An Abridged Biography of Uriel the Archangel
By Logan Hooks
They found his first feathers in his crib. They were all downy and fluffy. His parents still have them, so I hear. Tucked in a tiny lockbox, on the upper shelf of their closet. Right between his first tooth and his birth certificate.
Of course, we all knew then what he was, there’s no hiding a thing like that. Still, it was fun to watch him grow into them. How, as a soft-faced toddler, he would flap them as he ran, trying to get his balance.
He had such a blessed childhood. Just not a very happy one. He never quite got along with the other kids in school. His wings made him awkward and delicate, unfit for their rough and tumble schoolyard games.
He was always outside their groups. A watcher over their world. Part of it was fear, of course, but part of it, I think was their envy. Even then his wings were dazzling. Milk and mother-of-pearl. Slick like a swan, royal like an eagle.
Things got worse in high school. His halo was starting to come in at the time, which wasn’t helping matters. It started off as a shimmer. A glowing mirage behind his head. Over time, it just grew brighter and more distinct. They deemed it too distracting and made him wear a special hood.
They made him bind his wings and hide his halo, forbidding him from taking flight.
Then came college. His first time on his own. No one there cared about his condition. No one cared about him at all.
So he ran to the top of the dorms. He threw off his hood and started a second sunrise. Then he spread his iridescent wings and leaped into the air. Then he flew.
He flew all the way home.
Of course, we all knew then what he was, there’s no hiding a thing like that. Still, it was fun to watch him grow into them. How, as a soft-faced toddler, he would flap them as he ran, trying to get his balance.
He had such a blessed childhood. Just not a very happy one. He never quite got along with the other kids in school. His wings made him awkward and delicate, unfit for their rough and tumble schoolyard games.
He was always outside their groups. A watcher over their world. Part of it was fear, of course, but part of it, I think was their envy. Even then his wings were dazzling. Milk and mother-of-pearl. Slick like a swan, royal like an eagle.
Things got worse in high school. His halo was starting to come in at the time, which wasn’t helping matters. It started off as a shimmer. A glowing mirage behind his head. Over time, it just grew brighter and more distinct. They deemed it too distracting and made him wear a special hood.
They made him bind his wings and hide his halo, forbidding him from taking flight.
Then came college. His first time on his own. No one there cared about his condition. No one cared about him at all.
So he ran to the top of the dorms. He threw off his hood and started a second sunrise. Then he spread his iridescent wings and leaped into the air. Then he flew.
He flew all the way home.
Logan is a proud and passionate nerd with a zeal for life. He prides himself on his humor, optimism, and gift for rhetoric.