Gemotions

"You okay?" The question came from behind, a gruff voice. I didn't respond. I was staring at the skeletal frame of what was once a home. My stomach churned, a cold wave washing over me. I felt the familiar weight of memories, a crushing burden.

I could still picture the wallpaper in my bedroom, the smell of my mom's cooking, the sound of my dog's nails on the hardwood floor. They were now being torn down, destroyed before my eyes.

My mouth was dry, my lips numb. I wanted to run, to hide, to simply cease to exist. I stood frozen in place, a silent witness to a devastation I could not prevent, my own personal apocalypse.