could feel it sinking in to his chest. Each night it hurt him to crawl in to that lonely bed, where he knew in a few short hours he'd wake up to only himself. He tried to shake this horrible thought away, because the more he thought about it, the more the day seemed to drone on and on.
He was walking home on the same path that he had that night several weeks ago when he had rescued that girl from the two strange men. He was still sore in some places because of that night. But he didn't die, and if someone had asked him that night, "Are you willing to be a little sore in the future, in order to protect the most important thing that a young woman possess?" he would of course said yes, and hoped that any other person would have done the same. He thought when worded like that, it's amazing to see how simple a "heroic" act may seem. He arrived home at about 7PM, and was just as depressed as he thought he'd be. He stared in to his bedroom, where the sheets lay thrown about and unorganized. He stared at the couch, where he imagined some sort of girlfriend might take naps with his fleece blanket while he was away at work. "Honey, I'm home!", he said to himself. But thinking of those things only made it worse. It was like he had to force himself -not- to think about something that he wanted more than -anything- in the world. If only there were people in his life that he could hug a couple times a week, or a friend to eat dinner out with. But he had nothing.
---
He was lying belly-down on his bed, wondering whether he should try the sleeping pills he bought at the store where he worked. The images of having someone to love, being loved in return, smiles, happiness, bright futures, and more were all swirling around in his confused head. He was about two seconds away from crying, when he heard something from the television in the other room:
"Yes, that's right, he came out of no where!", some girl was saying on T.V. He got up to go take a look.
"And then what happened?", asked a news reporter.
"Well, he ran up to me, right past those two guys, and said it would be okay", she said.
The boy recognized her as the girl he had helped protect several weeks ago. They were actually doing a news story on this?
"Right. I see. And then what happened next?", the reporter asked.
"Well, you know, they, they, started beating him and stuff. Really bad too. I really thought that he was going to die.", the girl continued on. "The whole thing, it was, it was just so, so incredibly shocking and terrifying that I didn't even know what to think. All I could do was keep crying, but this stranger who was there helped me."
The female reporter turned to face the camera now. "Well, there you have it folks. A Miracle Man of the modern day, to be sure. Perhaps our city has its own superhero: Ordinary man by day - Protecter of the Streets by night! Now I'll turn it over to Chuck, who has profile information on the two assailants of this poor young woman. Should you have any information which may lead to the arrest or capture of either of the individuals, please....", but at that point the boy was too dumbstruck to hear anything else.
He wanted to laugh out loud. Miracle Man? Then he did laugh out loud. "Oh man", he said to himself, "People think I'm some kinda hero or something!! Miracle Man! Ordinary man by day - (then he half covered his face with the fleece blanket, as if it were a cape) - Protector of the Streets by night!" The idea of him being someone supernatural or of some other world was just
so ridiculous to him that he couldn't help but laughing. In the end he gave a warm smile at the television, and was turning to go to bed when suddenly he saw that, at some point during the night, he had received a new newsletter. "At this time of night?!", he thought.
But the contents of the newsletter was not something tragic that he had to go stop. There was no house on fire or young girl trapped in a warehouse.
"Center for Single and Abused Mothers Opens This Saturday"
"The Thompson's Center for Single and Abused Mothers is planned to open this Friday in West Hall County. The center aims to give not only emotional aid but financial aid as well, to any single mothers attempting to raise a child. Members of the community are encouraged to support any family or friends they know that could benefit from this center, and if at all possible to help the growth of the center by offering donations. If a person wishes, they can send a personal donation (anonymous or signed) to a specific member of their choosing."
"Jessica.", the boy whispered. Her face immediately popped up in his head again. He remembered that look on her face as he was holding her stomach. He remembered the way her eyes seemed to light up as she looked down on her precious baby daughter. He threw the paper away, because he knew he could simply get another one tomorrow. He didn't know if Jessica received the mail or not, but nonetheless he'd pick up an extra copy and mail it to her.
Just then he thought that he'd finally be able to get some peaceful sleep in that night. He stared at his ceiling as he thought to himself how something (or someone) was really looking out for him today. He knew that he didn't catch breaks all that often, but when he did he made sure to get the most out of them. He laid down to sleep, closed his eyes, and was drifting soundlessly asleep. Then suddenly, his phone rang.
"I knew it was too good to be true", he told himself. He let the answering machine pick up the call.
"Hey! Umm, gosh, I guess I never did quite get your name before. It's me Jennifer! Well, um, I was calling to say 'thanks alot!' again, and that, if you ever wanted to hang out, you know a movie or something, to just give me a call! Look forward to it! Bye!"
Looks like he actually might have friends to spend time with after all. For the remaining thirty minutes that he remained awake, he prayed and talked to God from his heart. He wanted to apologize to God, and ask for his forgiveness. He knew that he was somewhat selfish this past week, and only thought of himself and how miserable he was. He never took the chance to reach out and grab a hold of something. After all, if you're alone in this world, then it is up to you to fix it. God can't give you friends or a loving family, but he can give you a way to meet them. At this thought his mind drifted back to the newsletter. He had some strange feeling that he'd be getting one in the morning, and he was ready for it. The boy once again thanked God for allowing him to find some sort of inner strength, and vowed to never doubt his ways again.
posted by Stephen @ 2:17 PM
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