The Pond

There once was a stream. At the end of this stream was a pond. With this pond was a boy. The boy tended to the pond every once in a while. He made sure no reeds over-ran it, cleaned out any trash, and kept the stream from becoming clogged.

One day a little girl wandered by the pond. She stopped and said to the boy "What a lovely pond you have."

"Thank you," The boy replied with a gracious bow.

"Might I dangle my feet a while in it?" The girl then asked.

"I imagine it would not hurt anything." The boy replied after some thought.

So the girl kicked off her shoes and socks, pulled her skirt up to her knees, and sat down with her feet dangling in the water.

The girl and the boy talked together as her delicate feet caressed the water, dipping in and out from time to time. They talked of all things and the boy gained a friend.

This went on for some time. The girl would come and visit the boy and dangle her feet in the pond and they would talk about the weather, the brightness of the sun that day, and what the birds might be singing.

One day, however, the girl did not bend down to untie her shoes when she showed up. Instead she looked hard at the boy, put her hands on her hips, and said "Might I go for a swim in the pond?"

The boy did not know what to say to this. He sat there for a while considering the request. At the end he decided this was his good friend and if anyone might have a swim in the pond it was her.

"Yes, you might go for a swim." He finally said, a little excited and afraid at the same time of the newness of her request.

The girl climbed out of her clothes and jumped into the pond. Her legs sank into the mud all the way to mid-calf. The water only came to her knees.

"Yuck!" The girl cried in disgust.

She tried to swim after this unpleasant experience but this endeavor faired no better. Soon the girl let out a frustrated sigh, stomped out of the pond, grabbed her clothes, and went home.

The boy and his pond never saw the girl again.

posted by Pacer 3/30/2001

Thursday, March 29, 2001

Paths

My footsteps make splashing sounds as
I walk along the concrete path
Past the flowers drenched in rain and
Past the bench that lies along the way
Alone.

When I first came here I walked
Along this path in the rain and the
Twilight while imagining my future, my
Life scrutinizing who I was on this path
Alone.

You and I walked this path when
I met you in the Spring and we
Skipped together and dreamed of each
Life we had and might have not
Alone.

Fall came and still we walked along
Together on the path, cold and in
Steady steps dreaming of spring and the
Life we might have had while not
Alone.

Spring has come once again and I walk
On concrete and dream of you as I pass
Flowers in bloom and birds in song and
I think of time and space and loss all
Alone.

posted by Pacer 3/29/2001

Wednesday, March 28, 2001

Mirage

Love is like a mirage,
Shimmering off in the distance.
Beautiful, glittering.
Every step you take
It takes as well
Not towards you
But away, never getting closer.
Just out of reach,
Maddening.
It is there, taunting until
You come to your senses,
Bitter disapointment.
Never to be had.
Ever.

posted by Pacer 3/28/2001

Tuesday, March 27, 2001

Passerbys

What is it that we see
Among the eyes of passerbys

posted by Pacer 3/27/2001

Memories

My memories are like ghosts; I can always see them but never touch them, they frighten me. They are everywhere.

posted by Pacer 3/27/2001

Monday, March 26, 2001

Joe E Brown

In some buildings you can smell memories. The Joseph E. Brown building, of Joe E Brown as I like to say, was one of those. It smelled old. Old college. You can almost touch the stories, the way the air feels. It is my favorite classroom building.

It reminds me of my grandmother's house and how it smelled. She moved about a month ago. Sad. It also sort of reminds me of my father's old office at work. He works at Georgia State Unviersity. His old office was in the world's first parking garage. The smell was different, more of a science than English smell, but the smell of learning going on was in both.

I think I am sad. Depressed, really. I have that feeling of emptiness again. I HATE that.

The trees are pretty outside the window when the wind makes them sway like that. The light from the sun is caught by the overcast of clouds and makes the trees seem fuzzy, unreal. Like a movie.

I have a general feeling of disconnectedness right now, which makes me wonder if I am depressed. I feel a bit of a nervous loneliness. I don't handle being lonely well. I miss smiling.

posted by Pacer 3/26/2001