He sniffed the air cautiously. Fall. Crisp. Damp. Nothing new, yet, nothing the same. He was older…wiser, now. No longer that dumb kid.
“Can you hear me, Dad.” He whispered to nothing at all.
“Happy Birthday.”
He listened intently…for what? He had no idea. But he fully expected SOMETHING.
He walked a little further through the lonely woods, enjoying the crunch of the fallen leaves beneath his feet. Fall. Crisp. Damp. Although sunny, the air was refreshingly chill.
Breathing in the wet, cool smell of the fallen leaves, he said it out loud…
“Dad. you were a selfish bastard. I’ve waited my whole life to tell you that.”
He sat a while longer, feeling the wet chill creep into his body achingly slow, not getting any response.
He sniffed the fall air once again.
Crisp. Damp. Fall.
Walking back, he grabbed a golden-red leaf from a tree. Later, he’d press it in between the pages of his father’s bible.
He inhaled the woody smell around him one last time…
Crisp. Damp. Fall.
It was done.