It Only Takes an Hour

Approx. 258 words

The alarm goes off. She rolls over and silences the noise. I hold my breath… is she getting up? No, she falls back asleep.

Wait! The alarm again! She reaches out and shuts it off. I’m not taking any chances, I shake the bed. She groans and proceeds to get up.

After tending to her needs, she puts on her robe and goes out to the kitchen. She opens the patio door and then pours herself a cup of coffee. While she heats it in the microwave, I go outside and check out the backyard.

Fence is okay; gate is shut, no stray animals in the yard. Everything seems okay here. Meanwhile she has turned on the TV. I wait to see if she gets the weather report, I thought it was nice outside. Clear and a little cool, but the sun is coming up and that will warm it up a bit.

I hear a car start up. I run to the window to see who it is. It’s my best friend, backing out of her driveway; she is on her way to work. It must be close to my favorite time.

I glance at her… yes, she’s finishing her coffee. She goes back to the bedroom. Is she going back to bed? No! Please, it’s almost time! Oh, good! She just got dressed. I sit and look at her expectantly.

“Yes, Max, it’s time to go to the park,” she says. It takes an hour to get her ready to go, but it’s worth the wait.