The Conductor

Returning from downtown Chicago
After the seven-years-old's bedtime.
Her after-hours silliness kicks in
With a vengeance.

She has convinced herself
That I have no commuter ticket
And the conductor is moving close.
Her efforts to warn of his approach
Fell on my deaf ears.

Wide eyed she gestures
As active as the clickety-click of the tracks
Pointing at the approaching official.
Trying with all her might
To warn of the on-coming danger.

The previous evening
She had been trying to get me
To turn around and look behind
At some imagined spectacle.

I would fall for her tricks at times.
Sometimes I would not.
So I used her game of the day before
As an excuse for not looking now.

She shifted into high gear
Insisting that "He is right there"
With facial contortions previously unseen.
She gave it her all.

The dreaded confrontation occurred.
I calmly handed over our ticket.
She settled back into her seat
The inevitable disaster averted.

The conductor had not missed the show.
As he passed she stated "I'm free".
He calmly proceeded with his duties,
Punching tickets, saying "I doubt it".

Dan Vickers

© 2010 Dan Vickers

An assignment from our Creative Journaling Workshop (March 2009)...

The Portrait

Butch and Spike sat languidly at the table waiting on the others. Spike shuffled and reshuffled the cards to relieve the boredom. Butch stacked his chips clacking them over and over. Hank slunk into the room carrying the drinks. "Whiskey," grumbled Butch. "I was hoping for a brew." "Ah, finally, he comes" said Spike.

Chester sauntered up to the table wearing a tawny fur. He pulled out his pack of Camels and tamped the package. Pulling out a cigarette, he offered them to the others. Heads shook no as Hank lit up a cigar.

As they seated themselves around the table, the painter began setting up his easel. Placing a strange, black canvas on the easel, he mixed his paints on the palette and began his work on a masterpiece: "Dogs Playing Poker" on black velvet.

David E. McKee, Jr.

© 2009 David E. McKee, Jr.

Happy Holidays!

	Christmas 2008. Send us pictures of the lights in your neighborhood and we'll post them here.

	Halloween 2008 was an exciting time. Check out the pumpkins. Send us pictures of your pumpkins and we'll post them here.

Sayings to prevent short term perfectionism

ANYTHING WORTH DOING IS WORTH DOING.

IF YOU CANNOT DO SOMETHING PERFECTLY, DO IT ANY WAY YOU CAN,
(and do it again, and do it again, and do it again.)

The weakest part of a growing thing is the part that is growing.

I dance any way that I can, and I dance, anyway!

by Betty Foster

Diamanti

                  Religion:
          ancient, steadfast —
unyielding unmoving, unchanging
  tradition. Nation, World, Union:
         living, moving, loving,
            steadfast, radiant
                     Faith.

                   God:
         powerful, eternal —
   creating, ruling, destroying.
Enmity, Crisis, Revelation, Love.
   Beginning loving protecting.
            Faithful, truthful
                    God.

by Gregg Geist

Space

Thoughts like explosions,
Then and Now,
Beyond Then and Now ...
Thoughts that have
A life of their own ...

The Space between
Creates
Distances and Attractions,
Necessities and Art,
Perhaps Love ...

Seeing is believing,
But believing — Ah

Believing
Through telescopes,
And microscopes,
Thousands of scopes and probes ... even millions,
Backwards and forwards,
Forwards and backwards.
So much Space
Defies Perspective
To See.

Believing
Words and the faces,
Stories and pictures,
Movies and songs,
DNA.
Young and old
Old and young
So much Space
Defies Meaning
To See.

Yet, In the Space
There is the Belief
To See
What to Believe In.

I Cannot Believe
The Space is Empty ...
It is in The Space
Where My Beliefs Are Born.

by Mike Lawrence