Jim rolled over and looked at the clock, blinking on the nightstand next to the bed.  2:35, it flashed.  Another damn power outage, he thought.  I've got to get one of those atomic battery powered things so I don't oversleep something actually important.  Oh wait, there is nothing important anymore  Maybe church, but I've got 6 hours before that and, oh hell, might as well get up.

He slunk out of bed and trundled down the stairs, the ever-present creaking of the ancient steps signaling his arrival in the kitchen to no one in particular.  Even old Baxter, the grey-haired tabby he adopted to keep him company when she left was snoozing in the corner.  There were times when he enjoyed the time to himself, but inevitably that would lead to thoughts of her and the time he'd lost with her.  Today was probably going to be a tougher day than most, so he needed to blow off some steam first.  He grabbed his coat, threw on his running shoes and stepped out into a bright autumn morning.

Jogging along Piney Creek Road, the steady crunch of the gravel beneath his shoes was oddly cathartic....for the first time in ages, he felt as though he could think clearly and reflect on the past that had both haunted, yet at the same time fulfilled him beyond his wildest imagination.  He ran further than he had in years, further than he figured his bad knees would allow him, further than his mind had any idea where he was going to.  His legs, as though guided by providence, urged him to the right, down Currant Lane.  The corridor of tall, sagging spruce trees was dank and cool, and his kids would probably kill him if they knew he was risking sickness by coming here but he knew he needed to. 

The unkempt appearance of the dusty roadway made him suspect what he already knew.  Pulling up to catch his breath in front of a dilapidated sign, one side fallen and the other side held up only by a rusted cable, he could barely make out the words LACKAWANNA COUNTY YOUTH CAMP in faded paint.  Stepping over a small fence that was no deterrent for anyone who ignored the "KEEP OUT" signs posted across it, he chuckled at the irony of his thoughts on the place the last time he'd been here.