Gemotions

The children had been playing outside, their happy shrieks filling the afternoon air. Then, silence. I found them, huddled together, their eyes enormous, staring at the destruction. The pine, which had stood proud for decades, was now a fallen beast, its roots ripped from the earth.

I knelt beside them, forcing a smile onto my face, but my throat was tight. My stomach churned. The playhouse they had loved, crushed. A swing set, splintered.

I looked at their faces, and the fear in them mirrored my own. I swallowed hard, trying to regain some semblance of composure. "Well," I said, my voice shaky, "that's... quite something, isn't it?"