Riverside Picnic

Do you remember that picnic we had on the bank of the Yenisei? It was windy but warm. We had cakes and hot tea from the thermos. It was the last perfunctory picnic in our dying marriage.

We had chicken and steamed vegetables, some seafood, and mushrooms cut up into tiny pieces. You wore a white dress and a large white hat.

I carried the food in a large basket. I held it in my hands while you put the blanket down. You looked at me briefly, no smile. Not a real one, at least.

I was about to tell you that I had eyes for another. I was suffocating. I was bored. I was looking for freedom. I was never in the mood. I was about to open my mouth when we saw the flash.

Then we heard the roar and it was not thunder. It was a large glowing mushroom cloud rising from the horizon. The cloud that let me keep my good guy face on.

Posted by: Paweł Kowaluk