Heroes' Decision #Wattys2016

When I met someone, who's destiny was the epitome of sad, I really thought I'd been in some epic adventure, like the old Greek poems. Needless to say, I also thought I'd score a good woman too... but I watched some stuff happen though, some real bad stuff, and that's when reality punched me in the gut and left me for dead. Nothing describes being in over your head more than having to face the fact that sunshine and rainbows isn't the conclusion in every situation. I certainly do know this, since my dad left, my mom turned to alcohol, and my sister was screwed over by the government. When you see people die, it isn't like it is in the books. You can't walk away from it the same. It changes you... and I don't think it changed me for the better. Speaking of my dad... the only fond memory I have of him is the story I asked him to tell me before I went to bed every night:

'There was a tree. It was a normal tree. It had leaves like a normal tree, a trunk like a normal tree, and roots like a normal tree. One day, a stupid man lit a match in the middle of this tree's home and dropped it by accident. The ground below caught fire, and the man only ran away from what he had caused. He didn't go to anyone for help, but just continued his life as the little match turned into a forest fire. Thirty days and thirty nights it lasted, until a heavy rain stomped it dead. When the smoke cleared, and people went in to mourn on the forest, what they found was that tree, still alive and well. They worshiped it for a long time, calling it an act of God, or a will of Satan himself, but the tree stood tall, never once faulting in the wake of their opinions. This tree, son, is what we will visit one day, and you should gather your own opinion on it..."

Honestly, I never really could've guessed how that story played such an impactful role in my and many others' survival...