The Journey of a Minute

The Journey of a Minute
By: Frances Huffman

Golden sand sat in a peak in the bottom of Thalia’s old hourglass. She shook the timepiece carefully, watching as the pyramid of sand sunk into a flat desert. Her schoolwork sat untouched beside her on the desk, and yet she observed the engravings in the side of the hourglass, small birds and holly branches hugging the metal bottom. Thalia knew her mother would be angry with her if she didn’t get started soon, but math and English were both so boring. Thoughtlessly, she turned the hourglass on its top. The sand began to pool in the center, seconds pouring away so simply.

The stream of sand glittered in the sunlight from Thalia’s window. A lovely waterfall, she thought, in the woods of a small town. Just before sunset. Birds fluttered through the trees as they prepared to sleep, their songs fading into the night.

She turned to walk back down the path behind her before it got too late. In the dark the gnomes came out. Though they were not inherently dangerous, they were a right pain to get by. All they wanted to do was talk about their most recent junk find, which Thalia couldn’t blame them for. Sometimes it was quite fascinating to learn how such small creatures got their hands on so many funny little things. Today, however, she wasn’t particularly interested.

The sounds reached Thalia before the sights and smells. Tonight, was a celebration for the population of this little seaside town. The sun dipped over the horizon as the longest day of the year came to a close, but the party was just beginning. When she walked into town, the lights almost blinded her. Strung between houses and shops, and hanging low over alleyways, they illuminated the town square in all of its celebratory glory. Thalia jumped as a small fairy whizzed by and sat in the hair of a nearby woman. The sidewalk was covered in chalk drawings of dragons and stick-figures made by the children that day, depictions of stick-figure families and flowers of all shapes and sizes. In the very center of the square was a dance floor. Thalia watched the people laugh with friends and family, eat pounds of sweets, and reach for their love’s hands. Everyone was so joyous to exist in this night with each other.

Thalia walked around the square, stopping to look at her reflection in the water of the fountain. Her brown hair was tied up in a neat bun with curly bangs that hung out over the front of her face. The dress she wore was a dark green, cinched at the waist with a white ribbon. She looked like a character right out of her favorite fairy tale. She turned towards where the stage stood, and saw musicians tuning their instruments.

When the music began to play, a young man about Thalia’s age approached her. He held out his hand to her.

“May I have this dance?”

Nodding in response, she took his hand and allowed herself to be led to the center of the floor. Around them, other couples prepared to dance as well. He placed a hand lightly on her waist. “I do not know how to dance,” Thalia whispered with a sly grin, as though it was a dark secret.

“That is no problem, my dear. Follow my movements.” He took her other hand and spun her as the music slowly began. He led her in the dance as he promised, laughing when she stepped on his feet. The shirt he wore matched Thalia’s perfectly, and it brought out the stunning green of his eyes. She wondered how he was so handsome. If his eyes were not enough, his long hair that brushed in front of them added to his charm.

“What is your name?” she asked in between dances.

“Oliver. And yours?” His grin was wider than any she’d ever seen.

“Thalia.” A blush crept up her cheeks, so hot she could feel it.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Before she knew it, another song began and his hand was in hers once more. After just one round of dancing, the two of them moved as though they had danced together their whole lives. When the last song faded to applause, Oliver pulled her in close. “Thank you for this evening, Thalia.” He bowed his head before turning to leave. With the music and Oliver gone, she could hear only the rhythm of the fountain behind her.

With a start, Thalia opened her eyes to see her homework laid out in front of her. She must have fallen asleep at her desk. Faintly, she heard the familiar trickle and looked to her side just in time to see the last of the sand in her hourglass fall. One minute. That is how much time had passed.

Stunned, she reached for the glass. There was no way all of that had happened in only a minute. She felt as though they had danced for hours, and the moon was high above them last she checked. But she knew it had only been 60 seconds, and the light outside her window still glared. Smiling to herself, Thalia flipped the hourglass and rested her head in her hands once more.

Writer's Statement: I wrote this piece to show the things a creative daydreamer can come up with and the adventures they can go on in a short amount of time. It was fun to be able to use some of my own ideas in the story as well.

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The Journey of a Minute
By: Frances Huffman

Nourished in the Heartland. Served across America.

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The Journey of a Minute​By: Frances Huffman

Nourished in the Heartland. Served across America.

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The Journey of a Minute
By: Frances Huffman