Two into One

"...and the heavens shall tremble as furious angels drag you back to me."

Apples

I expressed my incredulity to the shop's assistant, who coldly noted that he did not like my implication. He insisted that every article in the emporium was genuine—no fakes, imitations, or cheap knock-offs.

I must have appeared unconvinced, for the assistant narrowed his eyes at me and disappeared into the bowels of the shop, returning several minutes later. He removed the jar of pickled apples from its display case, and proceeded to carefully, reverentially, remove the wax seal from the lid of the jar.

I watched with fascination as the jar was opened, and a single, rosy apple pulled from it. It looked as if it had been picked just that day, at the peak of ripeness. With a paring knife, the assistant cut the tiniest sliver of flesh from the apple and presented it to me.

The flavor of that one small sliver was astonishing. It was as close to a perfect apple as ever there was. I was experiencing the essence of every apple ever eaten, and that ever will be eaten. When it was over, the sense of loss that filled me was sharp enough to move me to tears.

The rest of the apple was returned to the jar, which was then resealed. I paid five sovereigns for that single taste, and I believe I got the better part of the bargain.

—From the letters of Brother Ferdinand Genitivi to Sister Petrine, Chantry scholar

Black and White

Sometimes there is black and white. You can't totter on the line, choose a side. See, when you mix black and white you get gray. And no matter how much white you add back in, all you're going to get is gray.

Total trim-back

I pruned my oldest Desert Rose plant this evening. Now it is almost the same size as when I bought it, but rather than having 2 shoots, it has 6!

... still no flowers, though...

wish every day

If I had one wish per day, for the rest of my life, I would spend them all on you.

I wrote that, it is a Kevin original. But the funny thing is, it didn't begin like that. It was originally much closer to, "Today I would wish for you, but only if I got one wish per day for the rest of my life." Much less endearing.

Moral: if you must make a big decision, don't blow your wad on a bad result.

as a whole

sufh uad U rhii theoa a theot and be lgue to inceur all the tryi ther l aowe nas firsshe on. I woll be reyye woe. tjh aso tjea o jae aowais wanroe ap jwrrp wlla. And they will all regret what they did to me.

On the Forum

"Oh my. It is strange how you don't really think about those we talk to on here as PEOPLE. Obviously we are all people, but there is a feeling of infallibility to everyone on here. If someone is suddenly not posting, we expect that they are busy doing something else. I hope that others share a feeling of loss, by that I mean I hope that we are able to remember (gently) that we are all real people."
I posted this on the Forum. It was brought to my attention that Frosty (a man I have known for more than 10 years) passed away in his sleep.
Moral: everyone out there is a real person. They have lovers and mothers. You are a real person, who HAS touched loves. Even if you don't think you matter, you would be missed if gone.

old friends and new

I have many friends, more than I can keep track of. I don't mean that to sound cocky, I mean that as a bad thing. The problem with knowing a lot of people is that you "know" them all, you aren't "friends" with most of them. And many people are the same way, those who I consider close might think differently about me. And so, as I go through the list and have to pick 12 people to invite to a party, it is clear; some of the top 12 people that I want to invite wouldn't come. Terrible? At first I thought so. But I am not too insulted. Some people I know are too busy, some are too far, some are not compatible with other people, others have track records of not showing up.

So, as I lick these envelopes, I am forced to decide who to send them to. I have the 12 people. I just need 4 more addresses.

Moral: After a while you stop inviting them. You just don't bother anymore. It isn't about a party, it is about your life. So Jason, I hope that this story about my life sheds clarity on yours. Forget about her, she isn't worth your effort.