When number 2, ends

 

This is a sad day. I was getting ready for tomorrow. We all have an adventure to go on. It had been a while. We always have so much fun when we're all out together. I was really looking forward to this trip. It was a two day event. So as my usual, I got everyone together and made sure they were prepped. I wanted to make sure everyone had enough energy for tomorrow. I didn't know how fast we'd go out and start. Mornings can be quite hectic, running to get everyone situated and into the car. Adventures always start out with so much work.

At first I didn't notice anything. Everything was as it seems. But then I noticed. It seemed odd at first. And I thought, it's just a glitch. Just an oversight. Still at first it never occurred to me that something was catastrophically wrong. She was unresponsive. Or at the very least her responses didn't make any sense. As I watched and tried to get her to get some energy, the dark cloud of understanding droned over me and sank my heart. The one thought that pasted my thoughts was, no God no. I pleaded for there to be another answer. I hoped against all hope that it was just a misunderstanding. How could this be happening? She was barely over a year old! She was fine two weeks ago! But there it was. The facts don't care about your feelings, I've often said. Tonight those words are more true than I can face. Tonight she died.

Even now I go back to her. Changing her resting place. Hoping some movie fantasy that she'll respond. We'll both laugh. And I'll scold her and threaten her to never do that to me again. Then I'll sit in a quiet place and say my prayers of thank you. But that's not going to happen is it. We all come to an end sooner or later. We all have to pay the ferryman for our journey across the river. And we always find that when it's not our turn there is something we forgot to say to someone who is taking their turn. Always something left unsaid. That one last hug. If you only knew it was the one last hug. If I'd only known that her days were numbered in double digits I would've done more on our last adventure. I would've flown high. I would've flown far. I would've shown her the wind that she was always meant to be in. But I didn't. So I didn't. And now I sit in darkened spaces and regret. The rest of our group is silent. The words of sorrow and regret are left to me to speak. So I shall.

I guess we'll call her number Two. But truly she had no number. We will fill her number. But never her place in our hearts. She never made it to two years old. You may call her a battery. You may call her plastic. But she powered my flights. She powered our adventures. She never left us. She just ran out of power.

Goodbye number Two. May the battery chargers in heaven always be plugged in...