The sun came out today, a nice change in pace from the bleak and uninviting blizzards that discouraged curious passerbys from my street corner last week. When I was younger my mother would say such days weren't meant for wasting. Ironically enough, the week after her funeral was filled with them. Sun shining, birds chirping, flowers blooming. Not a cloud in sight. Perfect, or so it appeared.

But it's what my mother always used to say that brought me here, to the town park. It's currently home to more illegal activities than happy childhood memories, but it continues to house all of mine (all two or three of them, that is). It didn't use to look this way. That swing set over there used to be the talk of the town, at least for those of us under the age of 12. And that slide. It hasn't always been covered up with rust and gum. I even used to sleep under it when I'd run away from home. My stepfather never failed to find me here and drag me home the following mornings. This was a common occurrence after my mother died and became more and more frequent as the years passed. One morning he didn't come after me, though, and when I finally returned to his place, he wasn't there. Somehow I was the one always running away, yet he was the one who escaped.

This park doesn't bring the same comfort it once did to my preadolescent self. Nothing in this town does.

I'm not the only one paying the park a visit today. A young woman attempts to interest two young kids into playing with the distraught-looking play structure. Donald James is also here, just walking through, muttering under his breath as usual. I like him, though. He doesn't expect to get more out of this place than what it has to offer (which isn't much of anything). I remember him from a year or so ago. He had a few dollars he wanted to "waste on something useless," so he paid my shop a visit. He was skeptical yet amused, as most people are. I told him he was a man of routine, and this routine, however dreadful and boring, wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. He should expect no changes, good or bad, and he better get used to it. He believed me, but he let me know he didn't think it was worth paying to hear. I agreed, but a cold front had come in that day, and matches don't buy themselves.

He gives me a nod as he walks past, and I return the favor. Both of us have an understanding of what it means to be part of this town, and neither of us are fooled by a bright, sunny day such as this one.