So today my mom asked me to mail something for her. I used driving to the post office to mail a thank you note as an excuse to go to Menchies and get some delicious frozen yogurt. Then I got the idea while driving home that I should go and sit by the lake. So I drove to the park and walked to a bench overlooking the lake. And I sat in the sun and ate frozen yogurt and I looked out at the lake and it was really peaceful.
There was just a slight wind which rustled the surface of the water and caused it to glitter in the afternoon sunlight. The water was a beautiful deep blue and went on forever into a crisp horizon.
When I was little I always wondered why I couldn’t see Canada from the park, as it was just on the other side of the lake. But now I know that I can’t see Canada from the park because the earth is a sphere: the flatness of the earth is an illusion.
There was a redwinged blackbird that sat on the fence in front of me and the sounds it made broke the peacefulness. It began with a warble in the back of its throat which then broke into this awful but also lyrical cry. It sat there for twenty minutes making that call, like it was crying out for a lost child or partner or friend or lover. After I finished my yogurt I couldn’t handle much more of it, because it was just too sad…so I left.
But before the bird came, I don’t think that I have been that at peace in a while. But all good things must come to an end.
