Three Vignettes of No Particular Order (fifth in a series of 10)
I. Bark
Sometimes in the deep subtlety of night, Ray sat on his porch, whiskey by his side, cigar in hand and barked. It was a good, throaty bark and it resonated through the limbs and leaves, rose over the hum of street lamps. It was good enough to fool all the neighborhood dogs whether or not they themselves were barkers. It was not uncommon for Ray’s barks to set off a multitude of responses. The sounds seemed conversant and not at all combative. This gave Ray pleasure.
And in between sips of whiskey and draws of his cigar, he smiled at the simple absurdity of his barking aloneness.
II. If Night Were a Letter
If this night were a letter it would be a Z. Zagging itself to a self-fulfillment of morning. A horizontal patch of blue-black slanting southeast to a horizontal thing void of any color at all. Its fleeting lifespan static beyond all other things—providing only cover to 300 million interpretations and possibilities. One of them being a solitary man awash in cigar smoke, adrift in whiskey hunched over a notebook comparing his night to one bookend of a finite alphabet.
III. But a Name
Ray thought if he ever had another child he would name it Finn. Be it boy or girl, Finn would be its name. Though it was a dead heat between his two favorite literary characters, he did not think Atticus a fitting name for a child—but he’d toyed with Finch for a baby’s breath moment of time. Decided no and that Finn worked just fine. And though Atticus—or better, Scout’s rendering of Atticus—made him weep each visit, he thought the man’s perfection too heavy a burden to place upon any one person. But in Finn resided the admirable soup of mischief, wonder, sadness, humor, and nobility. While this too presented a burden of sorts, Ray felt it was at least conquerable. Imperfect perfection, if you will.
Ultimately, Ray laughed off such thoughts. For one who knew so little, he knew he would have no more children.
Of this he was certain. And he was not sad because of it.
Sometimes in the deep subtlety of night, Ray sat on his porch, whiskey by his side, cigar in hand and barked. It was a good, throaty bark and it resonated through the limbs and leaves, rose over the hum of street lamps. It was good enough to fool all the neighborhood dogs whether or not they themselves were barkers. It was not uncommon for Ray’s barks to set off a multitude of responses. The sounds seemed conversant and not at all combative. This gave Ray pleasure.
And in between sips of whiskey and draws of his cigar, he smiled at the simple absurdity of his barking aloneness.
II. If Night Were a Letter
If this night were a letter it would be a Z. Zagging itself to a self-fulfillment of morning. A horizontal patch of blue-black slanting southeast to a horizontal thing void of any color at all. Its fleeting lifespan static beyond all other things—providing only cover to 300 million interpretations and possibilities. One of them being a solitary man awash in cigar smoke, adrift in whiskey hunched over a notebook comparing his night to one bookend of a finite alphabet.
III. But a Name
Ray thought if he ever had another child he would name it Finn. Be it boy or girl, Finn would be its name. Though it was a dead heat between his two favorite literary characters, he did not think Atticus a fitting name for a child—but he’d toyed with Finch for a baby’s breath moment of time. Decided no and that Finn worked just fine. And though Atticus—or better, Scout’s rendering of Atticus—made him weep each visit, he thought the man’s perfection too heavy a burden to place upon any one person. But in Finn resided the admirable soup of mischief, wonder, sadness, humor, and nobility. While this too presented a burden of sorts, Ray felt it was at least conquerable. Imperfect perfection, if you will.
Ultimately, Ray laughed off such thoughts. For one who knew so little, he knew he would have no more children.
Of this he was certain. And he was not sad because of it.
posted by Ryan at 9:43 PM
2 Comments:
I've missed the vignettes of no particular order! Nice to see you posting more often and, as always, a pure joy to read!
Mmmm. Yummy. Really pleasurable.
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