My father rises before the sun. My mother rises before them both. He stumbles into the bathroom, and she marches into the kitchen. A large bowl of oatmeal and black coffee greet him at the kitchen table. He asks for brown sugar. She refuses. Sugar levels were too high last week. Peach skin flakes fall onto the countertop. She slices the peach into eight smooth wedges placing them in a separate smaller bowl. The weather man projects no clouds and a high of 57. Anxiety of being late washes over him. Scarfing down spoonfuls of beige mush, he runs out. Her voice stops him at the front door. He forgot his lunch again.
He sits outside of the house in Carhartt overalls. He is surrounded by peach orchards and the buzz of horny cicadas. Cassiopeia, Andromeda, and Pisces shine above. But he ignores them. His right index finger dances along the white dots, crafting new constellations. The left hand is like a claw—a long-ago work injury. Nameless constellations rise and fall behind one another. Some have dozens of stars stretching across the horizon, wanting to never end. An infinite number of configurations for his delight. Daylight begins to wash it all away. He doesn’t need to read celestial bodies to know his own future. His future is engraved in every corner of his weathered body. He will work himself to death.
The first beams of sunlight trickle into the sky. Just like milk cascading into a black reservoir to create café con leche. The yellow beams penetrate the pitch black to reveal a blend of somber blues and purples hiding behind. The light disentangles them until each color stands alone. The light gains intensity, reaching for every celestial body in sight. The white stars sprint away to find darkness on the other side of the Earth. Piercing once more, the light reveals an intense pink hue clinging to edges of purple. The blush blends seamlessly into the sea of pink peach blossoms below. The light has overpowered the darkness. Warm orange sworls spin out from the rays pushing everything else to the edge. Orange means there is enough sunlight to being working. 6:01AM
