Dear Wigleaf,

I don't need to ask. I know you are tired. I know you are tired because I am tired. That comic strip of a goat that screams like a man. We do a lot, you and I. We are both constantly trying to be all things to all people. We can't be. And doesn't that just suck? I'd love for there to be more of you, if only to make things easier. I'd love for there to be more of me, too. How many yous do you want? We'll have the same number of mes. Just two mirrors facing each other, and us in the middle, holding each other up. There's a scene in Forrest Gump where Bubba and Forrest rest back-to-back in the rain. That way we don't have to sleep with our heads in the mud. Let's do it like that. Like brothers and stuff.
   
This is all I have for you really, the assurance that when I say "all people," I really do mean you. I want to be there for you more than anything in the world, and I am honestly so sorry that I can't be.
   
For just a second here, let's both of us just rest. Neither one of us will drive. Neither one of us will steer. I'll pull us over to the side of the road, and for a moment we'll both just... there.
   
I am still tired. But that feels a little better.
   
Thank you for that, and for everything. 

Derek




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Derek Heckman is a Finalist for the 2019 Mythic Picnic Postcard Prize.

Read DH's story.

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