Toward a New Dawn
Speculative Fiction Modern Parables
Reeks: Speculative Fiction Modern Parables
J. R. Kruze
- An
- Epic
- 4-Day
- Road
- Trip
- and
- Fantastical
- Semi-MemoirLiving
- life
- is
- nothing
- that
- any
- moron
- or
- better
- couldn't
- accomplish,
- even
- without
- setting
- one's
- mind
- to
- it.
- The
- trick
- is
- to
- do
- something
- with
- that
- life.
- Or
- live
- several
- at
- once,
- so
- that
- one
- could
- at
- least
- be
- a
- success
- in
- one
- of
- them.Herbert,
- having
- endured
- his
- mid-life
- crisis
- with
- all
- the
- aplomb
- possibly
- available
- to
- him,
- now
- was
- set
- on
- making
- a
- new
- life
- for
- himself.
- This
- is
- his
- book.Such
- a
- book
- has
- parallels
- with
- our
- own.
- That
- is
- life
- for
- you
- -
- it
- sneaks
- up
- on
- you
- and
- drops
- some
- odd
- segue
- or
- link
- into
- some
- other
- person's
- scene
- and
- then
- just
- nips
- away,
- as
- if
- it
- was
- mainlining
- pixie
- dust
- or
- some
- super-quantum
- Dune
- drug.
- Blue
- eyes
- and
- all.You
- see,
- Herbert
- does
- live
- more
- than
- one
- life
- at
- once.
- Shackled
- to
- the
- mundane
- world
- of
- the
- Midwest
- warehouse
- laborer,
- he
- yet
- lives
- in
- worlds
- of
- extreme
- science,
- wild
- fantasy
- environments
- and
- incredibly
- sensuous
- surroundings.
- For
- Herbert
- reads
- books,
- surfs
- the
- Internet
- and
- has
- an
- overactive
- imagination.But
- let's
- meet
- our
- hero...Excerpt:Driving
- down
- Interstate
- 40
- after
- leaving
- LA
- was
- a
- bit
- of
- a
- non-scene.
- Desert
- and
- highway
- didn't
- change
- that
- much
- after
- Barstow.
- Modern
- highways
- are
- built
- to
- be
- safe
- and
- wide
- in
- America.
- Deserts
- were
- designed
- by
- God
- to
- be
- hostile
- and
- unforgiving
- for
- any
- who
- broke
- down
- out
- there.
- Highways
- had
- the
- occasional
- road-side
- phone
- and
- also
- Patrol
- coming
- along.
- Deserts
- had
- cacti,
- dust
- and
- not
- much
- else.Herbert.
- That's
- me.
- There's
- about
- 5
- or
- 6
- variations
- of
- that
- name,
- but
- only
- one
- I
- would
- answer
- to.
- Comes
- from
- being
- raised
- in
- a
- family
- of
- 10.
- You
- had
- to
- pick
- an
- identity
- and
- stick
- with
- it,
- or
- drown
- in
- the
- uncertain
- melange
- of
- other
- lives
- around
- you.
- This
- is
- my
- life,
- at
- least
- as
- I
- recall
- it.
- 40+
- years
- old
- and
- leaving
- the
- known
- for
- the
- formerly
- known
- in
- order
- to
- make
- some
- sense
- of
- my
- life.
- Not
- that
- I
- was
- confused.
- But
- what
- I
- had
- been
- doing
- didn't
- make
- sense
- anymore,
- so
- I
- was
- now
- driving
- from
- LA,
- away
- from
- the
- nonsensical,
- toward
- the
- sensible.Barstow
- itself
- hadn't
- changed
- much
- since
- I
- had
- been
- there
- some
- 20
- years
- ago.
- I
- had
- gone
- to
- Vegas
- to
- get
- married
- and
- found
- that
- Barstow
- was
- an
- interesting
- rest
- stop.
- I
- was
- the
- only
- one
- with
- a
- license,and
- so
- was
- the
- elected
- driver.
- We
- took
- off
- late
- after
- work
- -
- two
- couples
- in
- one
- car,
- both
- seeking
- an
- instant
- marriage
- and
- abbreviated
- honeymoon
- on
- the
- way
- back.
- We
- had
- essentially
- 48
- hours
- to
- pull
- the
- whole
- thing
- off.
- So,
- with
- the
- late
- start
- and
- nerves
- keeping
- me
- up
- the
- night
- before,
- lack
- of
- sleep
- started
- taking
- its
- toll
- after
- midnight.
- Pulled
- over
- by
- a
- trooper,
- who
- noticed
- the
- car
- was
- weaving.
- So
- we
- stopped
- in
- Barstow
- for
- a
- couple
- of
- hours
- -
- they
- went
- in
- and
- had
- some
- food,
- I
- slept
- (but
- first
- my
- wife-to-be
- and
- I
- "made
- out"
- in
- the
- front
- seat,
- just
- short
- of
- having
- sex
- -
- which
- was
- forbidden
- as
- part
- of
- the
- Center.A
- rise
- in
- the
- highway
- brought
- my
- attention
- back
- to
- the
- current,
- swerving
- the
- heavy
- loaded
- rental
- truck
- to
- stay
- between
- the
- lines.
- Topping
- the
- slight
- rise,
- I
- saw
- only
- the
- black
- parallel
- bars
- of
- highway
- stretching
- again
- into
- the
- darkening
- desert,
- the
- sun
- behind
- me
- along
- with
- a
- tail
- wind,
- pushing
- me
- ever
- home
- and
- away
- from
- Center
- forever.Center
- had
- been
- something
- which
- promised
- answers
- to
- all
- my
- many
- questions
- about
- how
- the
- universe
- operated.
- They
- said
- that
- you
- just
- had
- to
- follow
- their
- exact
- path
- and
- keep
- studying
- the
- books
- and
- lectures
- of
- their
- founder.
- One
- day,
- in
- an
- ever-increasing
- but
- gentle
- gradient,
- you
- would
- know
- Truth
- and
- this
- hope
- kept
- you
- going
- -
- along
- with
- the
- required
- annual
- celebrations
- you
- were
- required
- to
- attend
- where
- the
- official
- PR
- was
- read
- out
- by
- executives...Scroll
- Up
- and
- Get
- Your
- Copy Now.
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