The Power of Transformation

Photo courtesy of Ellspeth’s friend

Ajay smiled as teacher took their picture. He and several classmates posed together on the beach. Some of the boys mugged for the camera but Ajay stood, arms to his side and smiled politely. He was still gazing at the ocean, transfixed by its beauty. This was his first visit to Mumbai and he wanted to etch every image into his brain. His home village was far from here and he wasn’t sure if he’d ever return. His family was poor and only through the luck of being chosen for this school trip was he able to travel. It was at that moment, there on the beach that Ajay decided poverty was not his destiny. He would be more, do more, transform.

Many years later, sitting exhausted after performing a life-saving heart bypass on a middle-aged man, the memory of his day on that beach came back to him. He smiled.

[This is my entry this week into the Flash Fiction for Aspiring Writers challenge. A photo prompt is given and writers are encouraged to create a short story of 150 words or less.]

~V