One Day More
Another electric color day in these mountains. The month is half over, which means the scenery will soon diminish and dull itself. But for now, it is a boon to the soul.
I did a bit of spray painting when I got home this evening. Didn’t seem like that big of a deal. But then I walked into the bathroom and saw myself in the mirror. I think I screamed. Cirque du Face. Tragic, tragic times. Did you know that errant spray paint can affect the little hairs inside one’s nostrils?
***
When Jinx and I walked this evening, the bats were thick in the air over us, swooping and diving in their little leather-winged ballet. Perfect for the run-up to Halloween. Vampires do exist, I thought. All we have to do is be exposed to the media for a few minutes and we can see that there truly are soul-dead fiends who feed on the life of normal people, turning those normal people into the same sort of ghouls.
“Vampires do exist,” I told Jinx.
***
My wife told me of the death of one of her elderly acquaintances this week. His wife had died a few years ago and he grieved for her with a deep, searching pain. His son told Mrs. Orr that the day he died, he was in a very cheerful mood, and all day long kept singing over and over the song “End of the Line” by The Traveling Wilburys. That night, he died in his sleep. We hope he is now rejoined with his wife, the love of his life. This is a far superior idea than the thought of the man and his wife being awkward, platonic buddies in a sterile Heaven with nothing to do except…yearn for the good old days of earthly life when there was actually something to do? As William James Tychonievich (over at Sean G’s blog) quoted Sylvia Plath, “Eternity bores me, I never wanted it.” The end of the line for this life, yessir, but I sure hope you’re holding hands with your missus, whom you missed so much.
The coyotes are yipping up on the ridge, a savage counterpoint to the ghostly wail of the screech owl in the woods in back of the house. The sky is so clear, and I can see so many stars, and morning will be here sooner than I think.
~ S.K. Orr
4 Comments
Brian
End of the line…….
In the summer I commented here about a manipulative grammar school kid who tormented me back in the mid 70’s. He pressured me to act up (like him) in school, to steal things. I got in a lot of trouble in school. I began praying in ernest while walking to school each morning. (Of course, when things got better I quickly dumped the prayer life )
I got a text the other day that he died suddenly (at 55 years old) about 2 weeks ago. He was in and out of prison and rehab for the last 15 years or so. I suspect a drug overdose. I’m sure that I will find out what happened eventually.
I had a Mass offerrred for him in August…. I hadn’t been thinking of him all that much for the past 45 years until August.
Nothing seems coincidental, or insignificant to me these days. Maybe its “rona-world” and the fact that I’m starting to feel old.
SK, these posts of yours are right in my wheelhouse as you can probably guess……..again, that doesnt seem coincidental!
admin
Brian, thank you. Your comment, which was strongly encouraging, came at just the right time for me.
It’s so interesting when we’re allowed a glimpse of our past as it intersects with the present day. Sometimes the intersection is tragic and rueful, but it is (as you pointed out) never coincidental.
Bless you for having a Mass said for the man you wrote of. And thank you again for your kindness and encouragement. Your comment was a cup of cold water on a weary day.
Sean G.
I’m trying to guess at what region you live in. It sounds beautiful. My wife and I are considering moving to a more rural area but we hesitate. Minnesota has some good compromise areas—rural-ish but not far from other interesting places.
admin
Shoot me an email and I’ll give you more detailed info, Sean.