I was standing on the balcony at the peak of Friday night’s storm. Wind blowing the trees, turning branches into dealership noodle-men. Thunder banging throughout the neighborhood and lightning blazing across the western skies.
Fritz was a little nervous…
“Dad are you crazy? You need to come in! What are you doing?”
“I’m tempting the storm… I’m pushing it along and it isn’t happy with me.”
Hazel moved Fritz to the side and joined me as my assistant Tempest.
The rain started pelting our faces. The wind raging through the trees. Headlights along the street illuminating the deluge of raindrops.
“Give me the baton dad! Give me the baton!”
I handed the imaginary conductor’s wand to my apprentice and she took control.
Then suddenly a gust trucked across the lawn and the American flag that I forgot to take down was ripped from its stand.
“It’s time to go in Love….”
“I’m almost done with this movement Dad!….. okay…. I’m done! Hurry, Hurry…”
We got inside, Fritz looked at his father and baby sister with that shit eating grin of his. George came out of his room and asked if I was doing that Shakespeare stuff again in the rain.
..And at the same time, Fritz and Hazel said, “Again?”
George replied to his siblings, “yeah dad thinks he’s MacBeth when it rains like this.”
“It’s not “MacBeth” it’s “The Tempest,” get it right boy!”
Hazel told George the flag blew away and he replied, “That is foreshadowing of what is going to happen to this country in November.”
Shakespeare and American Politics… you don’t get that west of Mannheim Road. Always let your kids see the crazy side. It will give them something else to laugh about when you’re gone.
Don’t let the raindrops get you down. The sun up in the corner will never ever frown.
Might be a good day to watch shit do stuff. Whatever you do today, do it with Gusto.
