Free Write (how else should I begin?)

The following was written and posted originally on May 4, 2008 on an older blog of mine dedicated strictly to writing fiction. A first time endeavor for me, and this was the first post. I am slowly going to bring each of the posts from that blog here to share. This was also my first time ever trying to free-write. 

He stood on the grass in the middle of the park watching the activities of the day unfold before him. It was a typical spring afternoon. The sun was high in the air, the flowers were all in bloom, and the park was coming back to life after a long, cold and dank winter. Multiple families had come to walk around the park, play in the playground and walk their dogs. The birds were all aflutter, flying this way and that - grabbing twigs from one tree, dead leaves from another and diving down to the grasses where they would bite up a nice, slimy worm for the family back at the nest. He watched it all and didn't miss a beat.

Everyone was on the move, full of life, energy and springtime spirit. Everyone, that is, except the robin. He just stood there, in the middle of the park staring. He looked a bit strange, considering all of the hustle and bustle about him, but he knew his job - he is and always will be the Sentry of Springtime (SoS). 

The robin's markings were clear - the auburn breast, yellow beak and white-rimmed eyes on an otherwise black head were all the signs of an SoS. He was a chosen one, selected by the great Creator, to look after the arrival of what is considered to be the most important time of year. This may sound ridiculous, but Spring, as most people know it, could not exist without the legion of the SoS.

The legion of SoS began at the beginning of time. Some "great" books would have you believe that life began with light, but the truth is light could not even come into being if there was no one there to see it, so, in fact, in the beginning there was the legion. A select group of creatures were created to act as watchers, or, as they later became known, Sentries. Many different species were there that day, but there was no mistake which of the group did the best the job - the robin. When the robin was the first to spy the initial flickers of light and the slight nuances of all that it touched, he was chosen along with all of his descendants, out of all the creatures present, to continue his calling for generations upon generations. The robin would be called upon year after year to watch over the first light of every Spring, to bear witness to the beginning of new life and to ensure the successful start to every Spring so that life as all living beings know it could continue and flourish. It was an honorable post, no robin has ever turned his back on the mission and no other creature has ever challenged the position.

That is, none ever challenged the position until today...