Melvin listened to his turn signal, and watched the turn signal of the car in front of him blink on and off in time to the clicks. He always cherished those few beats that the two signals blinked in unison, but he knew that it wouldn’t last. As always, after a dozen or so flashes, the signals would shift out of phase with each other, and then shift back in phase a dozen or so beats later.
As he waited for the light to change, however, his turn signal stayed exactly in sync with the turn signal of the car in front of him. The light changed, and Melvin felt a small stab of sadness. Once he and the car in front of him turned left, the signals would shut off, and that moment of turn signal harmony would be gone.
Already feeling nostalgic for a moment that was soon to end, Melvin held his turn signal down as he turned the car left, wanting the signal to flash on and off just a bit more. There were no other cars in sight, and he figured that the car in front of him wouldn’t mind if he drove with his signal on.
Then, to his surprise, Melvin saw that the person in front of him had done the same thing. He pulled along side the car he had been behind, and the woman in the car turned to him and smiled, fanning her fingers out into a star shape and making a fist, again and again, in the exact same rhythm of the turn signals. Suddenly, foolish notions from Melvin’s early grade school years—such as his desire to build not just a castle on the beach, but a kingdom—came back to him, as vivid and alive as they were so many years ago.
She winked and mouthed the words “beach kingdom,” and as she did, other cars began to join them, seemingly from nowhere, all with their signals blinking in perfect unison. Melvin began to laugh, and saw that the woman was laughing as well. Driving side by side, with a growing army of cars behind them, they followed the highway signs to the beach, where their childhood dreams had been waiting all these years.
As he waited for the light to change, however, his turn signal stayed exactly in sync with the turn signal of the car in front of him. The light changed, and Melvin felt a small stab of sadness. Once he and the car in front of him turned left, the signals would shut off, and that moment of turn signal harmony would be gone.
Already feeling nostalgic for a moment that was soon to end, Melvin held his turn signal down as he turned the car left, wanting the signal to flash on and off just a bit more. There were no other cars in sight, and he figured that the car in front of him wouldn’t mind if he drove with his signal on.
Then, to his surprise, Melvin saw that the person in front of him had done the same thing. He pulled along side the car he had been behind, and the woman in the car turned to him and smiled, fanning her fingers out into a star shape and making a fist, again and again, in the exact same rhythm of the turn signals. Suddenly, foolish notions from Melvin’s early grade school years—such as his desire to build not just a castle on the beach, but a kingdom—came back to him, as vivid and alive as they were so many years ago.
She winked and mouthed the words “beach kingdom,” and as she did, other cars began to join them, seemingly from nowhere, all with their signals blinking in perfect unison. Melvin began to laugh, and saw that the woman was laughing as well. Driving side by side, with a growing army of cars behind them, they followed the highway signs to the beach, where their childhood dreams had been waiting all these years.
