Herman's ringing alarm clock jolted him out of deep sleep. He reached for his glasses, but they could not clear his vision from the fog that had impregnated his apartment. Herman picked up the newspaper as he began to prepare breakfast. Herman stared at the text, trying to make out the words, when he saw the date: January 11th, 2013. Suddenly, he felt the fog seep through his eyes and ears, and when the sensation passed, he saw his wife, Ruth, gazing at him from across the table.
"Herman, dear," she croaked, "could you make me another cup of tea?" She gestured to her walker to indicate that she would do it herself if she could.
"Of course," he replied, already filling the kettle.
"It's quite the foggy day," Ruth remarked. "It reminds me of the summers we spent in Maine when we were younger."
"Those were the most perfect days," Herman agreed. "Of course, there was nothing more beautiful than watching the blue sea and sky blend together, but the fog was special. It made me feel like there was nothing else in the world except for us and the crashing waves."
"Remember how we would read during those endless days? We devoured book after book. I miss that."
The whistling kettle pulled Herman and Ruth from their memories.
"Let's do it," Herman decided.
"What?"
"Spend the day like we did back when we were young, reading and carefree."
A slight smile crept across Ruth's face, but it quickly faded.
"But Herman, you know I can't do that anymore." Ruth gulped, then proceeded, "you must remember that I'm dying."
"That doesn't give you any permission to stop living, dear. I'll go to the library and find the most adventuress book we haven't read, and then I'll read it to you. It won't be the same as before, but it'll be better."
Herman placed the tea down beside Ruth's trembling hand, lightly kissed the top of her head and put on his coat by the door.
"I'll be back soon!" Herman called as he left.
In the halls, Herman heard the others murmuring about Ether Maitland's murder, but Herman was too preoccupied to gossip. In thirty minutes, he was back with the book.
Herman and Ruth read late into the night until they saw the fog clear and fell asleep.
The next morning, Herman awoke with Johnny by his side.
1.“Suddenly, he felt the fog seep through his eyes and ears, and when the sensation passed, he saw his wife, Ruth, gazing at him from across the table.”, "That doesn't give you any permission to stop living, dear. I'll go to the library and find the most adventuress book we haven't read, and then I'll read it to you. It won't be the same as before, but it'll be better."
ReplyDelete2.Is Herman going to think more about the mentions of Ether death or is it not a huge factor in his story?
3.How/if he is affected/involved in the murder and the investigation. (just based on this blog post
4.Focus more on what's going on around the town, every blog seems super personal, which it good however it doesn’t mix in with the rest of the town.