K22

Keen kingfisher knows kooky kestrel. Ken knotted. Kingfisher kick-starts kestrel’s kayaking, keeps kestrel’s key. Kestrel keeps kingfisher’s knick-knack.

Kicks, kindness, kerfuffles… kindred.

*Kudos Keirs*

slight as steel

Only a short while
to bloom once planted,
like a flower,
bringing joy to many,
fading too quickly,
leaving its fragrance
to linger behind.

So were you…
A flower
to the difficult
but enjoyable field
of arranging steel.
A flower,
now clothed in steel,
lasting forever in the minds
of those who will not
let you fade.

Clive Bradley
Award-winning Steelpan Arranger
1926 - 2005

false alarm

You worry for everything.
Problems, like garbage in a bin at the end of a packed street.
Your time short, your effort unsatisfactory.
You just can’t take one more weight.
Curse it all, pack it up, and leave!

The day passes, you make it through.
Most of the anticipation didn't happen,
written, created, produced, directed
out of thin air by you.
You worry for nothing.

mr. bojangles

/bo-jan-gles/ 1 adv. highly playful, stubborn, strong enough to burst chains, madly afraid of bees, crazy to the naked eye – sometimes hilariously so, very protective of its family, named by father, friendly to the cat, dangerous to strangers, mixed breed, poisoned to illness, put to sleep (about 1992). 2 n. keeper of the hill, loyal dog for many years.

silence

The silence is deafening
because we try too hard to see that which does not exist, to hear the things that are not there to be heard, to fill the space that was not meant to be filled. How long will it take to learn to accept it for what it is, to simply enjoy the silence.

bug eyes

'Like a moth to a flame, burned by the fire.'

...the foolish expectation of a repeated action finally yielding a different result.

pieces of me

The essence of you runs through my veins.
I carry you everywhere.
Where I am, there you will always be.
The older we get, the more of you
is pumped through my heart, and
permanent parts of you left within.

Though I may not always see you,
I will always need you.
Though I may not always speak with you,
I will always think of you.
You are my family... my blood,
the blood that I chose.

team

She hates jogging.

This seemed strange to those who watched her constantly jogging to and from the car, jogging to the office, jogging around the desk. She likes to get to places fast, but when it comes to exercise, she would rather do anything but jog.

However, jogging with someone else seemed manageable enough, and she consented. It became their routine. After work, twice a week, they would jog, together.

Together they would warm up, together they would find a comfortable pace, together they would jog the route, and together they would cool down.

Whenever they started a jog disconnected, it was always much more difficult to endure and complete.

It was not about the jog. It was never about the jog. It was simply about doing everything as a team.

genuine

You can always tell a loyal friend, not by what he confides in you about himself, but by what he does not confide in you about someone else.

a snow white reunion

Stacie was my best friend at the time. I was constantly over her house, playing with her and her cat. When the cat had kittens, I wanted one as much as she wanted to give me one, but mom said no. All my begging and pleading could not persuade her.

It was October and we were persistent. In a final attempt to have a kitten, Stacie gave me one as a gift for my birthday. Mom couldn’t refuse.

Her tiny body was covered in white fur from ear to tail, earning her the name 'Snow White'. She was however, no damsel in distress. She scratched after everything that moved, including toes and feet; found the couch useful for massaging her claws; and was our resident lizard-eradicator. She was my lesson in responsibility and, given the nature in which she arrived, I had no choice but to shoulder it.

Before long she became ‘our’ cat. She stayed with us for many years.

Her constant production of kittens was a problem, for others more than for me. I wanted her spaded. Mom chose to give her away. We kept one male cat from her last litter and when he no longer needed a mother, we placed her in a box and drove her many miles to her new home. I knew the family well, and though I was upset at her leaving, I knew she would be in good hands.

I had heard that dogs have owners and cats have homes, but those words never sank in till I saw my cat standing at the door a few days later. How she found the house, I will never know, I was only too happy to see her.