DIFFICULT ROADS
BY CAROLYN STICKLY
In my mind’s eye bark is a mask and always camouflage for the soft vulnerable insides. I have many masks in shapes and forms to hold in the swimming thoughts around and around my head. Even my cell is a mask that I use like a turtle shell. The turtle sticks out its head, looks around and then retreats to the safety inside its shell. Cell door slides open and I peek outside to the hectic day room and then withdraw back inside my turtle cell mask safe zone. Then the loud door slams closed.
I watch Naked and Afraid reality television shows and try to understand why those individuals, unknown to each other, participate as a united partnership. Some are trying to test their mental strength or fight demons. They enter the 14-21-day challenge without any clothes on a difficult road and journey. The winners are not people who never fail, but people who never quit. They win or complete the time when they travel successfully to a road for pick up — difficult.
Bark is part of their challenge — used as a makeshift shelter, sitting spot, or as firewood. Mosquitoes were constant nuisances, and a swarm of cicadas filled the day with a chorus of screeching songs. It reminds me of day room. Bark and branches gave them some protection from the dampness of air around them. Darkness took over and the crackling embers of the dying fire created splashes of light, like thoughts. Difficult roads often lead to beautiful destinations. | CS