In Good Company

[Guest guest]

When I sit in my front yard, I don't sit in the same

spot every time. But on each occasion place

my chair by a different plant. Plants impart

a unique feel to the mind. By the bird of paradise

I feel different than by the palms, or under the

pine tree with its cool somber cast. I can't tell you

how it's different, but it is. An octopus knows

about these things, their skins mimic what they

see. Maybe I have a mollusk mind, a good thing

to have when in good company.

 

Anyway, my neighbor has a cat. A proud

looking tom, gray, almost black, thick with

hair and no tail, but for a proud stump he

parades always erect. This fearsome creature

comes sometimes and honors me by sitting by.

He doesn't rub against my legs, or greet me in

any way, he just sit next to my shoes, as if they

were his kind. And so we share the communion

of kindred silent minds-- the cat's, the man's,

the plant's. And when he leaves, he doesn't say

good bye. No good byes are needed in such

eternal land.

 

Pete