Pablo's Legacy

Letters of Warmth

It's been a hard, strainful and tiring day. Just returned home, I head to change from the working uniform to my everyday clothes in the bedroom. They are simple, even plain, but there's nothing more to be required from them. 

I feel like sleeping, not even looking at what time it is at the moment. So I collapse right onto the bed, the mattress a little hard but still comfortable enough to sleep on. I turn off the lamp on the nightstand to the right of my bed.

The lights off, I have not to worry about the things of the past day, and better get ready to the next. Though, as if to oppose my very previous thought, different things about how I did at work started popping up in my head. 

I knew these days I haven't been keeping up with the same work tempo as I skilfully did before. The shift time shrinked, the amount of time dedicated to work did so as well. The thoughts of me being not as active as before caused my mood to go down the slope. Yet, somewhere deep inside, I still knew that I am at least still a part of all this story. Unique, unprecedented story.

I involuntarily make my mind flip through the pages of this story, going from the very beginning to the point I stood on today. It has not been a very long, but however an exciting and lovely journey. A journey which did not have to end so soon - this I knew.

Now my mind hanged on all the important parts of why this story has been this important to me: the atmosphere which I felt not ever before, going through the vast lands of this "childish" game, as I've been telling myself not too long since; all the funny and welcoming people which attracted me the very day I've become a part of the commuunity. 

Yes, the very people were the most major selling point of this place, the core or the central, integral part of it all. What would it even be without all of them, let alone the point that it would all not even be possible, to begin with. All of them have been the reason I've been keeping up with this place. 

Could I question myself as did I let a single possibility to let them down by giving up on my former work tempo? I knew the answer was negative, yet deep inside the aching feeling still remained.

Now, the depths of my mind realm turned to the story of my having worked all through these several months at the restaurant. 

I remembered my "former" me, or me on the verge of entering the community. That was somewhat 3 or 4 months ago - not too long but a solid amount of time nonetheless. My purest incentive back then was to get the job for my friend, so I could keep some company to them.

And then my mind went along the misty path, going further and further in the past. 

~-~-~-~-~-~-

A ringbell. At 12 AM. At night. 

Who could it be in such a dark hour? - thought I.

My thoughtful mood now interrupted, I quickly went over from thinking over the past to performing a couple of simple yet tiring actions of standing up from the bed and answering the door.

I approach the door in pure darkness and carefully open it. The cold winter breeze goes inside. On the porch I could see a lady, wearing warm winter clothes and carrying a cardboard box. 

- Letter delivery! - said she, letting me take the box. 

Trying to understand what's inside, I shake it and hear a quiet rattling noise. Just as she said, it must have been mail. Mail delivery in such an hour in the night, and from whom? - those were the questions.

Right after handing me the box, the lady turns over and vanishes away from my house in half a minute of walking. She sits in a car, filled with similarly-looking boxes among the rear seats, and then drives off.

Having no choice other than return inside, so I do. Curious to see what kind of parcel the lady brought, I head to the bedroom to rip the cardboard open, sitting on my bed. A couple of letters flew out immidiately, because I have accidentally ripped of the bottom of the box. 

Putting the box aside, I take one of them. The letter was delicately decorated, with a lovely looking envelope. I open it and see "To Nox" right away on the upper part of the letter's main body. 

And right away I remember about the appreciation letters the community was able to write to each member, that having happened not too long ago. Though, I unfortunately forgot about them before seeing the letters which were adressed to me, this very moment.

Right after I take the main body of the letter out with a desire to read it...

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-

I wake up in the same very room. I realise there isn't a single sign of the letters around me which were in the dream. All of them vanished somewhere. And I knew where, as it was just a dream.

Instead of that, I hear a brief sound of a notification coming out of my phone. It's 6:30 AM.

I tap on the notification, opening the text chat with a person I haven't had a lot of time to get to know, yet still feeling appreciation to. In the text message I see "Letter delivery!", just like the lady in the dream said.

I scroll down a little. More than 15 letters show up to my eyes as I feel grateful deep inside, accompanied with a little aching feeling. I knew I wrote much less to my collegues than I should have, and that was the source of the feeling. 

As I scroll and look through all of them, genuinely wishing to return the favor one day, the time of heading out to school reminds me of itself. It's 7:05 AM, time to go.

I write short words of appreciation to most of the people who adressed me warmly, and head out with a feeling of returnable debt.

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-

Dedicated to: Angie.