elf-friend

 The deep woods seemed to grow thicker and darker as I raced through the thickets and briars.  I could still hear the baying bloodhounds behind me.  I stopped and listened, panting and gasping for breath in the cold November air.  The hounds seemed closer now.  I started to run again. I crossed a dry creek bed and scrambled up a steep embankment.  I was running slower now, my knees weak and my throat dry.  I wanted to rest, to lie down and press my hot face against the spruce needles of the forest floor.  But I had to keep going.  The dogs.  The dogs would get me if I stopped. Suddenly the trees grew less dense and finally gave way to a c

Stretching Warming up my muscles For the workout ahead Muscles twinge The stretches themselves A calming form of meditation Everyone grabs a blade Forming a large but somewhat lopsided circle Each blade’s blunted point Moves toward the center Then the salute Tips move upward Bells to lips Tips move up and out As if to pierce the ceiling The polished metal glinting Bells back to lips Points down toward the floor Every blade moving in unison The habit so firmly ingrained No one thinks on how it seems Choreographed “Suit up!” The instructor calls His tone at a normal level Nonetheless carrying to every co

Cocoa, why you calling me so late? I’m kinda on a diet right now Cocoa, why you meltin’?  Everything okay? Don’t crinkle ’cause I can’t be too loud Well fresh fruit’s in the kitchen Sometimes I wish it was you I guess Jenny Craig really can be wrong It’s good to hear your wrapper crinkling You taste so sweet Imagining that taste of heaven On my tongue it makes me weak And I never want to say goodbye To you ’cause it’s so hard to be faithful With that taste of heaven It’s funny that you’re calling me tonight And yes, I’m dreaming of you Your calories don’t matte

As she turned, the movement of that feather caught my eyes.  Ensnared, my eyes continued to take in her attire, all of which had seen better days.  Her chestnut-colored fur coat was just shy of ratty, with moth holes along the edges, the bottom hem coming undone on one side from lack of thread.  Her haircut was of a style popular 40 years ago, her hair itself so oversaturated with mousse that it was not only unnaturally stiff, but an unappealing shade of brown, where I surmised that her original color was closer to honey-blond.  The feather which had so captured my attention was from a peacock, but its pearlescent eye was faded, as if from gr

There is just enough of a breeze so that as you walk outside, you grab a light jacket.  Stepping outside, you look around in wonder.  The sun rides low in the sky this afternoon, glimmering off of the dewdrops on the leaves, which are transforming into myriad little specks of vibrant color.  Looking on the hillside, you see nature’s autumn bouquet developing, this tree yellow, this orange, this red; no two quite the same - and interspersed with them all are the pines and those very few trees who have already lost all of their leaves.  There’s a heavy, moist smell in the air, promising both the death of old, and the promise that life

His back toward you, you can still tell him from the others.  His hair makes a red-gold trail down his back, to just short of his shoulder blades, and his clothing is business casual, but loose enough to allow him to move smoothly.  He is large, build solidly, and only your distance from him allows you to avoid the inherent intimidation that many experience when looking up at him.  Across the floor he moves, from one person to the next, bending to advise them, sometimes using a long, tapered finger to display what he speaks of, then he moves to the next.  His movement across the floor, light on his feet, he looks as if he both prowls and danc

 That lady was about to drop one of those irritating Canadian pennies into the jar.  Wordlessly, I held out my free hand, and as a guilty flush rose on her cheeks, she dropped that single penny into my palm, before putting the rest of her pitiful donation into my old peanut butter jar.  As she walked away, my eyes were drawn toward the tiny coin in my hand.  Studying it, it seemed almost as if it was telling me its life story.  And then, it seemed to quiver underneath my close scrutiny.  Shaking my head, I stared even closer at it.  As I noted that the date was the year I was born, it literally jumped in my hand.  Don’t hurt me, I heard