The Calendar

I was staring at the calendar when it happened. October 31, 1947. A bright, white light followed by an intense heat, exploded through the kitchen window. I can’t remember whether or not the window disintegrated, or if the heat I felt was radiating through the glass. It was a searing, painful heat. The bright light washed out the calendar and filled the room. As I raised my hands to shield my eyes, I woke up. I was hot and sweating and out of breath. I sat up on the edge of the bed and reached over and opened the window. The October air was mild and cool. Shortly after that, I must have fallen back to sleep.

The next morning I made coffee, poured a cup and opened the refrigerator to get some cream. There was a loud thump on the kitchen window and it startled me. I spun around, spilling coffee, and looked out the window. Nothing there. The window wasn’t even cracked. Walking around the edge of the kitchen table, I looked into the back yard. Lying under the window was a bird. A meadowlark. I went outside to see if it was dead, but before I got halfway to him, the bird flopped and flapped and took off into the sky like nothing had happened.

Back in the kitchen, I took a long sip of the coffee. It was still hot. I stood in front of the calendar looking at October 31, 1947. A feeling of deja vu came over me and I raised my hand to shield my face like I knew what was coming, but nothing happened. Looking out the kitchen window, all I saw was a sunny, bright October morning. I remembered the dream though, or the nightmare. I had been looking at the date, October 31. That was seven days from today.

I walked back through the living room, turned on the radio and kept walking toward the bedroom. A news break was on, no music. “Astronomers from the University of Denver said today, a rare comet will pass close enough to earth on October thirty-first to actually be seen during the day.” I stopped walking. October thirty-first? What are the chances, I wondered? Coincidence? I felt light headed, I went back to the kitchen and sat down. The dream suddenly came back to me. I felt the intense heat on the side of my face. The comet. Is a comet going to collide with earth on the thirty-first of October? Was my nightmare really a premonition? Does everyone only have a week before the end? Before being destroyed by a comet?

No. That’s insane! It was just a weird dream. I poured fresh coffee and finally heard the radio again, Smoke, Smoke, Smoke That Cigarette by Tex Williams was playing. It was a good song. I got up from the table, leaving my coffee behind and went outside to the fresh air.

The day passed quickly, a day off usually does. The radio was still on, “Don’t forget to watch for the comet on the thirty-first, in seven days!” I turned it off and turned on the TV. I sat down before the screen came on. You Bet Your Life, with Groucho Marx was on. It was new to television and wasn’t going to last. It was a bad show. I was too tired to get up and do something else so I just sat there. I was tired. I didn’t get much sleep last night.

At some point, I fell asleep. The nightmare had returned. I was in the kitchen staring at the calendar again, staring at the date October 31. An excruciating bright light followed by a wave of intense heat blasted through the kitchen window and hit me in the face. It felt like the whole house exploded in on top of me. I woke up sweating and gasping and too thirsty to breathe. I stumbled to the kitchen. The clock on the wall read, 4:45. I drank a glass of water and shuffled to bed.

At 7:00 AM, I woke with a start. No dream, no recurring nightmare of last night. Just unexpected and unexplainable anxiety. I got up, threw my robe on and ran to the kitchen. I stared at the calendar. Today was October 25. But I was looking at the square with the number 31 in the corner. I wondered out loud, “What the hell is going on with me?” I dumped more ground coffee in the percolator and stood there dumbfounded while the coffee brewed. I poured a cup. Then I turned on the radio just as the news break came on, again. “Today astronomers from the University of Denver confirm the comet that is expected to pass near earth on Halloween, seems to be right on schedule.” I turned the radio off. I sat there numb, holding a cold cup of coffee.

It was then I realized the significance of my dream or possibly my premonition. The blast, the intense, bright light, the excruciating heat-- earth is going to be destroyed. Melted in a cataclysmic collision with a gigantic, rogue comet. Seven days. The entire planet has seven days. What can I do? Who would ever believe me? Maybe I was wrong. God, I pray I’m wrong.

I got dressed and went out to my brand new Mercury sedan. It was a beauty. My dog Kipper jumped in the back. He loved car rides. I drove to the bank, and withdrew one thousand dollars. I stopped at the drive-in and ordered a cheeseburger, a hamburger and chocolate malt to go. I gave the hamburger to Kipper, then started the three day drive to Monterey, California and the Pacific Ocean.