A Calling

It was six a.m. and her alarm clock sounds, BEEP…BEEP…BEEP. Her hand plopped onto the off button as her eyes began to crease open. The sun was creeping through the window curtains hitting her face. It was that time of day again, time to begin her daily routine to get to work on time even though she would much rather hit snooze and sleep in past noon. She knows she could but her bills won’t let her. ‘Real’ life started for Natalia when she graduated from college when she was twenty-three years old. Working as a nurse is what she always wanted to do. She is now twenty-seven years old and has been working her dream job for the past four years. Despite getting the job she wanted from the get-go she feels an emptiness inside. This feeling started nearing the end of her first year at her shiny new grown-up job. For three years she has been going through the motions; wake up, shower, eat, work, eat, work, go home, eat, and go to sleep just to do it all again. Natalia begins to ask herself; “What am I doing to deserve this feeling of sadness and emptiness?” Weeks go by and no progress occurs. It is still the same old same old. One morning, seemingly no different than any other, on the way to her car she spots something tucked away behind a shrub that she walks past every day.

A little black book with nothing on the front or back was what she saw. Natalia proceeded to pick the book up to see if there was a name, phone number, address, or just something to see if she could return it to its rightful owner. Nothing, there was nothing in the book that could steer her in anyone’s direction. Little did Natalia know that this book was destined to be hers. After finding no one’s name she quickly shoved the book in her purse and rushed to her car so she would not be late to work. Ever since she got to work she could not stop thinking to herself why the two words, ‘A Calling,’ were on the first page of that random book. Lunch could not come fast enough and when it finally did she yanked the book from her purse and opened it back up. She quickly sifted through the pages and to her amazement, the book was in perfect condition. Something about the book stood out to her. There were short passages with dates on them and the closer she looked she realized that the dates were in chronological order from January 1st to December 31st. There were no years in this book, so instinct kicked in and she flipped to October 7th, because that’s what day it happened to be. She read for less than a minute, and the passage for the day was over. She shut the book, ate her food, and went back to work. About a week passed, and she kept reading these short passages. She felt that something was different about her, and her coworkers even started to notice a difference.

Natalia started to feel as though she had a reason to get up and power through the day. The passages were short and simple, yet still carried uplifting messages. The more she felt uplifted, she noticed that everyone else that she saw on a daily basis was becoming more high-spirited as well. The days stopped blending together, and she began to see everything in a new light. The days were not dull anymore and good things kept happening to her. One fateful day, she bumped into an old man while out for lunch. He was alone, so she asked to join him for lunch. Reluctantly, he said yes, and they enjoyed a nice meal together. They exchanged names and some small talk but not much more. She went back to work thinking nothing of the pleasant meal that she had had with the kind old man. A week strolled by, and while she was working, a sharply-dressed man swiftly entered her place of work. She was watching her manager from afar when he looked right at her and said, with a smile on his face, “Natalia, this gentleman would like to have a word with you.” She was confused as to why, but listened to her manager and began to make her way to the peculiar man. Upon her arrival, he asked if her name was Natalia Kinsman, to which she replied, “yes.”

He proceeded to tell her that he was the lawyer of the man whom she had met at the lunch the week prior. Surprised, she asked him why his lawyer was reaching out to a complete stranger on his behalf. He informed Natalia that he had passed away just a couple of days after he had met her and that he put her in his will. The lawyer handed her an envelope and left the building without another word. In astonishment, Natalia walked to her desk and plopped down in her seat. She slowly opened the envelope, wondering what could possibly be in it. She gasped when she realized what was in this envelope was twenty thousand dollars in crisp one hundred dollar bills and a note. The note said, “Natalia, you are destined for great things, and I won’t be needing this money any longer. It is for you to do what you feel as though you must do. Thank you for showing me that even a stranger can brighten someone’s day. -Michael.” Natalia started bawling at her desk, and her manager gave her the rest of the day off. When she got home, she read the passage for the day and had an epiphany. The next day, she quit her job, sold all of her belongings, and began to travel all over the world. On her pilgrimage, she met the love of her life and saw many beautiful places the world has to offer. After a year of traveling, she got her old job back, settled down with her husband, and started a family. After her first child was born, she realized that her true happiness started with that little black book.

The End.

-N