community patrol they’d set up—which was still evolving—mostly rode horses. Not everyone was an accomplished rider, though, and they either learned or walked. For the first couple of weeks there had been a lot of sore butts and legs.
But, people being people and Southerners being generally gregarious anyway, the valley inhabitants had begun gathering in their own neighborhoods in the late afternoon, and by the end of October the gatherings were a ritual. On the nicest of days, those gatherings continued well into the evening. No one had planned them, they’d just happened organically. It had started with a few neighbors hanging out in the road at the end of a long day, and had grown from there. In a matter of a couple of weeks, there were small get-togethers all over the valley. They talked about food, power, and how damn dark it got at night. The days were getting shorter, and many had adjusted their sleep patterns to conserve batteries and candles, going to bed when it got dark and sleeping—or trying to—until the sun came up. That was going to be more and more difficult, as the nights got longer.
They also talked about kids, movies, books, and knitting. It was a search for a touch of normal in an abnormal world.
There was more to survival than food and water. People needed people, a sense of community. They’d always had that here but now it was growing stronger. Last week a kid from the far end of the road had brought his guitar out and strummed a country song or two while others gathered around and listened. He was merely competent, but competent enough that listening wasn’t painful. Sela didn’t exactly love country music but she was entranced anyway. It seemed as if it had been years since she’d heard music, rather than a month. They said music had the power to soothe the savage breast, and while her breast wasn’t particularly savage she definitely felt soothed, and she wasn’t alone. Everyone enjoyed the music.
Halloween was a particularly beautiful night, clear and mild, with bright stars overhead. A fire was going in a portable fire pit, because despite the mildness there was something comforting about a fire. People had brought folding lawn chairs or camp chairs to sit in, or put blankets on the ground. Inspired by the kid, Mike Kilgore also brought his guitar. The two amateur musicians took turns and sometimes played together, their timing a bit off but who cared? People knew the songs and sometimes sang a few lines.
This night there were close to thirty people standing or sitting in the middle of the road. Olivia and one of her friends who had walked over to spend the night were sitting on a blanket with their legs drawn up and their fascinated gazes fixed on the boy with the guitar. Sela thought the boy was perhaps a year younger than Olivia, but pickings were slim in the neighborhood and hormones were hormones.
Sela, Carol, and Barb were in camp chairs set up in the middle of the crowd. Barb felt the cold more than they did, so she was closer to the fire. Sela stretched out her legs and relished the moment of relaxation, because those moments were few and far between.
Describing the past month as stressful was a massive understatement. She’d never expected to be in this situation, and neither had anyone else in this gathering, but they were making the best of it. She no longer felt as if she was scrambling every minute, trying to stay on top of the unknown and doubting her every decision. They had done okay, she and Carol and Barb, in their marathon canning session and the extra supplies she’d gathered in her frantic shopping expedition.
The new normal was melding with the old normal. Sunday services had started up just last week, with the nearest church making it clear that everyone was welcome. The preacher had gone to great lengths to make his sermon nondenominational. “God is God,” he’d said at the beginning. “Everything else is us trying to organize things to our liking. I’m going to concentrate on the God part, and y’all can argue in the parking lot.”
Most people had laughed, and simply enjoyed resuming services.
For now, with everything that had happened, with all that was still to come, the music made this moment beautiful. Sela sighed as her mind eased. The music flowed over and through her, and thoughts of tomorrow faded away.