Off the Grid

“I see the reasoning for it. Out here no one can blow your phone up, get a hold of you at the drop of a dime, or email you expecting an immediate response. You control your life instead of your life controlling you. That’s a rarity these days.”

“After ten years being told what to do, where to go, and how to do it. I figured a life of my own design was overdue.” He took a healthy bite of his drumstick, and she popped a mushroom in her mouth.

From his perspective the social detox made sense.

“You should eat all your food. Tomorrow, we’ll be on the hike again and you’ll need your strength. I want to check those medicinal finding skills of yours out.”

“Joy,” she drawled.

He smirked. “Remember, you asked for this

.”

“Yeah, you don’t have to rub it in, Dudley Do-Right.”

“I’m not Canadian.”

“No, but you have that Boy Scout quality about you.”

“You have no idea.” His voice dropped an octave and his eyes darkened as shadows that had nothing to do with the flickering flames of the fire and everything to do with some unnamed emotion she couldn’t put her finger on. She studied him quietly.

“I’m going to turn in to my nest for the night after I hit the head.”

“Okay. I’ll follow suit after I jot a few things down.” Maybe I imagined that.

It didn’t escape her that he left the majority of the meat for her. Despite what he thought about himself, she saw the gentleman she once knew. She finished her food quickly, relieved herself, and buried the bones a few feet away from camp. Bone tired, she returned to the fire, and burrowed into her nest. Looking up at the canopy of trees that allowed glimpses of the star-studded sky, she was flooded with peace.

For the first time in a long time, she had no pressing deadlines, lengthy to-do list, or personal interactions scheduled. She found the constellations she’d learned as a child, reliving the wonder she once felt. As her body heat warmed the leaves, she felt her eyes droop. Life had been so busy she hadn’t stopped to examine and recalibrate in far too long. Out here in the silence, her mind was clear. She could think, reflect, and feel. The heavy weight of sadness remained, but excitement and joy were present as well. There was more to be learned here than how to live off the grid. It was a place to contemplate life and what her next move would be.

***

Thorn

Lilac Fehr was everything he didn’t need right now. Funny, capable, and sweet, she fit the bill for someone he’d kill to date. She loved the outdoors, had some serious survival skills under her belt, and found merit in life off the beaten path. It made their arrangement complex. It was as if she’d been plopped down in front of him like destiny unfolding. He didn’t trust it. Fate was a fickle bitch who got her rocks off making a fool of him.

Lilac stood beside him with her khaki pouch across her body focused on her task. Today they were going to put her eye for medicinal herbs to the test.

“Am I looking for something in particular?” she asked, looking up at him from beneath long, dark lashes that framed eyes turned a golden amber by the sun filtering through the red and yellow colored leaves.

“No. Whatever you find that you can use I want you to collect.”

“All right,” she said quietly.

“You lead and I’ll follow.”

“No pressure.”

“Out here there’s no time for hesitation. There are no bad decisions. You make your choice and then you make it work.”

She gave a quick nod, and the anxiety smoothed off her face as she grew serious. She marched forward like a Marine on a mission. He followed behind her. She veered to the first willow tree.

“Well, one of the more obvious things is the bark of the willow. Out here preventing or easing diarrhea, should it occur, could be the difference between death and survival due to dehydration.”

“And how would you do that with willow bark?” he asked.

“Boiling it into a tea, which will act like aspirin as well and reduce inflammation.”

Her wisdom was sound, but everyone knew about willow bark.