Serenade of the Cattails

The little bit of stock Alfonzo Towler’s father had left him in 1935 hadn’t seemed like much at the time, as Diamond Alkali fluctuated constantly. Year after year, a few thousand was the most he could count on. It had, however, begun to yield higher profits in the last several years. Along with the GE and Rockwell stocks he had purchased on his own and his real estate holdings, he had become able to afford some of the finer things in life.

Thinking of the latest deposit into his bank account, Towler’s round eyes twinkled; he inhaled deeply and drummed his fingers against the steering wheel of the brand-new Buick Riviera. Oh, the perks that come along with being an accomplished man, he thought. “I’m certainly not just a cog in a wheel.” I am the wheel.