Creative Writing: Smoke, Fog & Haze

By Mr. Westbrooks

A 12-minute, cursive free-write for a “Write Club” activity that we did during an English Department professional learning community (PLC) meeting. This is what was birthed in my mind and transcribed from my all-purpose composition notebook onto a blank WordPress post. To maintain the organic essence and integrity of my uninterrupted and free-flowing thoughts, no edits or additions have been made.

But first, the prompt: 

Smoke, Fog & Haze: Write about not being able to see ahead of you. 

I’m moving. Where am I going? I’m not sure. If I’m walking, I see my feet and the immediate ground in front of them, but if I pick my head all the way up and look forward, I can’t see a damn thing ahead of me. I’m squinting my eyes like the woman on the meme that’s been virally circulating Twitter and Instagram. You know the one where the caption goes…”Me trying to see which season it’s gonna be outside today.”

Even though my visibility is low, almost non-existent, I keep moving. Straightforward? Diagonally? I’m not sure, but I’m moving. I’m moving slowly, because I can’t afford to misstep. Like Ferris Bueller, I can take a nasty spill down some stairs and subject myself to further school absences…Have a nice day.

The sad thing about it is that I have a feeling…deep inside of me that the path I’m pacing…is a path I’ve walked before. It should all be familiar, but it remains to be a mystery. Is it brand new? Or, am I simply not trusting the process, following my inherent intuition? I think it’s the latter.

I look down, see my feet and the ground…look up, can’t see a damn thing. This is the consequence of having sight but no vision.