Holy Hush written by Deborah Watson Thirty something, medium build, Rebekka, crawls out of her single person tent into the early morning dew kissed ground. She places her hand on the cold grass to balance herself as she stands. That is when she sees it. ANIMAL TRACKS.
Her husband, Aaron, forty-something, rugged mountain man and modern-day prepper, won her heart at the bar one night. His stories of adventure sounded marvelous in comparison to her insane city life and she was ready for change.
But what kind?
But this?
They were small enough, faint enough, and stayed far enough away from the tent not to concern her as much as her bladder did. She grabs her safety bag and walks towards the hole in the ground she dug the day before.
Rebekka returns to her tent to grab her forgotten journal and study book before making her way to her sacred morning perch. She cuddles up on the cold, wet rock for her first morning alone. It’s been ten years since she’s been completely alone. Ten years of a whirlwind of promises that always had excuses as to why they didn’t take place. She stopped believing him years ago, but always held on to hope that one day, maybe he would take her on the adventure of a lifetime.
Rebekka sits on her makeshift toilet and watches the sunrise as she relieves herself. But its only her bladder that has found relief. Her mind and heart still race with the decisions she knows she will have to make soon. “Why do I have to love your crazy intuitions?” Rebekka asks herself. She stands and pulls up her biking shorts she brought to sleep in. Not the wisest choice for early fall, but it was the only choice when given such short notice. Rebekka covers her recent urine not to attract curious creatures. The wild was not something she was accustomed to growing up in the city.
14
Rebekka opens her journal and stares at the blank page contemplating what to write. The warmth of the rising sun reminds her of her friend Felicity’s place. “Inhale count to 4 and hold, hold, hold, for 7: 3, 2, 1, exhale for 8.” Felicity’s voice echoes in Rebekka’s mind as she exhales.
