Wilbur’s Last Sauna
flash fiction | heat
“It’s hot as a sauna in here.” At 85, Wilbur tottered into the sauna with the heart of a teenager and the body of someone living his final days. Even though some were tired of the joke, all but one politely chuckled.
He looked frail but content, dropping unsteadily onto a bench, still leaning on his cane, catching his breath. “Folks,” his eyes twinkling, “nothing like a good sweat to remind you you’re still breathing—barely, in my case.”
A younger man leaned forward. “Haven’t seen you in a bit?”
“I still come every chance I get. Heat reminds me I’m still alive. Cold just makes me suspicious.” Wilbur smiled. “Besides, it’s better than arguing with my daughter.”
He shifted to a woman draped in a towel, leaning against the cedar slats. “And Elena, dear, how is that grandson of yours? Has he learned to use a spoon, or is he still treating his face like a canvas for mashed peas?”
She laughed. “He’s graduated to forks. Though the peas still end up everywhere but his mouth.”
“Standard procedure,” Wilbur nodded. “I’m back to the same stage myself. Circle of life.”
Then he looked over at the quiet one. Young, maybe twenty-five, staring at the floor with his elbows on his knees and the turned-in posture of someone carrying something heavy. He hadn’t looked up once.
Wilbur watched him a moment, then said quietly, almost to himself, “You know, I used to think the hard times were the ones happening to me.” He paused for a breath. “Took me most of my life to figure out they were mostly happening for me.”
The young man lifted his head and stared at the wall across from him as if the cedar grain had formed a map.
Wilbur didn’t watch him anymore. He didn’t need to. He pressed his palms lightly against the bench, gathering himself. “Got to go while I still can call it leaving.” He smiled and struggled to stand. “Any longer and it becomes a rescue operation.”
When he stepped out, he left the rest a little warmer than before.
by George Alger
Visit the archive to see the latest or GeorgeAlger.com to see even more.
Enter your email below to join the readers of Liminal Stories.