He spoke the language of birds
of pickle ****
and lichen
and ailerons
and shutter speeds
Where I saw a blackbird with a spot of red on a wing
He saw Agelaius Phoeniceus a passerine bird of the family Icteridae found in most of North America and much of Central America
His mind and mouth were full of facts and figures
about wind
and lift
and tides
and the right time to plant and to harvest tomatoes
Music and science were things to be dissected
and perfected
and each thing was measured
and calculated
and intentional
like the metronome I played with on the piano in the spare room
I did not always understand him
I did not always try to learn
a kid dabbling in punk rock and drawn to graffiti will
I found it hard to relate to someone so exacting
But while I do not remember his laugh
I do remember his joy
at explaining the circuitry in a handmade airplane
or the minutiae of the wondrous geometric cellular structure of a pine cone
A hike in the sloughs and I ran ahead
while he kneeled and saw a tiny marvel, a flower or a lizard hidden by my hurry, tucked behind a leaf and revealed by his slow and patient attention
He taught us to see
To look close
To take the time to do it well
And while we bristled at the pocket knife,
cutting candy into enragingly tiny mouthfuls
he taught us to savor
and make the moments last
He never rushed a photograph
He never hurried though a museum
He never pushed you out after dinner
He sat
and listened
and truly saw you
in focus.
While his eyes blurred with age
And his ears failed him
He never stopped taking in the moment and he never stopped his ever and perfect focusing
On the thing in front of him, perhaps small but made large by his attention
The last time I saw him
he clearly
and directly looked me in the eye
and in his way
gave a blessing
passing on his focus
“Send those kids my love. Take care of them.”
And in those words
I understood him.
Apr 13, 2019
Apr 13, 2019 at 11:20 PM UTC
He spoke the language of birds
of pickle ****
and lichen
and ailerons
and shutter speeds
Where I saw a blackbird with a spot of red on a wing
He saw Agelaius Phoeniceus a passerine bird of the family Icteridae found in most of North America and much of Central America
His mind and mouth were full of facts and figures
about wind
and lift
and tides
and the right time to plant and to harvest tomatoes
Music and science were things to be dissected
and perfected
and each thing was measured
and calculated
and intentional
like the metronome I played with on the piano in the spare room
I did not always understand him
I did not always try to learn
a kid dabbling in punk rock and drawn to graffiti will
I found it hard to relate to someone so exacting
But while I do not remember his laugh
I do remember his joy
at explaining the circuitry in a handmade airplane
or the minutiae of the wondrous geometric cellular structure of a pine cone
A hike in the sloughs and I ran ahead
while he kneeled and saw a tiny marvel, a flower or a lizard hidden by my hurry, tucked behind a leaf and revealed by his slow and patient attention
He taught us to see
To look close
To take the time to do it well
And while we bristled at the pocket knife,
cutting candy into enragingly tiny mouthfuls
he taught us to savor
and make the moments last
He never rushed a photograph
He never hurried though a museum
He never pushed you out after dinner
He sat
and listened
and truly saw you
in focus.
While his eyes blurred with age
And his ears failed him
He never stopped taking in the moment and he never stopped his ever and perfect focusing
On the thing in front of him, perhaps small but made large by his attention
The last time I saw him
he clearly
and directly looked me in the eye
and in his way
gave a blessing
passing on his focus
“Send those kids my love. Take care of them.”
And in those words
I understood him.