MEMORIES OF THE ZOO

HOW ONE WORD ACTIVATED THE ARCHIVES OF MY MIND

My keyboard this morning seems to have taken me down the highway of my past again. Though the sun has yet to chase away night, I find myself verbally painting a picture of a time gone by. I think one's memory is more active when the sky is dark. Less distraction perhaps, so the mind wants to please its self with the only thing it can, and that is its memory.

Now as we all know memories can conjure up times of good, bad and yes, sad ones also. Sometimes it can be a cornucopia of them all, bringing smiles, tears and even guilt. One word can trigger a synapse in your brain to go into its archives and rerun one of those moments. Well that word with me was the Zoo. Yes, that cornucopia of memories came out flowing with emotions. With it, all the aforementioned tears mixed with smiles and guilt. So let me begin my journey again, down the highway of my past.

It was, as my memory recalls, a relatively balmy June day in Northridge. A suburb 20 miles North of the City of Los Angeles. Did not have much on the agenda that day so when a friend of mine called saying lets take a trip up the coast to Santa Barbara and go to its Zoo. That one word "ZOO" triggered off a myriad of thoughts, that were, I thought, stowed away forever in a portal well hidden in my mind. How that one word spurred the memory to reflect back in time. This is what came strewing out.

Last time I was at that Zoo, or any zoo for that matter,was with my son and the one I thought I was going to marry. That was the year of 1977. My son, Brian was 12 at the time and I but a mere lad of 31 with the prowess of Lion and always trying to prove it. My pride was with me, as hand and hand we walked. Laughing and loving with each step we took..

I remember we stopped by the llama pen. Brian bought some llama food ... llama pellets they called it. When he tried to feed one it spit the cude right back in his face. How we laughed as he wiped the spittle from his brow. He, so embarrassed and we so full of laughter.

Hah!! memories of days gone past. But like a flower that sprouts to early, fooled by a late winter thaw, both he, the flower and that relationship died. Killed by a surprise late winter freeze. One wonders if I had paid more attention, maybe checked the forecast and not always trying to prove my prowess, things might have been different. Now many years after I realize that I should have covered that little sprout to protect it from the freeze. Should have wrapped my boy in a warmer blanket of love. Maybe should not have been so cavalier with the beautiful woman I had by my side. Maybe, just maybe, that sprout, that boy, and that relationship would all be alive today. Sadly none of the three survived. That flower never sprouted again. That boy now resides with our Lord and is feeding that Llama in His zoo now. That beautiful woman who walked with me hand and hand now is someone else wife.

My how just one word, one thought can make you travel down that highway of days gone by. One thing I learned going back down that highway once again is, "If you think you have to prove your prowess to those you say you love ...perhaps you never had any prowess to begin with."

TK

Author's Note

A LITTLE SOMETHING DIFFERENT FROM THE TARNISHED FAMILY

Reviews

[Uc Amalu Jr]

Nice

[MarciFree]

I enjoyed reading your story, TK, and now I understand much better your allusion on another site to the ZOO. It is very difficult to put such a complex array of emotions into just a few words, but you have managed it wonderfully and left me hoping to hear some more.

[Raven Starhawk]

A darling treasure that I found upon searching through great writing. This is amazingly penned and is a sound delight in way of composure.

[Kenneth The Poet]

Lovely work.