There’s a subdued purple crimson suggestion of a new day off to the east and I can’t help but wonder
what today will bring.
It’s yet another pedestrian Monday morning;
another chance to make the pieces somehow fit, a seemingly impossible task.
But there’s always that “what if” that keeps us all steadily on track.

I took a nice long stroll yesterday with my wife through a cemetery right near our house.
I cherish these walks because they set me straight,
keep me sane and burn calories (something my physician loves).
It’s quiet and peaceful and my wife and I consider the many folks there our personal friends.

Over the years, they’ve been privy to our most intimate conversations;
our quandaries and concerns, our aspirations and clandestine dreams.
As we walk and try to somehow figure it all out; this life,
this frantic situation we always find ourselves in.
Most days, we leave the cemetery with more questions than we came in with
making me wonder if that’s the way it’s really supposed to be.

The cemetery is surrounded by water and my wife sees a lone swan off in the distance,
floating silently on the water.
There’s no breeze and the murky water appears to me as black glass; static and dim,
the reflections of indigo sky above screaming of a visual paradox.
So much like our lives, I think.

“I wonder where the other one is.” She says.

“The other one?” I ask.

“Yeah, they always travel in pairs. Like us. That’s the way it is with swans.”

“I didn’t know that,” I say, “I only see one.”

“Me, too,” She says.

My wife scans the area surrounding the pond and seems sad the swan is alone;
an almost bittersweet sentimentality.
Our conversation veers off on another relatively impossible tangent as we continue our walk
around the winding cemetery road,
both of us unconsciously searching for the second swan.

~m

• Lolly says:

  July 7, 2010 at 11:10 am

  Good reposts.

  Reply
• daisyfae says:

  July 7, 2010 at 7:11 pm

  nothing like a cemetery to remind you of the ticking clock. and please let us know if you spotted the other swan… we all want it to be there, you know.

  Kind of a sad ending, truth be told.
  One swan was killed by someone practicing archery.
  Current swan was introduced to a ‘new’ mate last Spring.
  Things seem to be going quite well.
  Will keep you posted.
  ~m

  Reply
• PiedType says:

  July 7, 2010 at 9:01 pm

  I had a grade school classmate who lived just two doors down from a cemetery and I thought that was incredibly creepy. Now I can’t think of a more serene place to go for a walk.

  We love the cemetery and consider those there our ‘personal’ friends.
  We are sure they hear every word we say . . .
  ~m

  Reply
• anonymum says:

  July 8, 2010 at 8:32 am

  Swans mate for life, so it’s unusual to see one on it’s own.
  I’m looking forward to walking this path you speak of so often, because I always find a cemetery quite serene….

  I do hope you enjoyed our little jaunt around the cemetery.
  Looking forward to our next ‘walk’.
  ~m

  Reply