Classified Ad, “Lost and found”
To everybody East and West of me.
A storm came through last night and took my things away I guess it is my own fault, I shouldn’t have left them out in the weather could have nailed them down with some money, or the abusing of other people.
But all I had was some laurels and they don’t make those like they used to.
If you have or see my stuff please give me a call. I am missing my confidence and curiosity, although I still have my mind.
Amazing ! It was wrapped around the little ‘lean to’ fort my children built next to the garden. (which is destroyed by the way, the garden that is. (you really should cover the tender things in a storm and not expose them)
Here is a list of the things I am missing:
a green trash can, dog food bag, small multi colored rug, a blue sun hat with a daisy on the rim and my neediness.
Maybe you have seen them, maybe my dignity has made it your way and washed up on the banks of your security.
On the edge of your green judgement sticking out like a sore thumb all crumpled up and clinging to life.
It could be reaching out of the mud fumbling for tree or plant or slimy rock. Maybe my pride is with dignity and they aren’t struggling at all but are where they belong now, weighty and nestled in the shiny gravel of the river.
Who knows! I don’t miss them really, so you may keep them if you find them. They are trouble anyway. The maintenance was unbearable and I tired of those who would take pictures with their dumb luck. I saw them as they started to blow away, at first they got stuck to my neighbors white picket fence flapping in the wind. He pointed them out saying ‘Clean up that trash, I don’t want it in my yard!”
I thought about running after them but running only makes the wind blow harder and I have chased things before only to loose footing and stumble. Watching on to see the item stop tumbling for a minute so I can finally catch up and like some cosmic joke it begins to blow again and so I am left in that spot pondering scraped knees, palms out, sharp grime and dust whipping at my eyes.
To chase or not to chase. I chased a dollar once because I was really hungry and I must have bumped my face on the back of someone’s knuckles because I found myself in the woods.
I thought I could hear the wind laugh but when I looked up it wasn’t the wind at all it was a man with his pants around his ankles. Anyway, some good news… I left my laundry out on the line too, but it didn’t get blown away.
It just got twisted and knotted up. Stained and wrapped tightly around the thin rusting wire until it couldn’t spin anymore. So no worries with that, I think I will leave it up for a while, it’s not like it is in my neighbors yard. If you heard screaming, I apologize, it was just my TV, and there was a lifetime movie on about some lady who was a victim and then survivor and then martyr (aren’t they all?) So predictable and ‘cliche’.
And all she wanted was to punish the world, but It wouldn’t acknowledge her sacrifice or some other profound thing. But anyway… my point is, I couldn’t find the remote and so I just left it on to drown out the desperate howling of what sounded like a rabbit who was wounded but not quite dead and I was afraid it would attract the dogs.
I thought it was my faith dying or whatever and then realized it was just me. So if you see any of these things, I will be here, in the field feeling around for my life. It is very small, but dense so I don’t think it went too far.
I could probably just rinse it off in soap and water, unless someone else has a better Idea. I have seen lives on the side of the road along with a few obligations and responsibilities and big gulp cups, so I know they can be refurbished. I have never seen shame or self pity though.
I found a set of balls once and put them in the ”lost and found”, but no one ever claimed them. Probably blew out of the bed of an old dented pick up truck or belonged to a nice guy in a clean Cadillac family sedan but was thrown out by his well kept wife. Come to think of it, he is probably the same guy that put up the ‘discreet relationship wanted’ ad on this same site. If I stumble around out here in the field long enough, I might bump into him. He might have liked my neediness and my old sun hat.
That guy in the woods would really like his wife. But like I said, If you see any of these things leave a note for me in the obituaries or ‘free’ section or put a sign on your lawn or maybe slap someone you love when they start to think things could be better.
You can keep the rug, you might need it if yours is ever ripped out.
(update……… it will be ripped out sooner than you think)
Patty Musgrove
written in 2009-2010
RocknRollpoeTRY 