A couple of nights ago, I saw a raccoon cross the road, hurrying to
get out of the way of the approaching car. A couple of nights before
that, it was an opossum that my headlights had picked out. At first,
I'd thought it was a large, ugly cat – and then I noticed the
pointy snout and the long pink tail.
The noteworthy (beautiful, strange, idiosyncratic, ironic, thematic,
defining) details of our lives often appear suddenly and disappear
just as quickly. As writers, it's our job to be open to them – and
sometimes, it's our job to record them, even if we're not quite sure
why.
Here are a few of the things I noticed today:
*A group of several tiny birds, greenish-yellow, with white chevrons
at the tips of their wings, busily picking at rust-colored catkins in
the birch tree outside my bedroom window.
*The way a downtown newspaper vendor held out both of his arms to
test for rain – a gesture that reminded me of religious statuary –
before pulling the hood of his parka over his head.
*Branches curving up like candelabra, strung and studded with
raindrops.
*The first open daffodils.
*A menagerie of plastic dinosaurs placed among the rocks and ferns of
a front yard landscape.
*The feral look in a stranger's eyes right before he passed me on the
sidewalk: “Slutwhore,” he said, aiming the comment straight at my
face.
*That clover honey doesn't taste like mesquite honey, even mixed into
tea and milk.
*Strata of memories and associations attached to a specific song (in
this case, Coldplay's “The Scientist”): within 20 seconds of
hearing the opening notes, I was in tears, even though I had been
feeling really happy only minutes earlier.
What are some of the things you've noticed today?
You might need to make a habit of recording your observations in every post. They were beautiful! Although the "slut-whore" man made me more than a little nervous.
ReplyDeleteYou made me realize I really only notice details when I'm observing for a reason (newspaper article, e.g.). But I'm going to notice something today for the simple joy of noticing, dang it.
ReplyDeleteI saw this dead pigeon that looked like it was in an ashram in a prayer pose - head bowed and pointing straight ahead, feet and wings tucked in. At first I thought it was alive and just cold, but it wasn't.
ReplyDelete