East Side Town Lake

It is almost dusk and I am sitting beside Town Lake on the East Side of Austin. It is slightly cold outside, so there is little activity if any. I see a power plant across the lake, but it appears abandoned. The only sign of activity there are the many lights of the outside. The reflections of these lights twinkle on the tiny waves in the water. The wind is blowing south and makes the air seem colder and it is starting to get darker. There is a running trail nearby, but no one is using it for this purpose. I see two cars parked near the spot I am sitting, but I have not seen anyone walking. The only sign of human presence is the rushing of cars and squealing of tires as people make their way back home after work. There is trash strewn on the water’s edge and it mostly consists of cigarette butts. This place would be much different 6 months from now. The sun would still be in the sky heating up the ground below. There would probably be kids eating with their families at the picnic tables or playing games. People would be running or walking their dogs on the track. Surely it would not be such a cold, gloomy, deserted place.

There are now two people in sight. They are together and running with their dog on the track. There is still no answer though for whom the two cars belong to though. There is another group, of three this time, which is walking towards the water’s edge. They should volunteer to pick up the trash here. It is time to go because my fingers are getting numb.