Fiction by John Sheirer
2:10 p.m.: He awoke with an insect crawling inside his left ear. 2:05 p.m.: Darkness. Only darkness. 2:04 p.m.: He was surprised to notice the unscuffed red paint on the underside of the wheelbarrow. 2:03 p.m. The leaves rustled in the swaying treetops even though there was no wind. 2:01 p.m.: Sweat stung his eyes as he leaned on the sledgehammer handle. 1:38 p.m.: He split the first chunk of wood, beginning the pile for that night’s neighborhood firepit gathering. 1:36 p.m.: “Of course I won’t overdo it,” he assured his wife as he stepped from their air conditioned home.
[Originally published in The Bluebird Word in November 2022.]
John Sheirer lives in Western Massachusetts and is in his 30th year of teaching at CT State Community College Asnuntuck in Enfield, Connecticut. His latest book is the award-winning short story collection, Stumbling Through Adulthood: Linked Stories. Find him at JohnSheirer.com.
