Category: Love

Memory could never recover the jolt
the jolt that led the quiet woman to talk
talk, about the fabled mountaineer
climbing’s hottest young progeny, until decd appended his photo
put the legend in legendary
you knew …..? Well, sort of
what was he like? A pause.

It was a wilderness camp,
she said,
more Outward Bound than outdoor education
he an instructor,
un-gentle with the unconfident or clumsy
passing impatient ….  braking just short of bad tempered
but
it wasn’t his fault, he was talented, a high achiever
ill- suited as scoutmaster
had been recruited to add prestige
to market
to bring in business – a commercial decision,
she was sure he was a nice man.

He gave the best sermons in 50 years of church attending –
economy – length and cost – free – no charge.
He could have asked $5 ….
when five dollars was fee to a movie,
brief,
less than three or four minutes
never five
often as little as 90 seconds,
bullet, but not pointed,
the congregation leaning to attention.

“ Today’s Gospel ” – altruism
putting others before self
or
self, second.
A task –
next time
when asked for money
instead of passing 5, 10, 20, even 100 dollars
decide an amount,
calculate how many minutes or hours required to earn,
then donate
thinking not of the dollar quantum
but the time – your time,
“ one is charity. The other, love.”

Summer, always denoted by genotype
winter is anonymous
bundled together like old newspapers
and binned
but each summer has a unique identifier :
The summer of
drought
mosquitoes
Star Wars
planking.

This was the summer of South Australian claret
clink chic, never brimming to fashion –
a past’s, passing fad.

We were very young
and newly formed,
had nothing, only hope,
anorexic wallets and obese dreams.
Two thirds of a generation older
perhaps she saw vicariousness
her own optimistic beginnings,
a decade and a half earlier –
still the 60’s –
still swinging,
“ ooooh the stories I could tell you.”

Sometimes she did
with a glass of wine.
She knew we had little money,
often contrived a reason for us to visit
and always a glass, or two, of South Australian claret.