The trees only made her think of the road on which she was driving, where a lush forest once stood. She had already seen 200 cars that morning, and that, coupled with the grey skies overhead had put her in a dreary mood.

She wondered how it happened she was one in a long line of commuters, on her way to sit in a stuffy cubicle for the next eight hours.

She began picturing frontier life and Pilgrims chopping firewood, working against the elements for survival. Natural living. But the idea of dying by the age of 45 made her shudder. It's just not enough time to make up for lost time, she thought, relieved to be back in this century where at least she could hope for another 40 years.