A Ticking Time Bomb
On a mild Sunday afternoon in spring, a family has a yard sale. The sale is not busy; most passersby glance at items and soon continue on without buying anything. One man, however, is drawn to a small wooden clock. The second he lifts it from the table the man hosting the yard sale jumps to his feet, seemingly because he has not sold anything all day.
"How much?" The interested man asks.
"For my first customer of the day, it's on the house," he says in an attempt to remain nonchalant.
"I couldn't take this beauty for nothing; you must let me give you something."
"Honestly, the gift is knowing it’s in your hands."
"Well, thank you sir, you just made my day!"
"I was just thinking the same thing."
The man walked on so uplifted by the other man's generosity that he did not even notice that the once blue sky had turned gray and the sun was now shielded by clouds. He walked back to his house where he was greeted at the door by a friendly looking woman wearing a pink sundress and an apron. She told him dinner would be ready in just a minute. Still smiling he walked into his den and set his new possession in the center of the mantle above the fireplace. Instantly, it began to rain.
"Mel, dear, dinner is ready!" his wife said lovingly.
"Coming, Trish!"
He sat down to a nice meal with his wife and son. Everything went smoothly as usual. They all went to bed blissfully ignorant.
When they awoke the sun was shining, but something was off in the Wilson household. Mel went out to get the morning paper, just as he did every morning, but today was different. He grabbed the paper from the curb, smiled at Mrs. Scott across the street, however today she did not smile back, she just pointed in horror back at Mel's house. He turned to see that a massive tree branch had crashed into his garage destroying most of the roof. He ran back to his house and called for Trish to come outside.
"What is it, dear? Did Tommy throw the paper into a puddle again?" Trish asked in her normal soft tone.
"No, the storm must have taken a branch down last night. I can't believe we didn't hear it!"
"Oh my! Well, I'll call the insurance company!"
They both went back inside, Trish went to the phone, and Mel to his new clock, in an attempt to remember the good of yesterday to block out today's troubles. He noticed, however, that it no longer showed the accurate time. There was a small knob on the top of the clock to change the time, but when Mel twisted it the clock did not change. It was insisting that the time was one o'clock. Not wanting to become more frustrated Mel walked away and didn't give it a second thought. The insurance came through and the Wilsons would not have to pay a dime for the damage, they would however, have to deal with the inconvenience.
The week went by, the garage was fixed and Mel was trying not to dwell. Each day without fail he woke up, got the paper, had his morning coffee, and went to work at Ford, where he worked on the assembly line. That Wednesday at work Mel was doing the same job that he had done for the past twenty five years. It was his job to assemble the brakes on each car that came to him. Today, for the first time in twenty five years Mel made a serious mistake. He had been making an error when installing the brakes--- all day. Mel was called into his boss' office.
"Mel, this isn't like you! What's going on?"
"Sir, I- I- I'm so sorry, I don't know what's gotten into me."
"Mel, you know we've been having to cut back lately. We can't afford these kinds of mistakes."
"Sir, I can go back and fix the mistakes, it can come out of my salary-"
"Mel, over 200 cars, it would take you three times the time to fix the mistake and in the mean time the rest of the team on brakes would have to work overtime, just to make up for your absence."
"Sir, you've known me for 25 years, I- I've never--"
"I know Mel, I wish this was up to me, but I've been given direct orders to-"
"Jim, you know me you can't!"
"I'm afraid I have no choice, Mel, I truly am sorry, I tried to change their minds, but the decision was out of my hands."
"I'll take a pay cut, I- I- I'll do anything!"
"You have until the end of the day tomorrow to clean out your locker, I'm afraid this is goodbye."
Mel did not go straight home that day, he couldn't. How could he face his wife and tell her that he lost the job that pays all of their bills? The job that puts food on their table and clothes on their backs. The job that has kept her from needing one. The job that he loved. Without that job they had nothing, their savings could keep them afloat for a while, but cutbacks would need to be made. Cutbacks, just the sound of the word made him cringe. He knew this was a possibility ever since the economy had plummeted, but he thought that after twenty five years his job was secure. What a stupid mistake! He would need to get another job, that much was obvious, but where? Brakes were all he had ever known. After hours of sitting in his parked car, Mel finally mustered up the courage to drive home and face his wife. It was dark out know and he knew that she would be getting worried.
“Mel, dear where were you? I was getting so worried! Dinner’s cold!”
