You’re driving fast, faster than you should. You stuff your hand into the bag of communion wafers next to you. You stuff them into your mouth, almost choking. The car veers dangerously close to a telephone pole. You pull into the parking lot and brake sharply across three open spaces. The façade of the big box store blots out the horizon. You turn off your car, and reach for the pad of paper next to you. Your handwriting is scrawled across several pages.
It won’t leave me…Whispered voices…Grace after tribulation. You crumple the paper in your hand. A voice behind you speaks, You’re here. Go in. You step out of the car. You stuff the flat can of liquid into your back pocket. You walk toward the store. You drop your car keys down a drain. You won’t need them anymore.
You enter the store and the enormity of the inner cavern encompasses your senses. The atmosphere of the outdoors is stamped out as the automatic doors close behind you. You are surrounded by the plastic uniformity of the store on all sides. Muzak fills your ears. The sound of shoppers pushing carts with bad wheels squeaks around you. The voice behind you whispers again, There they are. You walk forward toward the self-checkout section.
There is a line of shoppers waiting for their turn. A few shoppers glance at you. You scan back through your memories. The seasons change. The people cycle through the aisles. The same stuff. You remember the book’s words, “All have turned aside. No one does good…not even one.” The voice speaks, Speak to them.
You climb up onto the nearest scanner machine. This gets everyone’s attention. Someone behind you gasps. You pull the can out of your back pocket and empty it over your head. The smell is strong in your nostrils but the liquid coursing down your cheeks makes you feel clean. You reach into your other pocket and take out a lighter. People run for the doors. A man drops to his knees, holding up his hands. Someone behind you has cocked their gun and is shouting something at you. You clear your throat. You put on your pastor’s voice. You speak. Your words are fire.
DoubleSpeak 