Bone Canyon

“Hey kids! How would you like to experience life in the wild west, where everyday is as exciting as the episode of Bone Canyon that you just watched?”

Kevin sat upright on the floor in front of the television and pushed the cowboy hat out of his face. He was already breathing hard from watching another exiting episode of Bone Canyon. Just the though of living in the old west made his heart thump out of his chest.

“Well, you’re in luck! We have one slot left in our Bone Canyon Camp, and it could be yours! The fun starts right away, so go ask your mom and dad NOW if …”

Kevin didn’t wait for the TV announcer to finish. He streaked across the living room and slammed into the kitchen door, pushing it open.

His running feet kicked in the air as the floor disappeared beneath him.

He tumbled to the ground and rolled to a stop on his hands and knees in a back yard made of nothing but rocks and dirt. A few scraggly trees stood beyond his mother, who was walking toward him carrying a heavy, sloshing bucket in each hand.

“What are you doing, boy?” It was Tom’s voice, and Kevin followed it to his right, where his father was hitching a horse to a fence post.

Something wasn’t quite right, and Kevin felt confused. But a question still lingered on his tongue.

“Can I go the Bone Canyon Camp?”

His mother and father exchanged worried glances. Then Tom scowled.

“How do you know about Bone Canyon?” he asked.

“I saw it on TV.” Kevin wasn’t sure what he meant. He noticed Tom’s suspenders and straw hat for the first time.

“Bone Canyon is no place for a boy,” Tom said. “No place for a man,either, for that matter, if he can avoid it.”

“Yessir,” Kevin said. He looked at the ground, more confused than ever.

“You go get washed up for supper now.”

“Yessir,” the boy repeated. He turned back to the house, and was stunned to find a small wooden structure, little more than a shed.

“Creek’s that way, son, same as yesterday.” Kevin looked over his shoulder. Tom pointed toward a tree line off to the right.

“Yessir,” Kevin looked from side to side, wary of more surprises, as he plodded toward the sound of babbling water.

Behind him, his mother whispered, “What’s ‘TV’?”.

“I don’t know,” Tom answered.

For the life of him, Kevin couldn’t remember, either.