Writing Assignment #1

Fellow blogger Cuz has given a writing assignment so I am going to see if I can write a half an hour story about Charlie...

Charlie's fears were growing stronger. There were knots in his mind continually. He was preoccupied that matters would go unfavorably for him always. He did not know that this was unusual for it was all he knew.
As he stared at the grocery list that his wife had prepared last night, he realized that she only wanted him to get outside. She wanted to excuse him from his daily grind of doing nothing. He grasped the piece of paper and turned to go but the tension in his forehead made him ask if should he take a pill to get him through this. He decided against it and resolutely opened the door. Still trying to convince himself that there was nothing to fear, he counted his breaths. As he rushed out the door,he stumbled on a rock. He held his throbbing toe and whined that something always happens. There is nothing but pain outside. His wife would not be back from work for another eight hours. She would find him on the lawn, a failure at getting out of the house.He should know by now the pattern.
As Charlie lay ruminating about his misfortune, he picked up the rock that was the cause. It was not large but was not a pebble either. It fit in his palm. The rock's coolness and smoothness soothed him as stroked its contours. His breathing was back to normal now.
Charlie got up with the red and black speckled rock still in his grasp. He continued to comfort himself by rubbing the stone and he surprized himself by walking to the store. He got the groceries and forgot all about himself because he held that which caused him the pain. This little piece of the earth both hurt him and healed him.