The Darkness After

The snow covers the ground outside my home like a satin white death shroud. I have weathered the Christmas atmosphere and all the pomp surrounding it with a sense of grim finality. You see, despite all the joyous romanticism surrounding this time of year, I know the true nature of this soul chilling season. An evil borne from the stuff of nightmares was coming and no amount of peace on Earth and good will toward men could stop it.

So, I sit in front of a flickering fire waiting for that which would surely bring a black end to the naive merriment that intoxicates people when the days grow short and the first snow falls. Oh, I have tried to warn them, but they scoff at my efforts and call me a grinch. I wish I could slip into the same delirium that infects the rest of humanity, but I cannot. It is coming and I will meet my end with my faculties untainted by the warm psychosis brought on by egg nog, colorful lights, and Halmark movies.

The winter silence outside is broken by the harbinger of evil I have been waiting for. I hear the, crunch crunch sound of foot steps on my unshoveled walk as my end grows ever closer. My doorbell rings and I rise to meet my fate. My end may be near, but it will not be said that I ran from it. My hand shakes as I open the door. Outside, a phantom figure standing in the shadow of my door silently hands me that which will be my undoing. Envelopes embelished with the logos of Visa, Master Card, and Discover, bring me to my knees. The first credit card bills of yuletide. My fate is sealed. Death by debt most foul.