Dark Sky Community

It was so terribly cold. Snow was falling, and it was almost dark. We were all outside our homes looking up. Amazed and confused.

Our town was in Texas a small town called Dripping falls well known for rolling hills and scenic rivers and the wedding capital of Texas. It was hot all the time and we had a drought, no rain for at least almost 2 months. Now not having the water we normally have for these rivers the tourist were less then interested then they have ever been.

I worked in a place called “Oak Creek Café”. We served all American southern food and the tourist loved it. We  were know for having made up stuff we kept on a separate menu calls “something more” where we took out foods combined them and dared the tourist to try it out. They normally love them and come back with more friends to try out more.



Since the drought our service are less and less needed so I have more time to do nothing and hope for rain or something exciting to happen. I would draw stuff  things I see in the back of my house. Most of lately it’s been me painting one of the pigs running around of my dog fin he is a hound dog and takes laziness to a whole new level. He is the easiest thing to draw since he doesn’t even like running.

 We had ½ acre of land my grandfather had for more than a decade and after he passed it was given to my dad. It was me(jess), my bother (Gerald)and my baby sister (Cassie). I am 18, my brother (Jim) is 11 and my baby sister is 3 years old.

My mom (Mell) and dad (John) have been together since teenagers, and they have a love hate relationship. One day they are loving each other doing karaoke at the bar. Next, they are throwing half empty bottle of beers at each other calling each other horrible names. This is normal in this town.

I think that’s how I knew things were different the next two weeks from the last couple days after the drought.

I remember it was a Tuesday that things started getting wired. My Mom normally had off and she went into town to get her normal bottles of beer and beef for grill hamburgers they make on a trash can. They did that every Tuesday. It was their specialty and my mom need when the new shipment of beef came in because she knew who comes in and out of this place. she was a police officer, and my dad well was jobless but kept him self busy doing side jobs. Like he would wash dishes at my job. Or run errands for my mom.

This day she went off like normal “Ok, kiddies, I got stuff to do. Don’t forget to give Fin some water from the sink before he dries up out there and all we got is his old ashes.”  My sister just giggled as my mom kissed her in her forehead and tickled her tummy while she was on couch watching cartoons. Then out the door in her truck she went.

Hours later my dad comes with some boxes he said he found in the middle of the highway and just was going to movie them and keep going but he looked inside for a second and it was a glistening medal. He decided he would talk it home and make get good money for it.

He walks in house drops the boxes on the table and says “tonight I am going to help your momma pay some bills!” my dads name is john they nicked name him john the leprechaun because he always talked like he had gold but you never seen the money nor the bills paid by him. Plus is was shorter then my mother jessie. They meat one day after she arrested him for trying to take tires off of a tourist tires to make a buck.  

Why she fell for him beats me but she said he made her laugh and well before he met her laughing was not one of the things she really did. She was a serious person and took her job seriously I heard before I was born. 20 arrest later, he is still in m y mom’s life despite his crazy ways of living. I think she enjoyed being tougher and batter then a man. She used to tell me “Don’t worry about a man worry about what you can provide. That’s the biggest jewel a woman has.” As she shot the cans for target practice for fun or when my dad pissed her off.

The baby walks over to the table climbs up the chair and crawls on table to look in box.

“Oh shiny!” she saw the parking mental and was about o grab but then my dad grabbed her and put her on floor.” No honey its not to play its to pay” He laughed out loud like it was not funny. My brother just looked at him and turned back to the show he was watching on the television.

I was washing dishes and all I see is his feet marks all on the floor and the dust he put on the table.

“Where did you get this junk from this time?” I found it on the road.

I looked at him as I didn’t believe him. He looked at me and said “I am not lying! It was in my way I want to move it, and no one was around. So, it was up for grabs. “I rolled my eyes.

“Well, whatever, can you get off the table I just cleaned it and now I have to clean it again.” I was so annoyed with him I did not even care to investigate the box.

My mom came home a hour later and so the box I moved near the door. She opened the box and just went in it like if it was for her. She saw the gleaming stuff and started pulling it out the box.  “What is this, she was saying to herself.” She picked a piece up as she did that it glowed. She freaked out and threw in back in the box. She called me “Jess, what the hell is this?”  I walked in kitchen. It was no long lighting up. All I saw was the same box full of junk and a piece on the floor.

“Mom I just finish cleaning this kitchen like a half and hour ago.” I remember thinking I can’t wait till I can have my own house.

“Whose school project is this?” she pointed at the box. I picked up the piece on floor and threw it in the box. 

She just looked at me with a confused look. Because nothing happens when I picked it up.

