Gemotions

He’d always thought of his father as a pillar. Stable. Unwavering. Now, thumbing through the box of old keepsakes, Leo felt a tremor in his chest. He found it tucked away, a single, folded piece of stationery with the crest of a prestigious university. It was a letter, his dad’s draft resignation from his tenured professorship. The words, still crisp, detailed his father’s reasons: a need to “pursue a different path.”

Leo, staring at the carefully crossed-out paragraphs, felt a coldness creep up his spine. His own life felt precarious lately; his wife had moved out last week, taking the kids. He swallowed hard, a knot forming in his throat. He looked at the window, suddenly noticing how grey the late afternoon sky was. He felt a deep sense of disorientation, and the sudden feeling that nothing was solid anymore.