Time for another Weekend Writing Warrior post! This week’s eight comes from my short The Guru, which appears in my recent collection with S.H. Roddey, Lost in the Shadows. It’s one of the more elusive tales in the book that describes a day in the life of an old man with a calling, the stresses this imposes upon him, and the dreams he keeps secret from the rest of the world.
The eight:
Yet he always arrives safely in the village below, always goes to the market where he sits on the reed-wood chair. It is the only sign of his status. His wrinkled, dried-fig face could be that of any old man, his worn and ragged robe that of any beggar. He is much more, though his wealth is all inside his head. His appearance and carriage are only proof of his reclusive tendencies, not of who he is.
With slow purpose and movement that resembles a trembling leaf, he sits on his designated chair and waits for the people to come. They will not stop coming all day, even when he leaves to go back to his seclusion. From within each brain, from behind each set of lips pour out questions. Some inventive, but most he hears regularly.
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Welcome to the Shadows:
Journey with authors Selah Janel and S.H. Roddey to a world where every idea is a possibility and every genre an invitation. In this collection of forty-seven short stories, lines blur and worlds collide in strange and wonderful new ways. Get lost with the authors as they wander among fantasy, horror, science fiction, and other speculative musings.
Shadows can’t hurt you, and sometimes it’s all right to venture off the path.
Come Selahway With Me... 
He seems to be an interesting character, fighting his tendency to meet people and answer their questions is a very hard job.
I’m glad you think so. You’re right – it can’t be easy being able to think a certain way or have a certain insight. I definitely don’t envy that character one bit, and I probably sympathize for him a great deal.
“Will I ever find love?” 🙂 Is he a seer?
He would probably answer with something cryptic, to make you think. 😉 He’s less of a seer and more of a man with great insight, a person who’s been willing to sit and think things out. He’s a fascinating guy with a large burden to bear.
Interesting, really makes you wonder who the old man is and what’s the source of his knowledge. Great snippet!
Thanks so much! I’m glad this little bit got you thinking and wondering. That means a lot to me. 🙂
Love it. Is he an oracle? I’m guessing he answers Karysa’s question a lot!!!
Lol, there do seem to be a lot of questions that everyone wants to know the answer to, huh? Glad you enjoyed!