#MicroFiction #EEn
About a year since it happened. At least the sun rises in the morning. I will never forget that cold winter and what it took. We had large vibrant communities full of life. That winter took the flower of life that hasn't bloomed since. I feared that day would happen. I had terrible dreams the flowers were gone and the last of us foraged remaining fruits. People walking, losing energy and becoming slower every day until they remain frozen in time.
Most exhausted their supply several months ago, having enjoyed the convenience and perceived reliability of our society. But the clouds from the eruption poisoned the one place where they grew. It was a complex relationship of fungi, trees, bacteria, and plants, all connected together for millions of years. The bonds of life were broken and there is no flower.
I was fortunate to find a thriving beehive on the mountain where they had many lifetime's worth of the pure crystallized flower. I took a hundred grams, or about 10 lifetime's worth, crushed it into a powder, and stored it in a glass container. I had been weak in the last month since running out. I needed to prepare more and cook a small vial that would last me a few years. I would be strong again and my knees would heal and be young again.