Sometimes...you just need to zipline. The End.

Coward

So I joined this emailing list that gives you a "word of the day," every day. The task is to write something, and by something I mean anything, using that word.  It's a great little writing exercise.  I like it because every day, I put something down on paper that was once in my head.  There's something very satisfying about that.  Anyways, on Monday, the word of the day was "coward."  Here's what I came up with:

What the heck am I so afraid of?  These raw emotions collect like a wad, like an unwelcome crowd of Orcs coming for tea.  With a caw and a crow they get stuck in my craw, declaring war on my peace of mind.  I'm stuck in a boat with a single oar.  I paddle and row only to go in circles, creating an arc of disappointment.  How do you draw them out?  How do you ward them off?  Perhaps with a cord wrapped around the neck of Fear, attached to a speeding car rambling down the road of unfulfilled dreams.  Holy cow!  That would teach it a lesson.  Or not.  Ugh...it's such a cad, or better yet, a cod.  That's right, a cod.  Good thing I brought my rod of truth today so I can beat the living daylights out of it.  That would be a sight to see.  Totally rad.  Oh I have much ado.  It's time to OD on optimism, positive thinking and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.  Maybe I'll send that little monster a greeting card with one word: Coward.  That's what it is and what I will not be.  And now for the coda: Well there isn't one, at least not yet.  I guess fear doesn't always go away, but it's what you do in the face of it (and with a rod of truth).

"It is vain for the coward to flee; death follows close behind; it is only by defying it that the brave escape."  Voltaire

*Bold lettered words are all the words within the word COWARD

Falling

Ok...so it's finally September 1st. Funny how time flies. It seems like just yesterday I was supporting the local kiddie business with their lemonade stand and scarfing down snow cones (always Tiger's Blood with Vanilla ice cream on the bottom). This morning I enthusiastically donned my sweater and boots, only to realize later today that 24 hours doesn't magically turn the air from 80 to 55 degrees. My mistake. I just love the Fall so much. really. It's my favorite, as a matter of fact. For example, I've been done with school for two years now, but whenever I see those fresh shipments of school supplies, I still get happy little heart palpitations. And even though we have a good 23 days until it's official, I'm ready to dive head first into a pile of leaves.

Bring on the oranges, reds and yellows. Bring on the pumpkins and harvests and hay bails. Bring on the turkeys, full moons, and a fresh box of crayons. I'm so ready.

"Delicious Autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive Autumns." ~ George Elliot