A Day with My Sun

A DAY WITH MY SUN

My dear sun, I want to let you know of the love I have for you. I Have to admit that you are probably my favorite thing in the entire world. I mean I always look forward to basking under your warmth. Feel your heat, the way you just burn me I can’t explain. Sometimes it becomes too much for me to bear and I have to run to a shade. At least under the comfort of a tree. They spread their arms around me and tell me that they have got me. However, despite the pain and the heat, I love you and today I’m willing to learn all about you. I just want to talk to you today, spend time with you and get to know you.

“Hey, what are you doing in the dark at this ungodly hour?” scarlet threw away the tape recorder she was holding out of shock.

“Jesus Mary, you scared me” Mary laughed

“You know you shouldn’t be calling Jesus without a reason?” Mary gave scarlet the look. That look had to be one of the most powerful things that Mary possessed. Gathering herself from the floor, scarlet fumbled around with her hands attempting to find the tape recorder. Mary switched on the lights.

“There you go”, scarlet spoke out loud as she found the tape recorder while getting up to face Mary.

“Seriously, what were you doing?” Mary inquired, this time with a serious look.

“ooh, I was just watching the stars. You know how much I love the sky”

“No, I don’t know. let’s go to sleep. Tomorrow is a big day” Mary told her.

“Technically, it's already tomorrow because it's 3am,” Scarlet stated

“I disagree because tomorrow starts when the sun rises.” Mary told her “don’t you remember in the bible, at the beginning of time, God separated the light from the darkness.” Mary continued. Scarlet looked at her and they both laughed.

“well, let's go to bed, scarlet told her.” As they were tiptoeing into the room, careful not to wake up the rest of the girls, scarlet couldn’t stop thinking. She had to do this one thing. She had made a promise to her Sun. but yet, she had already broken it. It hadn’t even been one hour, since she made a vow.

“Goodnight,” Mary told scarlet.

“Buena’s noches my friend,” Scarlet told her while smiling.

Scarlet rested her head on the pillow and continued dreaming. She held close the recorder to her chest and promised herself that she wouldn’t sleep. Today, she had to see the sun as it rose. She had come to a new city and she had never seen the sunrise. That was unlike her. She couldn’t even tell someone which direction the sun rose or set. She remembered the good old days when the Sun would bid her goodbye. It would set in the far horizon. She had seen it move and create those beautiful colors. She had never been more in love with the color pink like those days.

“krrr! Krrr! Krrr!” the alarm beeped and beeped.

“Someone shut down that clock” Elise pointed out while covering her ears with the blanket. It was a small room. It only held the four girls.

“More like shooting it down,” Renee said. They all laughed, while Mary turned on the lights.

“Do you guys mind, my class doesn’t start until 11am”

“some of us work for a living Mary” Renee stated as a matter of fact.

“Don’t be rude Renee” Elise said. Renee and Elise did not get along too well. Elise was always too serious for Renee.

“well, I have to prepare for work.” Renee got up and left, so did Elise. Elise was an accountant. She loved numbers and after her college degree, she had gotten a job at a local bank. She loved her job most days because she got to work with numbers most of the time. On the other hand, Renee was an artist. She loved to express herself using art. She had pursued her dream to be an artist, despite the family objections.

“It can’t pay Renee,” they all told her. Most of the time she felt like giving up because it never did pay. She had to display her art for free so as to get clients. Because of her free-form nature, she was part of a dance club that provided her with occasional money.

Scarlet woke up and rushed to the rooftop. “Oh, my God! I fell asleep” she couldn’t believe it. I’m going to miss the sun. It was 6am. She rushed to the roof and true to her, the sun was just rising. She hadn’t said a word since getting up. That was something worth celebrating she thought to herself. She lied down on the cold floor and watched the sky as the sun rose.

“Hello sun, good morning, today I want to spend the day with you. I hope you don’t mind” she said to her mind and hoped to the heavens that they had communicated. Once the sun was out, scarlet rushed back to the room to begin her daily chores. Scarlet was a computer security specialist. She spent most of her time with her laptop. All the girls always teased her that it was her boyfriend. She didn’t mind because she loved the machine. Her mother had bought it for her as a present. She treasured it. She found Mary just getting ready to go to class.

“hey scarlet, would you lend me your laptop tonight. I need to finish watching that movie” scarlet was about to say no when she remembered her promise. No words were spoken. Today she had to keep her voice for the sun. she shakes her head indicating a no.

“what do you mean NO. I always give you my laptop” she shakes her head both ways as if thinking.

“Alright then, you can have it” suddenly, there was a thunder strike, as soon as she had spoken the words.

“Did you hear that?” Mary asked her. “it sounded so darn scarily” she added. Scarlet was scared too. Somehow, she thought it as a message sent to her by nature. Of course, she couldn’t tell Mary that. Mary would think she was crazy. Mary looked at her watch and took her bag.

“I will see you later, I got to rush to class” scarlet nodded and Mary left. She took out her laptop and started working on her project. She had been hired by a local supermarket to improve their security systems. Scarlet was surprised how much most people ignored the security of computers. After finishing high school, she had decided to venture into computer security. It had always amazed her how computers work. By the time she lifted her head up, it was 1pm. She closed her laptop and got out.

The sun was shining. The heat was too hot, she almost got burned. She thought if she was imagining things or was the sun too hot today. She wondered. However, as she looked around, people seemed to go on with their daily activities as normal. As she walked towards the hotel to eat lunch, the sun only got hotter with every step she took.

“You promised to spend the day with me,” a voice told her. Scarlet looked around and wouldn’t see anyone talking to her.

“I must be imagining things,” she said out loud. Another thunder strikes. Everyone reacted. That was proof enough to scarlet that she wasn’t the only one who had heard the thunder strike. She got into the hotel and ordered 2 chapatis with Ndengu. She ate her food in silence. Thinking about how to complete that project on time, because it was due soon. She paid 4oshillings for her lunch and went back to the room. As she walked back, something kept nagging at her that the sun was a really hot today. She did not give it much thought. After getting to the room, Mary was already back from class and cooking lunch.

“I told you to stop eating hotel food, it’s not healthy”

“Not everyone is as righteous as you mother Mary,” Scarlet told her. Mary looked offended for a moment but then smiled. Scarlet got back to her work. Just as she was opening her laptop another thunder strike.

“Don’t you think that we have had too many thunder strikes today?” Mary asked scarlet.

Scarlet looked out the window and as she watched the sky, dark clouds were forming. The sun was slowly backing away. Giving way to darkness.

“What time is it?” Mary asked her

“it's 2.30pm” scarlet answered. Immediately it started pouring. Drops by drops. Scarlet was happy, she loved the rain. But somehow, the rain today, seemed to rain with too much force. It seemed like it had brought forth a punishment. Scarlet immediately wished it was sunny. Just as that thought crossed her mind, the rain added a little bit more force and scarlet remembered her promise to the sun. but what were the odds? The sun shone upon every one. How could it choose her? How could it listen to her? Somehow, she blamed herself. She thought that all those events of the day were connected. The sun was surprising her. Communicating to her. But she hadn’t listened. She had not watched. She had missed that opportunity. The sun was gone. Gone to another land. Gone to help someone else make memories of another day, another light.