"Freeze"

"Freeze"

I was on my way to the river after an annoying day of work. The river always helps when I’m stressed, it has a sort of mediation when I watch it. I like to go for walks sometimes to clear my mind and slow down the pace of life. As I put one foot in front of the other the world fades away behind me. The further I walk, the less there is around me. I think less when I walk, I take in more and that’s how I like it. Too much thought just clogs up your brain. 

On my way to the river I passed a woman walking into her yard. I said “hello” but the woman turned inside the fence without so much as a smile. Tough times, people can’t even be bothered with simple greetings. Some sense of community we have going. We’ve come so far from the golden age, what will it take to get back?

As I kept walking I passed a yard with a small fence around it and heard the bark before I saw what created it. The dog was running back and forth at the front of the yard as I passed, barking all the way. When I got to the end of the yard, he jumped up and put his two front paws on the top of the fence. I stopped and said “shhhhhh” quietly but he didn’t like that. He gave me a few quick barks so I started to walk again. I took a few steps and looked back. The dog was still watching me but his owner quickly came out the door and yelled at him.

“What are you barking at?!”

I kept walking and turned the corner, I could see the river. It practically skipped my heart beat. As I walked and waited in anticipation for the river that was closing in on me I passed some houses, one of which was for sale. 

As I walked up to the river bank I could hear the geese honking away. There’s a nice bench on top of the river bank so you can sit and watch the river go by without relent, as long as you want. I sat and watched the geese congregate on the shallow part of the river. They just kept coming and coming, two here, six there, all from up high in the sky, wings spread feet out to land in the water and say hello to the rest of the group. 

There’s something about birds that always seems to crack me up. Something about their constant chatter and movement, they’re just so goofy. They always have something to say. I wonder if they ever stop to smell the roses. 

It was cold out, just below zero but the river flowed on. It needs to be a lot colder for the river to freeze.