the Butler Canyon nature trail

The man steps outside his cabin into the cool mountain air and just starts walking. One foot in front of the other. He thinks about his life up to this point, and smiles contentedly about the journey. The twilight of his existence is here.

A small herd of deer are on the hillside grazing, and they raise their heads curiously as the man approaches. He nods to them, and keeps going. Stepping onto the Butler Canyon nature trail, the man slowly climbs the mountainside as time slowly ticks onwards on this lazy afternoon.

“Today would be a fine time for it all to end.”

The man then remembers his goal for this decade. He must live longer than his elderly parents, only so they don’t have to suffer the loss of losing another child before they die themselves. It would be the most thoughtful thing he can do.