July 5, 2026

Sat on the front porch listening to the deep throat of the rolling thunder. Rain came, not enough to kill the drought, but enough to get the green things through the night. I was up early watering on my own, amazed that a long time standing with the hose in my hand didn’t get the water very deep in.  Pulled up a vast wild grape root that I have been fighting for a decade, finally victorious. As I sat on the porch listening to the thunder, I listened also to my own thought. Why was I thinking those particular things? Arguments with people long dead, or who never existed. Contemplation of my youth, when, I realize now, I was averse to the show of emotions, keeping mine in check, avoiding or judging others when they let theirs free. This must have been a tribulation to my mother. I remember my fury when I found her crying because someone (maybe it was me) had hurt her feelings. My father embarrassed me terribly. I don’t know why. There were certain things I would say in front of him, and when I had to put my hand on his shoulder in Indians Guides and say “Pals Forever,” the mortification was unbearable. I don’t know why. I was too young when I noticed this for it to have come from me, but I had no memory of anywhere else to look.