The Firmament

Cutting through the boisterous insistence of daily-life, I heard the fragile sound of raindrops hitting the glass dome—a firmament—that separated the world of the train station from the world of elements. In the distance a rainbow hovered above the last of day’s light that clung to the horizon.

It’s said in Germanic legends that a rainbow is a bridge between worlds. Did the Norse gods ride chariots across the bridge? I couldn’t remember. What I was interested in was the pot of gold said to be buried at the end of a rainbow. One of these days I will find that pot of gold and become rich, that was what I told myself. There was a time when I had the heart to run and chase these dreams, but years of sitting in an office chair had eroded my spirit and body.

The fading light and rising moon signaled that the night was to begin; a night where I should be at home enjoying a warm meal, but instead I was forced to work overtime. I often tried to leave work on time, yet how many could relate to the nagging boss with the last minute task?

“Ferdinand, you didn’t fill out this form correctly. Always make sure you double-check your work first before submitting. Fix it before going home,” he would say.

Tch, what does he know of my work? It wasn’t my fault the system spat out a report with the wrong test values. I knew I recorded them correctly. He should have asked the system for the report again, not me. Maybe if I was paid more I’d feel inclined to double-check my work. Lord knows how many times I’ve been passed up for a promotion.

For the moment, it’s a small comfort to know that it was Friday and I had the weekend to forget about these worries.

Ker-clack ker-clack

Trains passed through the station as their engines roar and their motors buzz. I wondered where my train was.

One quick look at the clock above the train platform was all it took dispirit and remind me that it was nearly 7 p.m. When the day is essentially seven-to-seven, it kills all motivation, for I become a chalice that is upside down, unable to be filled as time flows down me until a new day begins.

I arrived home at twenty minutes to eight, removed my shoes and uniform, and lay down on my bed with complete exhaustion. The ten-by-ten room felt smaller today as scanned it from my bed. The bookshelf looked like a fantasy wizard’s collection of tomes, my desk had more pieces of paper and notes scattered around it than I remembered. I held out my hand in an attempt to touch these items in the small room, but they were out of reach. There was a silence in the air and the faint sound of my neighbour’s TV.

Was it time to move?

I wasn’t unhappy with my current place, but there was a feeling that I needed to change, that this could not continue. Maybe a change of scenery is what I needed to revitalize my life. It had been only a year since I moved into this apartment but moving sounded more appealing the more I thought about it. Maybe I could get an apartment with a TV. Not that it was absolutely necessary, but it would be nice to play the Glitch 2 on a big screen.

There were several listings on the many property rental websites: here, this one, the rent was too high; that one across the river had too few amenities; and this last one—where even was this? I opened the interactive map and oriented myself.

“Hmm, that’s pretty far out there,” I stupidly said aloud.

Almost by instinct, I rejected the apartment initially, but a line in the description caught my eye: ‘Open house, March 19.’ That was tomorrow! It wasn’t as if I had particular plans so I could go check out the place. But did I want to? It was far away, almost doubling my commute time, the rent was almost three hundred dollars more, and there were no shops in the area.

Was a longer commute time that bad? This place didn’t require me to transfer lines like my current place, plus a longer train ride meant I would have more time to read. Who knows, maybe I could even ask my boss for a couple days to work from home, thus cutting down on transportation costs. The lack of shops was an issue but I could buy groceries after work and plan accordingly. But most of all, for the price they were asking, I would get an entire house to myself and not some atomized apartment.

While eating dinner, I scrolled through photos the property owner had put up. The more I saw, the more I liked the place. Plenty of nature, quiet area, and a small garden that I could use. I’d need to check with the owner, but he would probably let me use the garden, which would cut down on groceries.

After I cleaned up and had gotten ready for bed, I checked out the route to the place.

“So I can walk to this station or take a bus… and then this train… yeah.”

I closed the navigation app and set an alarm on my phone. I’ll go early so I’ll still have the rest of the day to myself. With that, I drifted off to sleep as the rain continued to tap against the window all through the night. I hoped the weather would clear up in the morning.