A list of things to wait for

1. The bread to rise.
2. The beans to soak.
3. The beef to thaw.
4. The water to settle, so you can put fish into it without killing them
5. The mail, which might have a postcard in it, because we’re all writing letters now
6. A text message saying “my fever went down!”
7. The bread to rise.
8. The beans to soak.
9. The chicken to thaw.
10. A package with your medicine in it and a note saying “sorry for the delay”
11. The news to change
12. The doors to open
13. The bread to rise.
14. The chickpeas to soak.
15. The marrowbones to thaw.
16. A text message saying “their fever hasn’t gone down.”
17. The news to change
18. The doors to stay shut
19. The bread to rise.
20. The chickpeas to soak.
21. A one-month plan
22. A one-year plan
23. A plan, any plan
24. The bread to rise.
25. The rice to cook.
26. A package with your medicine in it and a note saying “this is the last”
27. A loud sound in the middle-distance that rattles your windows and resonates in your chest
28. The bread to rise.
29. The oats to soak.
30. Sirens, far
31. Sirens, near
32. An ache, a sweat, a cough.
33. The bread to rise

Subscribe to Stone Soup for more stuff like this, straight to your inbox.