‘Are you seeing this?’ Timothy moans as Tyler, his most recent assignment, tries to stick a fork in the wall socket. ‘Surely The Big Guy could have dealt me a better human to serve and protect considering how much of a nuisance the last one was,’ he complains to himself as he swoops down to switch the power off at the mains. He watches as the toddler fiddles with the socket, sighing a breath of relief that gets longer and heavier with each new human he finds himself guarding. How long until he can’t put up it with anymore?
The job of an angel is no easy task. Humans, by nature, tend to make a hash of things when left to their own devices for too long. Timothy constantly finds himself questioning why some of the most intelligent beings in the universe spend night and day making sure the latest version of the human species doesn’t blow itself into oblivion.
‘C’mon Mudiwa, you can’t tell me all this makes sense to you?’ Timothy says as the two of them settle into their seats in the nosebleeds of the Stratford End.
‘Why are you always tryna start some mess? It’s been a good week, you know. Liverpool and City drew a couple days ago. We just need to not concede in this game and we’ve won the Cup,’ Mudiwa says as he summons wind to blow the rain clouds past Old Trafford, lessening the chances of his assignment from getting hurt in this vital game. ‘Look at me? I have the best job in the world. I get to make sure nothing out of pocket happens to De Gea, the best goalkeeper in the world, and here you are trying to get me to co-sign your conspiracy nonsense.’
‘All I’m saying is we could be much more than safety nets for these guys.’ Timothy says as he jumps out of his seat and floats into Mudiwa’s view. ‘We could be and do anything we want to. Tell me you haven’t sat and thought about checking out Jupiter? Or Pluto? Or anything outside the MilkyWay?’ But Mudiwa just shrugs and motions for Timothy to stop blocking the game.
‘I don’t know about you but I have dreams to start my ow-’
‘Shhhh, this is probably it. My Tip says I’m meant to prevent him from dislocating his shoulder after a save, round-aaaaabouuuut NOW,’ and with lightning speed Mudiwa fly’s to the goals to cushion De Gea’s fall.
Mudiwa, backpedaling so as to not miss a single minute of the action, returns to their seats, ‘Okay I’m back. You were saying something?’
Timothy rolling his eyes, ‘forget about it. I’ll catch you back at the office,’ he says as he begins his ascend back to the Heavens.
Shouting up, Mudiwa yells, ‘Nah I’m all yours now. That was the only guarding I had to do for the day, assuming all the other angels on duty do their part,’ he says as he kicks up his feet and gets comfortable.
But Timothy isn’t having it. He just wants someone to hear him out.
***
‘This can’t be my life.’
*saves Tyler from drowning* Age 5
‘Yeah, being able to fly is cool. I get to go wherever whenever I don’t have any Tips, but what about my passions? My destiny? What about putting me first for once?’
*Delays a truck by 5 minutes so it doesn’t kill Tyler whilst he’s texting and crossing the street* Age 14
‘I didn’t even sign up for this. It was just ‘poof’ welcome to guardian angel duty, your assignment is over there. Now that I think about it, I don’t even remember a time before saving lives and preventing tragic mis-haps. How did I even get here?’
*Gives Tyler a flat tyre so he has to work from home to avoid getting fired for a file he was gonna forget at home had he gone to the office* Age 32
***
‘Listen guys, I’ve been thinking.’ Timothy says to break the lunchtime silence.
‘We told you to stop doing that,’ Jay says, causing laughter to break out across the table.
‘wE tOlD yoU tO sToP doInG ThAt,’ Timothy mocks Jay, ‘I think it’s time we confront The Big Guy.’ He says with a base sterner than usual.
‘Oh? And…what exactly…are we…confronting him about?’ Pasha mumbles in between munches of her burrito.
‘About this! We can’t just sit on clouds and save these idiots from themselves for the rest of our lives. You guys have a potential to live up to. Legacy’s to establish. I’m sure none of you are content with this?’ Timothy yells, pointing to the cloud they are currently sitting on for their lunchtime break.
They turn their heads to one another to see if any of them understands why Timothy has his panties in a twist. Not a single angel shares his disdain for the jobs they’ve been assigned.
‘I think I speak for everyone when I say, we’re good. Our lives are void of worry and we get to enjoy the luxuries of both Earth and Heaven, without any downside. If we have to nudge a kid to the side to avoid him getting bitten by a snake or cause it to rain to avoid a riot, so be it.’ Without lifting their heads from their meals, everyone murmurs in agreement to Mudiwa’s wise words.
Jay chiming in, ‘I’m sure we all remember what happened to the last angel who tried stepping up to The Big Guy. You want to burn for eternity too? I’m sure he has room for another.’
‘i’M sUrE hE HaS rOoM fOr aNoThEr. Shut up Jay.’ Timothy isn’t having it. Banging his fist on the table, he sulks and turns his back on them. He can’t stand their complacency. Their lack of ambition. He does not understand how one can be content with a life of servitude.
Infuriated and set on proving them wrong he floats straight up to The Big Guy’s office. He’s had enough.
With a big gulp, Timothy goes to knock on the towering doors, but before he can even make contact they swing open.
‘I’ve been expecting you,’ He says without turning to face Timothy.
‘I know you are a busy God, so I’ll cut straight to the point…Why am I here? Spending precious years of my life tending to the needs of humans that can’t get out of their own way, let alone show some gratitude for blessings they don’t deserve.’
‘I see. This is how you truly feel?’ God says without turning.
‘Yes. I just feel like I could be doing more. Achieving more.’
‘I see. So Heaven is not good enough for you? This life of peace, harmony and abundance, does not suffice for you?
Timothy, now silent, burns with rage on the inside. He knows deep down that his life here in the clouds is in fact too good to be true, but his pride won’t let him admit it.
‘This stuff is nice and all, but I need more. I need to grow.’
After a long silence, God gives him the response he has been longing for, ‘So be it.’ And with a snap of a finger Timothy vanishes from behind God’s back, wind rushing him out of the clouds and beaming him to a place he never thought he would end up. Timothy’s eyes cannot believe what they are seeing. It doesn’t take long for regret to begin brewing in his heart.
***
‘Mudiwa, I heard you got a new assignment?’ Jay asks as he packs his lunch into his travel bag, ‘who’s the lucky fella?’
‘You wouldn’t believe me if I told you. You have to come see for yourself.’
So the two of them float down to the city of Peterborough, where none other than Timothy, is finally living a life where the ‘growth’ he yearned for is fully in his sights. Mudiwa and Jay laugh hysterically as they watch him shovel snow for $10 an hour at 5AM.
‘He’s shivering you know,’ Jay says, ’he might get frostbite if you don’t do something.’
‘Nah, I’ve got clear instructions to only prevent the worst of the worst. The big guy upstairs says unlike everyone else, Timothy specifically asked for the room to grow, and with that comes harsh, uncomfortable and demanding experiences. This is a lesson he has to suffer through.’
‘Guess he finally got what he wanted.’
And the two of them watched as Timothy worked for years at a life he grew to hate more and more the longer he lived it. During his time on the other side, he could never appreciate the good things he had, but now, having been given what he wanted, he regrets ever asking for it in the first place. He hates how prideful he was for not admitting how good he had it. Only through losing the responsibility, could he learn how much of a privilege it was to carry it.