“What? “I said really annoyed “its not mines ask you husband.” I just walked back out to my room.

“John!” my mom yelled while looking in the fridge for a drink.

He was asleep on the couch, and she jumped up when he heard her call his name.

“Huh. Why are you yelling? My head hurts” he is wiping his mouth.

“Maybe if you didn’t drink all day, your head would be fine. “

“What does drinking have to do with my head, it’s your screaming that made that happen.”

The kids are running around chasing each other “give me my ball!” Cassie cried. “No, because you keep throwing it at me!” They fight often and if they don’t fully try to kill each other they defend each other from others.

“Hey, kids you hungry?” She ordered food for my job. She gets its for free most of the time. So, we eat that food often then enough.

“Yes!” both younger ones said.

 “I’m starving.” John said out loud while grabbing a beer in fridge.

I was in my room just listening to music. While writing something in my journal, I felt something past my window. I looked but nothing was there. I just went back to writing.

That night I had closed my eyes and was starting to fall out when I heard a noise from outside my window.

“Whoosh” I jumped up and looked at my window. It was dark with starts out. I went to the window and opened it. I stuck my head out a bit to see where the noise was coming from, but again nothing.

I went back to my bed. This morning I wake up and I smell pancakes.

I Haven’t smelled packages in a few years.  I walk into the kitchen and see my mom and she have an apron on. My dad is sitting near counter talking to my mom and drinking coffee. He doesn’t drink coffee.

“Good morning sweetheart. I hope your hungry,” my mom says to me or chipper and excited.  

My dad looks at me with a weird smile as well. “Would you like me to drive you to school this morning.” I was confused since when my dad askes me to drive me to school yet alone be up in the morning?

“Nope john, I am fine.” I call him john because he never really acted like a dad to me.

The kids were so exited to eat something that wasn’t cooked from the diner. You can see the joy in their face that they didn’t notice how weird our parents were acting.

“I am out. John, you can drop the kids off at school instead.” I just left I was not in the mood for whatever was going on at home. While I was driving, I noticed everyone seeming so happy. People waving t me while I was at a stop sign as they walk by.

I was more confused than I have even been. I started asking myself like is there something going on I should know about or was I might have been dreaming.

I went to park so I can go to school and I noticed it started to get really cold which was weird because it does not get cold in Texas. I came out my car and went to back of my car for a sweater I had stored in back a while ago for when I went to a trip to NYC.

As I started putting on my black sweater cotton material, I noticed it get pitch black. Then it started snowing. In TEXAS!! All I was thinking is what is happening everyone stopped and look up smiling all at the same time they all just stopped. I was so creeped out. They all opened their mouth like little kids waiting for the snow to land on their tongue. At that moment I decided I don’t need to go to school today. I went back into my car. I drove towards my house. I just saw so many people outside their homes and jobs. I saw my job seeing my boss and the other waitresses outside as well. They were holding hands while having their mouths opens.

It was getting creeper and creeper to me. I kept driving and just wanted to get home to my family as soon as I can. Fifteen minutes of driving everyone just closed their mouth and turn their heads and they all looked at my direction. I became scared as though they  were not themselves and they were out to get me for some reason. Maybe because I didn’t do what they did. Maybe they were possessed  by something. I was so unsure what to feel.

They didn’t move they just stared and as I got closer to my house everyone started  seem like themselves. The weather felt hot and the sun came back up and the snow just stopped.

 As though nothing happened. I got out my car parked in front of my house looked around and walked inside. As I went inside it went from quiet to everyone yelling at each other and a mess in the kitchen. “Where is my beer!” my john yelled looking in fridge. “Check up your Ass. maybe it’s in there, dumb ass!” my mom yelled back at him.”

“Yea, Dumb ass” Cassie my little sister repeated.

“See what you are teaching our children. “John responds back.

My brother Gerald  was just watching cartoons on TV while drinking a Capri sun juice, cherry flavored.

“Mom, are you ok?” I asked.

“Yea sweetie you know you father be always doing too much.” She grabs her keys to go out.

“Where are you going? “I didn’t want her to experience what I saw.

“To work. Someone has to pay the bills in this HOUSE.” she wanted john to hear her.

“Its crazy out there you sure you want to go out there?”

“It’s no crazier than any other day.” She responded and just walked outside.

1 few minutes later john says out loud “Where is my box with my stuff? “Just looking around the house. That box disappeared and never to be seen again. Someone can to get it but who? Or what?

I don’t know what happen on that day, but I am sure something did happen. I told the story at the dinner more than enough times  that Dripping Springs began to attract a new breed of tourists when it was named a Dark Sky Community, the first in Texas.