Summers Past
Below is a sample of a new short story that I wrote. During a recent moment of melancholy, I thought back to previous battles with mental health and how I viewed myself through them. I decided to use that experience as inspiration for this new short story, titled Summers Past. This story centers around a man traveling up a mountain that his family used to climb in the summer during a harsh winter. I wanted to focus on the feelings of distance from the self, isolation, and despair that I experienced while struggling with my mental health through the years. Below, you’ll find a brief exerpt from the story, as well as a link to a pdf of the whole story.
Not but a stone’s throw away from the stream, the family sat huddled together in the shelter of a cave. Several summers have passed since the woman uttered her prayer, but they’ve made just as many trips up the mountain since then.
“Mama, why do you sound so out of breath?” The girl, seated comfortably between her parents, gazes up at her mother with an inquisitive look.
“Well, honey, mama’s not quite as young as she used to be. Each trip up is harder and harder.” The woman gives her daughter a sad smile while she pats her on the head. “There’s no need to worry.”
“But you were fine last year. And Papa’s not having a hard time.”
“Oh, it’s still getting hard for him, he’s just younger than me, so it doesn’t show as much.” The woman smiles sadly and looks to her husband, who simply nods.
The man groans as he gets to his feet, his bones starting to show their age. He extends his hand to his daughter to help her up.
Together, the man and girl exit the cave. The woman stands up on her own. A coughing fit consumes her as she uses a hand to steady herself against the cavern wall. She pulls her other hand away from her mouth and stares silently at the blood splattered across it.