Just In Case

She's got everything on her back that she can carry which is slowing her down considerably. Trina wants to make sure she has the essentials, just in case. Be prepared for anything. That's Trina's cri de coeur. The problem is that anything is an awful lot to prepare for. Inclement weather, transit delays, spontaneous combustion. Trina can't prepare for that last one, though so figures she'll play fast and loose in case of fire. She never used to be like this, so conscientious and concerned. Or paranoid if you listen to her sister. That's all fine and good until things go sideways and someone needs latex free gloves, waxed dental floss, a mechanical pencil or raw organic energy bars, a litre of filtered  water and a CPR rebreather. Trina's got your back. Meanwhile hers is collapsing. That twinge in her shoulder is radiating a sharp stabbing pain down the back of her neck from so much weight unevenly slung across her side. She's tried a smaller purse but manages to find a way to stuff it to the brim. Just in case. The potential for disaster is ever present for Trina. Living in the city puts Trina on high alert. Every single day she thinks about what can happen next. Another traffic accident or flash flood, a lethal airborne toxin entrapping her on the 34th floor of the office tower she delivers lunch to on Wednesdays and Fridays at noon sharp, causing her to remain sequesterd in an airtight conference room with no access to the outside world except via the emergency service personnel in space-like haz mat suits signing hand signals to them through 2 inches of glass wall partitions. She visualizes in great detail. The bane of her family's existence. Such a vivid imagination Trina, you should be careful; you'll get yourself all worked up and then what. So she found a way to cope, to express herself with preparedness. To quiet her mind, tether the anxiety. And that rare occasion when a nail file, hair elastic, instant ice pack and cup of soup come to the rescue for not only herself but someone else, that's the greatest validation she could ever hope for.

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