“Trish sit down, I have some bad news. Billy, go to your room and let us chat, will you?”
“Dad what’s wrong?” Bill asked.
“Son,” Mel said more sternly.
Billy walked away leaving his parents in silence. Mel cleared his throat and began to explain his day to his shaking wife. Trish began to cry.
“Will I, will I need to get a job?” Trish asked Mel hesitantly,
“Not if I can find work quickly enough, but it’s possible it might come to that,”
After a long talk, they eventually went to bed, though neither slept much. They were both overwhelmed with shock from the surprise that day had brought.
Their lives went on. Mel went to multiple job interviews a day, but was never successful. That Friday, they received a call around three-thirty, it was the police. Billy had been riding his bike home from school, like he did every day, and he was hit by a car. The car had run a stop sign and after hitting Billy, kept driving. The police officer told the Wilsons that Billy was being taken to the hospital by an ambulance, but he would be alright. They immediately rushed to the hospital.
“Excuse me, we’re the Wilsons, ou-our son Billy, is he, is he alright?” Mel asked a doctor franticly.
“Yes, sir, your son is going to be just fine. He has two broken legs and he’s a bit scrapped up, but he’ll recover,” the doctor said in an attempt at reassurance.
“Oh, thank god,” Trish said with a sigh of relief.
“The driver who hit him, do you know, was he found?” Mel asked.
“I’m afraid not, all Billy saw was that it was dark in color and a Ford,” the doctor replied as he walked away.
That was when it hit Mel. Insurance, they did not have it. Their health insurance had always been from Mel’s job and without it this would cost them a fortune, a fortune that they did not have. He knew that the loss of his job meant cutbacks, but this was going to take the cutbacks to a whole new level. Billy would have to stay in the hospital overnight and that would mean that the bill would be in the thousands. This was an expense that they could not afford and stress that they could not handle.
"How much?" The interested man asks.
"For my first customer of the day, it's on the house," he says in an attempt to remain nonchalant.
"I couldn't take this beauty for nothing; you must let me give you something."
"Honestly, the gift is knowing it’s in your hands."
"Well, thank you sir, you just made my day!"
"I was just thinking the same thing."
The man walked on so uplifted by the other man's generosity that he did not even notice that the once blue sky had turned gray and the sun was now shielded by clouds. He walked back to his house where he was greeted at the door by a friendly looking woman wearing a pink sundress and an apron. She told him dinner would be ready in just a minute. Still smiling he walked into his den and set his new possession in the center of the mantle above the fireplace. Instantly, it began to rain.
"Mel, dear, dinner is ready!" his wife said lovingly.
"Coming, Trish!"
He sat down to a nice meal with his wife and son. Everything went smoothly as usual. They all went to bed blissfully ignorant.
When they awoke the sun was shining, but something was off in the Wilson household. Mel went out to get the morning paper, just as he did every morning, but today was different. He grabbed the paper from the curb, smiled at Mrs. Scott across the street, however today she did not smile back, she just pointed in horror back at Mel's house. He turned to see that a massive tree branch had crashed into his garage destroying most of the roof. He ran back to his house and called for Trish to come outside.
"What is it, dear? Did Tommy throw the paper into a puddle again?" Trish asked in her normal soft tone.
"No, the storm must have taken a branch down last night. I can't believe we didn't hear it!"
"Oh my! Well, I'll call the insurance company!"
They both went back inside, Trish went to the phone, and Mel to his new clock, in an attempt to remember the good of yesterday to block out today's troubles. He noticed, however, that it no longer showed the accurate time. There was a small knob on the top of the clock to change the time, but when Mel twisted it the clock did not change. It was insisting that the time was one o'clock. Not wanting to become more frustrated Mel walked away and didn't give it a second thought. The insurance came through and the Wilsons would not have to pay a dime for the damage, they would however, have to deal with the inconvenience.
The week went by, the garage was fixed and Mel was trying not to dwell. Each day without fail he woke up, got the paper, had his morning coffee, and went to work at Ford, where he worked on the assembly line. That Wednesday at work Mel was doing the same job that he had done for the past twenty five years. It was his job to assemble the brakes on each car that came to him. Today, for the first time in twenty five years Mel made a serious mistake. He had been making an error when installing the brakes--- all day. Mel was called into his boss' office.
"Mel, this isn't like you! What's going on?"
