The old man was lost. In the mist all the trees looked identical. Last year he could still identify every single one on their walk and remember what he had named each. He would talk to them like he would any human, but he didn’t remember them.
Nobbles watched and bowed a bare branch. The tracks of the ambulance were still imprinted on the ground in front of him from last week when his friend had collapsed. He wondered where his children were. Why did they allow him to walk alone? But he wasn’t alone. All the trees in the park watched over him, but they couldn’t do much if he fell on the icy ground again. His faithful companion Buster the collie dog had gone for help.
Buster pulled Stuart towards Nobbles, the path home. His memory might be going, and his family absent, but because of all his years of kindness he would always have someone looking out for him. A tree would fall into a building or fence if it had to get a human’s attention if their friend needed it.
by Debbie Gravett © 2019.12.13
FFFC: Flash Fiction Challenge #44
Inserted Image by coombesy from Pixabay
Main Image by S. Hermann & F. Richter from Pixabay
