Bacon is the way and the truth. Burt saw this quote on the large magnet sitting upon the 7-Eleven counter. Now Burt wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed, but he knew something was missing. He cocked his large head to the right and dipped into his thinking brain to ponder exactly what that was. I got it, he exclaimed rather loudly, as the lady at the counter jumped back a bit. She gathered herself and asked, you got what Hun? I figured out what was missing its “life”. She stared at him blankly and didn’t understand what he meant until he pointed a beefy finger at the magnet stand. Oh, she said. Bacon is the way and the truth and the LIFE! Burt was so excited at himself that he did a jump in the air. This was quite a sight to see as he went 6’ 3” and 285. Behind Burt there was a woman who had her caffeine drink in hand and was just staring at Burt. You would think she would be impatient but her energy didn’t show this. He noticed this and quickly turned red from head to toe. She was a lovely creature and had witnessed this play out. What he didn’t know was that she had been a bit captured by what she had seen. She laughed a slight sound, but not too much, as to embarrass him further. She said, how did you know that was the missing word? Burt was so caught off-guard that he blurted out, I learned it in Sunday School. But it was in reference to Jesus, not bacon. It was at this moment that Burt really took notice of this gorgeous young lady who was actually talking to him. He said hi, my name is Burt. I’m Candice came flowing out of her mouth like silk thread floating in the wind.
There was a moment. They caught it in each other’s eyes. A flash of lightening. You know when you have the millisecond of sight before the thunder rumbles again. Burt did what Burt does and offered to pay for her drink, even going as far as seeing if he could buy her a honeybun or something else. She politely said no and they walked out together. It was early in the morning so Burt was on the way to work. He mustered up every ounce of courage he could and said, something just happened in there, and it’s never happened to me before. When we spoke I felt this zap inside of me. Would you be willing to meet sometime so we could talk about it? Candice smiled and took a good long look at Burt. She noticed his big hands. His well-used boots. Most importantly, she noticed how he carried himself. Strong and confident. There was a way about him. Her mind captured a phrase that floated in, a gentle giant. Yes, she said with enthusiasm. She dug into her silver purse and found a pen. Humm, I don’t have a piece of paper. Burt looked in his pockets and he didn’t either. Well damn he thought, I meet the woman of my dreams and I don’t have a single slip of paper. She bit her lip a little and grabbed his giant hand. Her number 303-237-1287 quickly went on the back of his hand. He was stunned. Actually, he was speechless. He got to touch her, feeling the kindness and strength in her hands. And, she wrote on his skin. Burt felt like a teenager again never wanting to wash his lips after a kiss!
Candice said, call me later today and we can setup a time to connect. But Burt, don’t you realize you just bought me coffee so this is kind of like our first date? Well, Burt hadn’t thought of this, but she was correct. They said an awkward, but fun goodbye. She got into her gray Mazda and he hopped up into his large Toyota truck. As he drove away, she laughed a giant laugh reading his bumper sticker, HIKE NAKED AND IT WILL ADD COLOR TO YOUR CHEEKS.
The Universe had done its duty! Neither of them could know how their lives would never be the same.
Rick Ellsmore
10.13.20
PS. This was from one of my writing groups. We were given a prompt and 30 minutes. The first sentence was my prompt and my imagination took it from there!
PSS. Yes, that is my personal vehicle in the picture! (-:
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