Appreciation Day

You could be a pebble, or we can be gravel. Gravel toughs up the bare foot and makes it so it hurts less when you put your foot down. Cracks on the street lead to pot holes. When it rains it becomes a lake for the residents living on Dr. Penfield; but there’s no time to stop and soak your feet because of the traffic. Rats. 

Trees don’t like to get pushed around. They much rather go with the flow of the wind. Me too, Trees. When this is over I’d like to be in the wind. Maybe I’ll play hide and seek with my nonno in the clouds, or catch the clouds that look like grasshoppers. 

I lay on a bench and look up to the sun with my eyes closed and see red. And it feels like a hug. The shadows of the leaves dancing could cause epilepsy. I feel bad for people with epilepsy for this reason. Silence is nice but so is the sound of a busy city. I used to want to live in solitude; just me and the animals. Now that I’ve moved into the city I don’t think I'd last a week. I need more than just me and animals. I need people too. 

I’m in a park now and I’m laying on a bench that’s chained to the ground. Not me though, I’m free. But I still sit with the bench. No- I’m laying with the bench. I feel the city and the trees and the grass and the gum under the picnic tables. I feel the breeze and the clouds and I tell them I’ll visit them when I’m older. They’re disappointed but it’s something they’ll have to get over. I’m having too much fun. I’m singing with the birds and watching the dog run around and poop. The dog will look at you when it’s pooping because it trusts you. Be this person; the person the dog trusts. 

Be kind to the birds and tell them they have a beautiful voice. Dance with the trees and maybe let the flowers smell you for a change. Drink water because it’s delicious. Drink beer because it’s also delicious. The sun comes out when you have an afternoon half pint. Walk the streets and step over cracks. Watch out for potholes. Don’t yell at bad drivers, yell at the cars. Walk on gravel. Touch grass.