Drew King
By: Lillian Swigart
Drew had grown used to the rhythm of Florida, living in Tampa for a big majority of his life. The thick, humid air that clung to his skin, the sudden afternoon storms that rolled in like clockwork, and the constant hum of life that never quite slowed down. He spent most of his days working as a contractor for his mother’s property management company. He was content but he was chasing something he couldn’t quite name. A better job, a bigger opportunity, a sense of purpose, but it always felt just out of reach. He worked long hours as a contractor, but everything was temporary, he believed. The feeling that he was living the same day over and over again drained him, but he persevered in the hopes of finding something that would bring him purpose. Then came the moment that changed everything. The woman he had been seeing sat him down to exclaim the news. Drew was told that he was going to be a father. At first, Drew was nervous, but the thought of having a child gave him the sense of purpose he had been longing for. The woman told him that she wanted to move closer to home. Home for her was Meadville, Pennsylvania. Within a few weeks, what had once seemed impossible became inevitable. He packed his life into the back of his car, clothes, a few boxes, and more uncertainty than he cared to admit and began the long journey north. When he finally arrived in Meadville, it wasn’t with fireworks or some grand revelation. It was simple, quiet. The town didn’t rush him. Mornings were calm, the air felt lighter, and the hum of life he once knew became controllable. People looked you in the eye when they spoke. Strangers waved. Of course, it wasn’t perfect. Winters were long and unforgiving, and there were days he missed Florida weather more than he expected. But even then, there was something grounding about it all. Over time, Drew began to rebuild, not just his life, but himself. He found work that didn’t drain him and a sense of belonging from being a father. Because somehow, in the most unexpected way, Drew had found exactly what he’d been searching for all along.
The Road by Cormac McCarthy follows a father and his son navigate a post-apocalyptic world. Drew, like the father in The Road, begins in a state of aimlessness. He’s stuck in repetition, chasing something undefined, much like McCarthy’s unnamed man is physically moving but spiritually anchored only by survival. In both cases, life lacks clarity and purpose, until fatherhood changes everything. Both stories suggest that purpose isn’t something you find by chasing it directly, it emerges through responsibility, especially through caring for someone else. Drew’s realization that he had found what he’d been searching for all along echoes the central truth of The Road, even in the harshest or most uncertain conditions, parental love creates meaning.