On the flip of a coin (430 hits)
Category: NoneRating: 1.64 on 19 reviews (Rate this item) (V)
Submitted by Spf Zero (View user info) at 2006-11-30 07:39:01 EST
The quarter catches a glint of light from the lamp in the corner as in nears the apex of it's flight. I marvel at the intensity of that reflection, and wonder briefly if it's the new South Dakota quarter. I shake the notion off, attributing the vividness of the moment to the gravity of the current situation. The coin begins it's decent. All I can do now is hold my breath, the rest is up to luck.
I've never been one to subscribe to the belief in fate. No, that's not true. I refuse to allow myself to believe that the entire course of my life is a predetermined story and that no amount of effort on my part can influence the outcome. If that was the case, I'd just end it now, because that's how it was meant to happen. With all due respect to the three lovely ladies of myth, I'll be in charge of where my story leads. However, it's nice to be able to consult them for guidance from time to time. If I'm to be the author of my story, perhaps I'll let them play the part of the editor.
Luck. The one concession I give my destiny. Through the years and my meandering experiences I've come to understand that there are choices in one's life when neither the advice from your head nor your heart can be taken. Times where, unless a decision is made, the schism of internal opinions will tear you apart. It's times like this that I turn to The Fates.
The flip of a coin, the roll of a dice, the turn of a card. In these simple events, most people would see only blind luck. However, it is these very same events in which I see directions. This is my way of checking with my editor, in times of doubt. This allowance, I believe, is why they let me do my own work the majority of the time.
A tumbling coin is a beautiful thing. Especially with a weighty decision riding on it. There is a fervor to it's spin, a chaotic element more felt than seen. Perhaps it's the battle between the physics of this world and the influence of the divine as to which side will show when the arc finally ends. The fight seems exceptionally intense tonight.
And with good reason. Neither outcome is particularly favorable to anyone. Heads and I find myself buried to the neck in a situation that could very well be destined for failure. A potential catastrophe of such proportions that anyone caught in the fallout may not survive. Tails I walk away, and in that action lose a shot at what could be my life's greatest accomplishment. Like I said, there is no good choice.
Might as well get it over with. Let the coin fall. Quit drawing it out. The suspense is killing me. The usual clink of metal on concrete sounds more akin to the toll of a bell. I watch as the quarter bounces once, twice, and starts to roll across the floor. Loosing momentum rapidly, it slows to a crawl. It hesitates for a moment, standing precariously on it's edge, as if to say there must be another way out of this. But a coin only has two sides. The coin topples.
User Reviews
Submitted by TheUniter (user info) at 2006-12-01 03:06:17 EST (#)
Ranking: -2
The possessive of 'it' = its.
The contraction of 'it is' = it's
Besides that, this 'story' was terrible and bored the living shit out of me.
Its (note) only redeeming feature was its (note) length.
Submitted by Snark (user info) at 2006-11-30 16:08:12 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Submitted by DrogoRoch (user info) at 2006-11-30 11:30:15 (#)
Ranking: 2
Bloody good.
Submitted by homer42 (user info) at 2006-11-30 14:19:57 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
I really hope there's more to this story...
Submitted by Average_Dan (user info) at 2006-11-30 13:50:22 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
This is quite the fantastic piece. It's a spoken language, written to word.
Why would that be any different from the classical sense of writing, Average_Dan??!??!!!
I'll tell you.
It's easier for the non-lit major to read and understand. The aesthetics of the word placement more accurately convey the subject. It's easier to understand when it's things you say everyday. Wave o' the future in Literary circles.
Balsy way to make decisions though, fates or not. I prefer to harp endlessly on a subject until there is no possible outcome, all variables accounted for, left but the one I have already envisioned. This takes time, sometimes I feel people are waiting for an answer longer than they should, but anything that's important enough to make you stop and think (Meaning, it's not an autonomous, everyday, reactionary decision) is probably worth thinking it through to the end and not just past it's immediate reprocussions.
Alright, I'm done being a nerd. Good Post.
A_D
Submitted by ih8u2man (user info) at 2006-11-30 12:28:18 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Pure.
Submitted by DrogoRoch (user info) at 2006-11-30 11:30:15 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Bloody good.
Submitted by coley (user info) at 2006-11-30 11:12:19 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by beauxjizzle (user info) at 2006-11-30 11:02:56 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
hope this helps
Submitted by beauxjizzle (user info) at 2006-11-30 11:02:26 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
yes
Submitted by beauxjizzle (user info) at 2006-11-30 11:01:58 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
again
Submitted by beauxjizzle (user info) at 2006-11-30 11:01:31 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
fuck
Submitted by beauxjizzle (user info) at 2006-11-30 11:01:15 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
sorry
Submitted by beauxjizzle (user info) at 2006-11-30 11:00:37 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by beauxjizzle (user info) at 2006-11-30 11:00:31 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
fuck.. was supposed to be a +2
Submitted by beauxjizzle (user info) at 2006-11-30 11:00:16 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
I am lucky enough to of been able to work with Spf Zero amongst the other greats on a post that I can genuinely say created a turning point in my career. He was the closest thing to my father and grandfather that I really do believe I've had in several years... He left us with a legend that all of us have the ability to do. Make a searching and fearless moral inventory of yourselves' everytime there's a triumph in the world a million souls hafta be trampled on. - Spf Zero, its true. But treasure each triumph as they come. Be adequite. Beaux Jizzle."
Submitted by Brdn_Nkd (user info) at 2006-11-30 10:50:32 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
nice
Submitted by Antioxident (user info) at 2006-11-30 09:40:32 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by Amontillado (user info) at 2006-11-30 09:21:50 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by Maltese (user info) at 2006-11-30 07:55:54 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
You're like Bickerstaff or something, ya know that?