The Shortcut Looks Like the Way Home

College girl. Blonde in a bright green shirt holding a clipboard, asking names and questions. Welcoming committee.

What’s your major?

Chemical engineering.

Oh, you’re one of the smart ones.

The van pulls forward through the maze of cones and kids wearing shirts that say “Unpack Your Future” that stand ready with laundry carts to take your life’s treasure into the unknown.

Who will you meet on your journey?

Through the great halls of stone and brick. Unknown sounds and the faces and voices of those someday familiar.

Will you take the long road home? Or the shortcut? The shortcut looks like the way home.

Your first meal at the feast.

Your first night in a strange room.

Act I. Argos

Christmas Eve. The long night and the wind howling pelting snow sideways against the windows and the drifts that bury the paths and block the roads. Dreams of tunnels and forts and marshmallows dripping with chocolate.