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ominous letters turn out to be predictive |
| New jobs always have their own curveballs. My new job at the Rocky Point lighthouse had one whopper of a curveball. The only warning that there was anything amiss was that the outgoing lighthouse keeper insisted that I check the mail every day, even if there wasn’t any delivery scheduled. I promised him I would. The first day, I nearly forgot to check the mail. That isn't true. I chose not to. I didn't see a point. I went about my duties, which were mostly cleaning. On a whim, I checked the mail. All that was in the box was a worn, water-stained envelope. It was addressed directly to me, from Captain Druzy of The Folly. It looked like it had been through the mill. The stamp was old, and the postmark was yesterday. I opened the letter. "Dear Lighthouse Keeper Marley. I am writing to welcome you into our family. I should tell you that you need to order a new bulb for the lamp. It isn't your fault; accidents happen. If you order it today, you won't have to wait through the weekend for a spare, and that's good. Godspeed in your new endeavor. Signed Captain Robert Druzy." I laughed and wadded up the letter. Then I went about my maintenance work. That evening, as I was dusting the lamp room, I accidentally knocked the spare bulb from the rack. It crashed to the floor and busted. Now what? I'll have to order a new spare... I remembered the letter. If I had ordered one this afternoon, it would have been here before the weekend; now it would be Monday. I cleaned up the glass and went back downstairs. The next day, I ordered the bulb. While I was on the internet, I googled Captain Druzy and the Folly. The only match I could find was an article about a freighter that had been lost at sea fifteen years ago. A chill went up my spine, and I decided to check the mail again. I found a letter addressed to another captain. It still seemed a bit waterlogged. I opened it and read it. It mentioned that I should tighten the plumbing connections under the kitchen sink now rather than later. That said, I checked the faucet and made sure the supply lines were good. Later that night, as I was washing the dishes, there was a clunk under the sink, and the drain separated. The dirty dishwasher flooded the cabinet and spilled onto the floor. I think I tightened the wrong connections. On checking, that ship too had been lost at sea over three decades ago. Things went on like this for months. No matter what I tried, I never managed to solve the problems that the captains suggested. Always the letters were from missing ships, and always the warnings were just vague enough that I couldn't foresee what I needed to do. This afternoon, I received another letter. "Dear Lighthouse Keeper Marley, Make sure your life insurance is paid up. Your mother can't afford the funeral without it." I double-checked my insurance, and everything is in order. I wrote my mother a letter telling her how much I love her, and now I am waiting for the worst. The front door rattled... 546 words Prompt ▶︎ |
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