Dave Barry, American author and humor columnist
Written for Linda G. Hill’s One-Liner Wednesday prompt.
Jon remembered how his father used to tell him, “As one door closes, another one opens.” Jon was not very quick on the uptake and he didn’t really understand what his father meant by saying that to him. So Jon just accepted it because it was his father who was saying it.
One day Jon was upset because he had applied for a job and didn’t get hired. When he told his father, his father said, “Don’t worry, Jon. As I’ve told you, when one door closes, another one opens.”
“I know you’re always saying that, but I don’t understand what you mean, Dad,” Jon said. “All doors open and close, that’s what they are made to do. So what exactly are you talking about?”
“It’s all about finding hope and possibilities in change or disappointment, son,” Jon’s father said, “If one ‘door’ or opportunity has closed or becomes unavailable, the phrase suggests that another will soon become available. It serves as a reminder to always look for the silver lining, to anticipate the next opportunity, and not be consumed by past failures or closed opportunities.”
**********
Several years had passed since Jon’s father had died, and Jon was having a tough time navigating through life, from both personal and professional perspectives. He had just received the news that he had been laid off at work and was slowly walking home when he saw a large, white closed door in front of him in the middle of the road.
Remembering his late father’s words, Jon got excited and starting running toward the door. Surely this was the door his father was talking about.
When Jon got to the door, he flung it open and then gasped. What he saw on the other side of the open door did not fill him with hope. He did not find a silver lining or anything suggesting a new opportunity for him. What he did see after he opened the door was exactly the same thing that was on his side of the door — a cold, frozen landscape.
“Thanks for nothing, Dad,” Jon said aloud as he stepped through the doorway and continued his slow walk home.
Written for Melissa’s Fandango’s Flash Fiction Challenge. Photo credit: TopSphere Media on Unsplash.
Welcome to Fandango’s One-Word Challenge (aka, FOWC). I will be posting each day’s word just after midnight Pacific Time (U.S.).
Today’s word is “expectation.”
Write a post using that word. It can be prose, poetry, fiction, non-fiction. It can be any length. It can be just a picture or a drawing if you want. No holds barred, so to speak.
Once you are done, tag your post with #FOWC and create a pingback to this post if you are on WordPress. Please check to confirm that your pingback is there. If not, please manually add your link in the comments.
And be sure to read the posts of other bloggers who respond to this prompt. Show them some love.
This, That, and the Other 