“To live is to learn“
He said as he held his crying son
Between sobs he felt fresh tears seeping into his coat
Damp reminders of times he himself broke down
Feeling the pressing weight of life and it’s expectations
He held the boy at arms length

“There was a time not too long ago…

The magnolias were in bloom
Sweet summer consumed sweet home
Alabama sang from the back of a black pickup
Doors open and tailgate down we loved the sound
Touchdown! rang across white cotton fields
Swaying in the gentle southern breeze
Whose caress cools the heat of the day
That buzzes with whirling dragonflies
And Hovering Toms humming to a bees melody
Blue Jays fought Bluebirds under blue skies
Pocked by slowly drifting cotton clouds
Lazily shape shifting into reflections of the land below
…
A rabbit, curious, ready to bounce
…
‘Ol Bo, the bird dog, pointing to a fresh ****
…
A deer, alerted, spooked by murderous cawing crows
…
All of this, seen by a boy in a tree
…

“Until he fell”
The father whispered to his son
Rolling up his sleeve he showed him the scar
“You see, my boy, I have broken a bone or two…
Some hearts
… Some dreams
Said things I didn’t mean…
Yet those magnolias still bloomed
The bees still buzzed
And birds either love or hate the color blue
Such is the nature of nature:
It is alive because it has learned to live“