Sicily's Normal Life

14:00. That's the time Sicily Florence recognized. To many, it was just two in the afternoon. Military life made it hard for Sicily to revert back to normal life. Then again, most of her life was spent on the military.

She couldn't figure out, if she was okay with that kind of life, but it was over now. Retirement had sent Sicily into a mid-life crisis. She realized she didn't know anything about herself, or the world she should have enjoyed. She didn't know anything around her, she didn't know what it was like to live a normal life.

It bothered Sicily. It messed with her, leaving her scared. She would look around, not recognizing anything or anyone. She was alone. She had crawled through disasters, shot people down, and lost many she considered family. None of that could explain what her life had been like. To her, her childhood was like a fever dream. Her military life just passed by. Now, retirement was like a never ending horror movie in disguise.

She had many aunts and cousins. Somehow, she never had an uncle too long. Every uncle would pass by, like the new toys she always got. Her toys where always taken away by her sisters. As the oldest sibling, she was expected to give everything up. She did. Her mom and dad were poor. As she watched her family growing up, the situation got worse.

By the time she was 19, she enlisted. She couldn't afford further education, her family could no longer support her. She chose what was best. The army supported her family for her. She went to training. She thought that was rough. She made friends, but she knew what that meant.

She changed stations. She never saw her friends again. So she would occasionally write to them. At some point she constantly was moved around. She would write her family, making sure they were okay. She would get letters. She got many letters. Her aunt's husband died. She now has nieces and nephews. Now she had second cousins, third cousins.

He family moved on without her. By the time she stopped moving around, her service was over. She retired with a bad leg. She learned, many wouldn't recognize her. She had people congratulate her for coming back, coming back alive. She realized her family no longer needed her. It had long passed those times.

She returned home with full honors. Her sister once told her to come stay with her, and so she did. When she looked at her sister, she cried. She missed most of her families lives. Her sister was now old, her sisters son was grown and already left home. She didn't quite register, that her life was now different.

She couldn't change, the sounds around her scared her. When she walked in crowds, she looked for threats. Decades had trained her to be far to sensitive. The bustling city became her nightmare. She joined support groups, talked to other veterans. Nothing helped her too much.

At some point, she had to start taking pain medication. Her leg hurt too much for her to walk. The wanted her to use a wheelchair. She refused, grabbing her walking cain and walking away. The pain medication helped. She would walk sometimes, not knowing a destination. She learned that walking would help calm her mind.

She knew this is what would help her. She would wake up in the morning and eat breakfast. Than she would take a walk. She would go home, eat lunch, watch TV. The she would go for another walk, visiting places along the way. When she got home, she would eat, shower, and go to bed. Her days started to blur with the same routine.

One day, her nephew came by to visit her sister. He was surprised, that Sicily came home. He had never met his aunt before, but he knew that she was a good person. He started to come by every week. After some time he found out that his aunt liked to go on walks. He asked his aunt where she walked to. That's when Sicily's life changed. He mentioned the park. One large city, one large park.

Later that week, he introduced his aunt to the park. He picked her up, and rode a bus to the park with her. When they arrived, Sicily changed. She smiled, you could tell that she was happy. She didn't know what it was, but she thought it was the nature. After that day, Sicily always went to the park.

Everyday, she would travel to the park. She would walk through the park, breathing in the air. She had walked everyday after her retirement, but a walk in the park had done more. Suddenly, Sicily found herself being able to integrate into everyday life, a normal life. She would stop to get an ice cream or hotdog, walking around to look at the scenery.

Sicily spent the rest of her life, walking. At some point, Sicily spent most of her days going to the park. Her family would come to see her, and she became happier when she became closer to her family. She made many friends going to the park, she would greet many along the way. Sicily learned to live a good life, she knew a normal life.

Sicily learned to be happy. The world no longer scared her. Her leg never got better, but she lived the rest of her life without a wheelchair. She considered that an accomplishment.

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