"Sir, I- I- I'm so sorry, I don't know what's gotten into me."
"Mel, you know we've been having to cut back lately. We can't afford these kinds of mistakes."
"Sir, I can go back and fix the mistakes, it can come out of my salary-"
"Mel, over 200 cars, it would take you three times the time to fix the mistake and in the mean time the rest of the team on brakes would have to work overtime, just to make up for your absence."
"Sir, you've known me for 25 years, I- I've never--"
"I know Mel, I wish this was up to me, but I've been given direct orders to-"
"Jim, you know me you can't!"
"I'm afraid I have no choice, Mel, I truly am sorry, I tried to change their minds, but the decision was out of my hands."
"I'll take a pay cut, I- I- I'll do anything!"
"You have until the end of the day tomorrow to clean out your locker, I'm afraid this is goodbye."
Mel did not go straight home that day, he couldn't. How could he face his wife and tell her that he lost the job that pays all of their bills? The job that puts food on their table and clothes on their backs. The job that has kept her from needing one. The job that he loved. Without that job they had nothing, their savings could keep them afloat for a while, but cutbacks would need to be made. Cutbacks, just the sound of the word made him cringe. He knew this was a possibility ever since the economy had plummeted, but he thought that after twenty five years his job was secure. What a stupid mistake! He would need to get another job, that much was obvious, but where? Brakes were all he had ever known. After hours of sitting in his parked car, Mel finally mustered up the courage to drive home and face his wife. It was dark out know and he knew that she would be getting worried.
“Mel, dear where were you? I was getting so worried! Dinner’s cold!”
“Trish sit down, I have some bad news. Billy, go to your room and let us chat, will you?”
“Dad what’s wrong?” Bill asked.
“Son,” Mel said more sternly.
Billy walked away leaving his parents in silence. Mel cleared his throat and began to explain his day to his shaking wife. Trish began to cry.
“Will I, will I need to get a job?” Trish asked Mel hesitantly,
“Not if I can find work quickly enough, but it’s possible it might come to that,”
After a long talk, they eventually went to bed, though neither slept much. They were both overwhelmed with shock from the surprise that day had brought.
Their lives went on. Mel went to multiple job interviews a day, but was never successful. That Friday, they received a call around three-thirty, it was the police. Billy had been riding his bike home from school, like he did every day, and he was hit by a car. The car had run a stop sign and after hitting Billy, kept driving. The police officer told the Wilsons that Billy was being taken to the hospital by an ambulance, but he would be alright. They immediately rushed to the hospital.
“Excuse me, we’re the Wilsons, ou-our son Billy, is he, is he alright?” Mel asked a doctor franticly.
“Yes, sir, your son is going to be just fine. He has two broken legs and he’s a bit scrapped up, but he’ll recover,” the doctor said in an attempt at reassurance.
“Oh, thank god,” Trish said with a sigh of relief.
“The driver who hit him, do you know, was he found?” Mel asked.
“I’m afraid not, all Billy saw was that it was dark in color and a Ford,” the doctor replied as he walked away.
That was when it hit Mel. Insurance, they did not have it. Their health insurance had always been from Mel’s job and without it this would cost them a fortune, a fortune that they did not have. He knew that the loss of his job meant cutbacks, but this was going to take the cutbacks to a whole new level. Billy would have to stay in the hospital overnight and that would mean that the bill would be in the thousands. This was an expense that they could not afford and stress that they could not handle.
Mel went home that night to think things over and Trish spent the night with Billy in the hospital. Mel was forced to trade in their car for a much older one worth only a few hundred dollars, and even this was not enough to pay for the medical bill, let alone the rest of their expenses. As Billy recovered, Mel was not much help. He had begun to retreat into himself. Although he was home all day, his family saw him less and less.
Mel would sit up for hours just staring at the clock. He had given up on looking for a job, and Trish had given up on him. Day would turn to night and night back to day, but Mel remained in his arm chair in the den, facing to the clock. It was Thursday night, Trish and Billy were both in bed, and the clock now read eleven o’clock. Mel stood up from the chair, weak from sitting for so long. He walked over to his desk and opened the bottom drawer with a key. He reached inside the desk and pulled out a revolver. Glancing at his watch, he saw that it was almost midnight. Breathing heavily, he loaded the gun. Without hesitation, he put the gun to his temple and fired.
The clock struck twelve.
The clock struck twelve.
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