Paul and the Cactus - A Reunion in the Desert

By Carl Cupper

A successful businessman in the process of divorce. A child was forgotten by him. But someone else has not forgotten about him.

 

After closing an important business in Las Vegas, Nevada, Paul flies to return to his property in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
During the travel, his plane accuses inexplicable faults that force him to fall into the inhospitable desert of Colorado. Trying to leave his horrible condition, Paul initiates a personal exodus toward the borders of his past, present, and future.  

After many hours to digress in the desert with no fixed course, he meets with a cactus, a cereus gigantus that speaks to him beginning with a demand "Why are you pursuing me?" Thinking that the voice comes from his incipient delirium because of his cruel thirst and hunger, Paul maintains an estranged conversation with the plant, that takes him to face himself and his acts.

Paul and the Cactus is deeply stirring as an intense story that will take you through the world to which all we fear to show us: our interior. It is a hopeful message that will lead you, without a doubt, to produce significant changes in your own life. "To believe that things cannot change is the first step in perpetuating them."

• Language: English
• Publisher: Carl Cupper
• Release date: Jul 24, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223560098

Book preview

Paul and the Cactus

Carl Cupper

Paul and the Cactus

A reunion in the desert

Paul and the Cactus – A reunion in the desert

Original title: Pablo y el Cacto – Un reencuentro en el desierto

First edition

Copyright © 2018, Carl Cupper

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ©

Cover design by Carl Cupper

This work's partial or entire reproduction in any way or system is forbidden without the copyright owner's authorization.

To my dear Susana, for all her love and support

1

A cry for help

My God, my God,

Why have you abandoned me?

Mathew 27:46

H

eading straight into the brilliant Sun, Paul flew east in his single-engine plane, feeling like an all-powerful king in the realm of birds.

After signing a juicy contract in Los Angeles, he was returning to his ranch in Albuquerque, New Mexico, to celebrate Peter's seventh birthday, his only-begotten son. First, he had to attend another crucial business meeting in Las Vegas, Nevada. The stop would be short because he wanted to return in time to be with his little boy, just as he had promised.

Even though his relationship with his wife had deteriorated over the years, he was anxious to get home. He remembered the document his wife's lawyer had given him a few weeks ago demanding a divorce. The constant business trips where he so enthusiastically closed the deal with the clink of two glasses in some luxurious restaurant or on the 18th hole had led him to abandon his family. His wife, sick and tired of his permanent absence, opted to dissolve the marriage, which confused him.

Paul did not understand his wife's uncompromising attitude. I do everything for her. He said to himself, I have made many sacrifices to give her the best. The instinct of man is strange, he reflects. Man's nature is strange, he meditated at the time. It could be said that man is the only animal that would voluntarily lose his independence. When he is exposed to it again, he gets scared often.

After glancing at his watch, he accelerated his beautiful and impressive airplane, a Cessna 206, almost feeling the soft touch of the breeze against his face as the wind collided against the cabin. After just a bit over two hours of flight, he could see the expansive city of his destination. Las Vegas. Sodom and Gomorrah probably looked like this in its day. He said sarcastically.

Paul softly brought it down on the landing strip at the Las Vegas airport. He acquired great skill in his father's fields when he became a fumigator pilot aboard a ricke­ty Fleet biplane. His watch indicated that he arrived right on time.

An executive from a valuable supermarket chain came to pick him up in a luxurious Mercedes Benz. He takes him to sign an important contract. They would purchase the agricultural products of his business, La Divina Ranch.

On the way to his destination, Paul asked the driver to stop at a toy store in the city. He wanted to pick up his son's present before the meeting. He walked into a large store with a vast selection, bought an electric tractor-trailer truck, and asked for it to wrap up as a present.

After quickly signing the document, Paul agreed to celebrate the important event with the president and other corporate executives in a beautiful suite at a luxurious hotel with gorgeous and sophisticated women.

How are things going at the ranch? Asked one of the company executives.

I have everything under control.

Has the free trade agreement affected you?

I have compensated my overhead by paying less for labor, he boasted.

Have you cut back your personal?

Paul, a son of immigrants, who seemed to forget his roots, said:

Better, yet. I contract illegal immigrants and pay them miserably for their work. That action gives me a profit margin that allows me to work at a lower cost of production and maintain my competitive edge in the market.

That is a very good strategy. If the illegal ones want to live in this country, they should pay the price! The executive expressed with disdain.

After abundant food, refreshing drinks, and the not-so-subtle caressing, Paul looked at his watch and realized he could not get home in time to see his boy. He courteously thanked his host and quickly left the glamorous city of Las Vegas, forgetting his son's birthday gift in the car.

Paul asked the tower controller permission to take off, and he pushed the airplane's accelerator to its limit. He