I had a dream that a meteor fell to earth. Everyone knew it was coming, but there was nothing we could do. And so we carried on with our lives, like we did every day, except that day we knew we were going to die. I moved around with a weight in my gut, I cooked dinner but couldn’t eat it, I spoke to my parents and we laughed about things and wished each other well. And then when it got dark, I got into my car and I drove out into the countryside to watch the sky. There weren’t many cars on the road, but they weren’t deserted either. It was just like any other day.
I drove out past the streetlights, and pulled off the road near the top of a hill. There were towns lit up below me, but their light didn’t hide the stars. I had a blanket, and a thermos of tea, and I climbed to the top of the hill to sit in the silence.
It came just when they said it would, an insignificant light streaking across the sky. It was tiny, it must have been so far away, but I followed it as it moved, and made a wish. Then it disappeared below the horizon, and everything was still again. It took quite a while for the flash of impact, the billowing cloud lit from underneath, the expanding circle of dust and destruction racing across the land. The sight was strangely beautiful, and suitably dramatic for the last thing I was ever going to see. I stared at it for long moments, knowing the sound was not far behind, waiting in the calm, still night for the end.
I felt sad when I awoke, but still calm. The image of the country at night, the shooting star, the rising cloud, stayed with me for a long while. The end, falling from the sky, taking everything away. The end.
I drove out past the streetlights, and pulled off the road near the top of a hill. There were towns lit up below me, but their light didn’t hide the stars. I had a blanket, and a thermos of tea, and I climbed to the top of the hill to sit in the silence.
It came just when they said it would, an insignificant light streaking across the sky. It was tiny, it must have been so far away, but I followed it as it moved, and made a wish. Then it disappeared below the horizon, and everything was still again. It took quite a while for the flash of impact, the billowing cloud lit from underneath, the expanding circle of dust and destruction racing across the land. The sight was strangely beautiful, and suitably dramatic for the last thing I was ever going to see. I stared at it for long moments, knowing the sound was not far behind, waiting in the calm, still night for the end.
I felt sad when I awoke, but still calm. The image of the country at night, the shooting star, the rising cloud, stayed with me for a long while. The end, falling from the sky, taking everything away. The end.
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