Sunday, July 1, 2012

Richard used to laugh and say, "It's always NOW."






I remember 
being 5 years old and how excited my mother was when I 
showed that drawing of a horse to her.
We've looked at it before here on this blog.

Listen to Einstein's theory explained.
(Thanks to Doonesbury's video archive for the inspiration) 
It's a treasure. That's where
I found the Robb Armstrong video, too.

Still reading Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes. 
I'm a little more than halfway through the 566 pages.
My perspective is being transformed.

"The numbers would eventually 
lead a somber man, sickened
by the job he had to do, to 
some woman's door, to let
her know that her husband
or son would be coming home
wrapped in rubber.  The body
would arrive in the early morning
hours so that the people at the
airport wouldn't be disturbed."
(p. 361, Matterhorn)

Remembering the early morning of
December 1970
at the San Francisco International Airport 
when Richard arrived home from
Vietnam.  By the time I got there, airport was empty
except for us.  

Remembering 
that Richard signed up for art and music
classes at the local community 
college for Winter Quarter of 1971.  
Remembering that
in his last months on earth he painted. 

Remembering his laughter, his exquisite sense of humor,
and that there were 
things that he could never talk about,
except to 
say that he could never talk
about them,
 things that are coming to light through 
Karl Marlantes' novel.

Only now beginning to walk the miles
in my shoes, not his.  

(I'm not trying to write poetry here. Blogger has made it much
more difficult for me to arrange things in the way
I would like to in paragraph form.  
Today I am simply surrendering.)



Yesterday I looked out to see 
a single swallow fledgling
resting on the porch railing.  
This morning I sat in my rocking chair on the porch
and watched the day lilies blooming.


(Why won't the YouTube video stay put in the middle like the other one?  I haven't figured it out.  Yet.)

I figured it out (-:

2 comments:

Taradharma said...

wonderful post. Enjoyed all the videos!

Goat said...

Very nice as always, Am. There's always room here in Wordpress Land when the Other Side gets too much for you! Most of the time, it doesn't cause me too much frustration. I had one issue with the blog's appearance/behaviour recently, but I must say the forum addressed it very fast and everyone was very nice.