She showed up early, by her standards, but the truth is she’s always late. It’s not that she doesn’t try, or that she doesn’t value your time, she just gets distracted. She’s normal, as herself, but what is normal? Here she is though, on time by her standards, showing up with a half full bottle of wine. She flashes her Cheshire smile at me, and slowly starts to speak.
“I wanna be a lion” she says “but all I am is a pussy”
Then she giggles, sighs, and then hands me her half full bottle. She looks lost towards the ground, takes a deep long breath, and then explains shyly that she was thirsty. “That’s all, thirsty!” Then she lights up happily again. I don’t mind. I never do.
“Can we climb a tree later?” she asks walking away. I just smile, and tell her we can. In a room full of a dozen people I can only see her. My eye follow her like butterflies as she glides unnoticed through the crowd. The blue jean overalls, and pink tank top evening wear she’s shown up in. She has a powder blue scarf around her neck, and she’s wearing knee high socks with flip flops. As she turns towards me I notice her fading from sight, and then it suddenly occurs to me…
She’s been gone nearly twenty five year, and I’ve missed her every single one.
Goodnight, Michelle. It’s time I let go, and let your memory rest.
I hope you finally got to climb that tree.
