The Nugget

Vince was panicking, floundering in the tides of bad luck that life continually sent his way. He just felt like he was getting his head above water and then, here was another tsunami setback: a bill; a roof repair; a bad investment; a divorce.

He had no idea anymore how to float.

Life wasn't prepared to throw him a jacket and he was weighed down by its saturation.

He felt the temptation of the roulette wheel and online gambling like a taunting devil but had so far resisted. He was desperate - for money, for happiness, for a reprieve. He wasn't sure how much longer he could go on.

There was nowhere to turn.

When his friend, Pat, had offered for him to go prospecting on a lease he had secured, he felt he had nothing to lose. He had no expectations and thought it would be a good distraction.

"Come on, mate. Come with me," Pat had coaxed. "What have you got to lose?"

As someone on the brink of losing everything, this was probably not the best reminder to give Vince but Pat was right.

"We can have a couple of tinnies and just hang out. Just escape from it for a bit. Hey, mate? Maybe find some gold!"

And so Vince took a couple of weeks off work and headed to the great red desolation to seek his fortune as so many had done before.

As they drove away into the wide expanse of Australia's outback, Vince felt better. He wasn't liberated but he was having respite. The space of the interior made him feel small, insignificant, another collection of atoms in a universe made up of many. It was like entering another existence if only for a while and a reminder of the otherness that life could offer.

He spent his days scouring the land, the motion of the detector and the beep of the machine meditative, his only concern an unexpected snake encounter or annoying flies. Laughter filled his evenings, under the shooting stars by the spitting fire.

It took him three days to find his first nugget.

The euphoria squeezed him like a lemon. He cried.

At last.

A lifejacket.

***

366 words

I'm trying today to turn over a new leaf and make a concerted effort to write stories that are filled with goodness, whether that's in the actions of the characters or in humour or love or whatever. I'm not sure that I can sustain it.

I love the dark as much as any writer and it is easier in some ways to find than the light, like coal in a mine, seemingly inexhaustible, but the world is such a dark place, Vocal isn't and I want to shed a little light from my small corner lamp.

Thanks for stopping by! If you do read it, please do leave a comment as I love to interact with my readers.

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