The Box

By Audrey Lewis

 

The box was left empty. Void of laughter, singing, conversation, or sound of any kind. Only the echo of footsteps as I approach. A single box left behind. Garbage.

 

Garbage, not worth the effort, left in a room of insignificance compared to its contents. Old electrical cords wrapped neatly around tools whose days had been busy performing their respective jobs. Toys with missing wheels and broken springs. Dolls without arms. Broken phone parts, parts of things I could not discern.

Each item neatly placed in a box, now garbage. A life of fix-its and savings. Creativity left to go out with the next day's trash.

 

No, not now, not today! Today I placed each item back neatly in its space with what they thought was waste. I can feel his hands tinkering. See the satisfaction each item brought him. Watch the wheels turning as he creates. Bits of himself were entrusted to a cardboard box, which served as his treasure chest.

 

Audrey N Lewis from US is the author of, “Everybody has a story…These are ours”, a collection of seven short stories that address everyday life events in not-so-typical ways, making readers question, 'what if.” It received a Readers Choice Award. Additionally, her short stories and poems appear in Short Story Town, Weird Mask Magazine, Evolving, and Cephalopress.