Gemotions

The sun was hot, beating down on her back as she surveyed the proposed fence line. She felt as though the world was closing in. Her legs felt heavy. She was incapable of making any decisions for herself today.

She watched the contractor, a stranger, measure and mark the ground. His efficiency, his certainty, made her feel unsteady. Her hands went clammy. She’d always relied on others to make decisions for her, and the thought of being left to her own devices, even in the smallest of matters, sent a shiver down her spine.

"Is everything alright?" the contractor called out, noticing her stillness.

She mumbled an affirmation, willing herself to become invisible, to simply fade away. She wanted to retreat inside, where things were predictable. Where everything felt safe.